Daily Proverbs from the Bible conveniently home delievered via RSS and twitter http://www.proverbsfeed.com en-us Thu, 11 Mar 2010 01:38:05 -0500 garrett@garrettmoon.net (Garrett Moon) garrett@garrettmoon.net (Garrett Moon) 11:1 The Lord abhors dishonest scales,
but an accurate weight is his delight.
11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
but with humility comes wisdom.
11:3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the crookedness of the unfaithful destroys them.
11:4 Wealth does not profit in the day of wrath,
but righteousness delivers from mortal danger.
11:5 The righteousness of the blameless will make straight their way,
but the wicked person will fall by his own wickedness.
11:6 The righteousness of the upright will deliver them,
but the faithless will be captured by their own desires.
11:7 When a wicked person dies, his expectation perishes,
and the hope of his strength perishes.
11:8 The righteous person is delivered out of trouble,
and the wicked turns up in his stead.
11:9 With his speech the godless person destroys his neighbor,
but by knowledge the righteous will be delivered.
11:10 When the righteous do well, the city rejoices;
when the wicked perish, there is joy.
11:11 A city is exalted by the blessing provided from the upright,
but it is destroyed by the counsel of the wicked.
11:12 The one who denounces his neighbor lacks wisdom,
but the one who has discernment keeps silent.
11:13 The one who goes about slandering others reveals secrets,
but the one who is trustworthy conceals a matter.
11:14 When there is no guidance a nation falls,
but there is success in the abundance of counselors.
11:15 The one who puts up security for a stranger will surely have trouble,
but whoever avoids shaking hands will be secure.
11:16 A generous woman gains honor,
and ruthless men seize wealth.
11:17 A kind person benefits himself,
but a cruel person brings himself trouble.
11:18 The wicked person earns deceitful wages,
but the one who sows righteousness reaps a genuine reward.
11:19 True righteousness leads to life,
but the one who pursues evil pursues it to his own death.
11:20 The Lord abhors those who are perverse in heart,
but those who are blameless in their ways are his delight.
11:21 Be assured that the evil person will certainly be punished,
but the descendants of the righteous will not suffer unjust judgment.
11:22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout
is a beautiful woman who rejects discretion.
11:23 What the righteous desire leads only to good,
but what the wicked hope for leads to wrath.
11:24 One person is generous and yet grows more wealthy,
but another withholds more than he should and comes to poverty.
11:25 A generous person will be enriched,
and the one who provides water for others will himself be satisfied.
11:26 People will curse the one who withholds grain,
but they will praise the one who sells it.
11:27 The one who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
but the one who searches for evil – it will come to him.
11:28 The one who trusts in his riches will fall,
but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
11:29 The one who troubles his family will inherit nothing,
and the fool will be a servant to the wise person.
11:30 The fruit of the righteous is like a tree producing life,
and the one who wins souls is wise.
11:31 If the righteous are recompensed on earth,
how much more the wicked sinner!
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=11 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=11 Thu, 11 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT The First Collection of Solomonic Proverbs
10:1 The Proverbs of Solomon:
A wise child makes a father rejoice,
but a foolish child is a grief to his mother.
10:2 Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from mortal danger.
10:3 The Lord satisfies the appetite of the righteous,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
10:4 The one who is lazy becomes poor,
but the one who works diligently becomes wealthy.
10:5 The one who gathers crops in the summer is a wise son,
but the one who sleeps during the harvest
is a son who brings shame to himself.
10:6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
but the speech of the wicked conceals violence.
10:7 The memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the reputation of the wicked will rot.
10:8 The wise person accepts instructions,
but the one who speaks foolishness will come to ruin.
10:9 The one who conducts himself in integrity will live securely,
but the one who behaves perversely will be found out.
10:10 The one who winks his eye causes trouble,
and the one who speaks foolishness will come to ruin.
10:11 The teaching of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but the speech of the wicked conceals violence.
10:12 Hatred stirs up dissension,
but love covers all transgressions.
10:13 Wisdom is found in the words of the discerning person,
but the one who lacks wisdom will be disciplined.
10:14 Those who are wise store up knowledge,
but foolish speech leads to imminent destruction.
10:15 The wealth of a rich person is like a fortified city,
but the poor are brought to ruin by their poverty.
10:16 The reward which the righteous receive is life;
the recompense which the wicked receive is judgment.
10:17 The one who heeds instruction is on the way to life,
but the one who rejects rebuke goes astray.
10:18 The one who conceals hatred utters lies,
and the one who spreads slander is certainly a fool.
10:19 When words abound, transgression is inevitable,
but the one who restrains his words is wise.
10:20 What the righteous say is like the best silver,
but what the wicked think is of little value.
10:21 The teaching of the righteous feeds many,
but fools die for lack of wisdom.
10:22 The blessing from the Lord makes a person rich,
and he adds no sorrow to it.
10:23 Carrying out a wicked scheme is enjoyable to a fool,
and so is wisdom for the one who has discernment.
10:24 What the wicked fears will come on him;
what the righteous desire will be granted.
10:25 When the storm passes through, the wicked are swept away,
but the righteous are an everlasting foundation.
10:26 Like vinegar to the teeth and like smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
10:27 Fearing the Lord prolongs life,
but the life span of the wicked will be shortened.
10:28 The hope of the righteous is joy,
but the expectation of the wicked will remain unfulfilled.
10:29 The way of the Lord is like a stronghold for the upright,
but it is destruction to evildoers.
10:30 The righteous will never be moved,
but the wicked will not inhabit the land.
10:31 The speech of the righteous bears the fruit of wisdom,
but the one who speaks perversion will be destroyed.
10:32 The lips of the righteous know what is pleasing,
but the speech of the wicked is perverse.
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=10 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=10 Wed, 10 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT The Consequences of Accepting Wisdom or Folly
9:1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has carved out its seven pillars.
9:2 She has prepared her meat, she has mixed her wine;
she also has arranged her table.
9:3 She has sent out her female servants;
she calls out on the highest places of the city.
9:4 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,”
she says to those who lack understanding.
9:5 “Come, eat some of my food,
and drink some of the wine I have mixed.
9:6 Abandon your foolish ways so that you may live,
and proceed in the way of understanding.”
9:7 Whoever corrects a mocker is asking for insult;
whoever reproves a wicked person receives abuse.
9:8 Do not reprove a mocker or he will hate you;
reprove a wise person and he will love you.
9:9 Give instruction to a wise person, and he will become wiser still;
teach a righteous person and he will add to his learning.
9:10 The beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord,
and acknowledging the Holy One is understanding.
9:11 For because of me your days will be many,
and years will be added to your life.
9:12 If you are wise, you are wise to your own advantage,
but if you are a mocker, you alone must bear it.
9:13 The woman called Folly is brash,
she is naive and does not know anything.
9:14 So she sits at the door of her house,
on a seat at the highest point of the city,
9:15 calling out to those who are passing by her in the way,
who go straight on their way.
9:16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here,”
she says to those who lack understanding.
9:17 “Stolen waters are sweet,
and food obtained in secret is pleasant!”
9:18 But they do not realize that the dead are there,
that her guests are in the depths of the grave.
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=9 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=9 Tue, 9 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT The Appeal of Wisdom
8:1 Does not wisdom call out?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
8:2 At the top of the elevated places along the way,
at the intersection of the paths she takes her stand;
8:3 beside the gates opening into the city,
at the entrance of the doorways she cries out:
8:4 “To you, O people, I call out,
and my voice calls to all mankind.
8:5 You who are naive, discern wisdom!
And you fools, understand discernment!
8:6 Listen, for I will speak excellent things,
and my lips will utter what is right.
8:7 For my mouth speaks truth,
and my lips hate wickedness.
8:8 All the words of my mouth are righteous;
there is nothing in them twisted or crooked.
8:9 All of them are clear to the discerning
and upright to those who find knowledge.
8:10 Receive my instruction rather than silver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold.
8:11 For wisdom is better than rubies,
and desirable things cannot be compared to her.
8:12 “I, wisdom, live with prudence,
and I find knowledge and discretion.
8:13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate arrogant pride and the evil way
and perverse utterances.
8:14 Counsel and sound wisdom belong to me;
I possess understanding and might.
8:15 Kings reign by means of me,
and potentates decree righteousness;
8:16 by me princes rule,
as well as nobles and all righteous judges.
8:17 I love those who love me,
and those who seek me find me.
8:18 Riches and honor are with me,
long-lasting wealth and righteousness.
8:19 My fruit is better than the purest gold,
and what I produce is better than choice silver.
8:20 I walk in the path of righteousness,
in the pathway of justice,
8:21 that I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth,
and that I may fill their treasuries.
8:22 The Lord created me as the beginning of his works,
before his deeds of long ago.
8:23 From eternity I was appointed,
from the beginning, from before the world existed.
8:24 When there were no deep oceans I was born,
when there were no springs overflowing with water;
8:25 before the mountains were set in place –
before the hills – I was born,
8:26 before he made the earth and its fields,
or the beginning of the dust of the world.
8:27 When he established the heavens, I was there;
when he marked out the horizon over the face of the deep,
8:28 when he established the clouds above,
when the fountains of the deep grew strong,
8:29 when he gave the sea his decree
that the waters should not pass over his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
8:30 then I was beside him as a master craftsman,
and I was his delight day by day,
rejoicing before him at all times,
8:31 rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth,
and delighting in its people.
8:32 “So now, children, listen to me;
blessed are those who keep my ways.
8:33 Listen to my instruction so that you may be wise,
and do not neglect it.
8:34 Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching at my doors day by day,
waiting beside my doorway.
8:35 For the one who finds me finds life
and receives favor from the Lord.
8:36 But the one who does not find me brings harm to himself;
all who hate me love death.”
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=8 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=8 Mon, 8 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT Admonition to Avoid the Wiles of the Adulteress
7:1 My child, keep my words
and treasure up my commands in your own keeping.
7:2 Keep my commands so that you may live,
and obey my instruction as your most prized possession.
7:3 Bind them on your forearm;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
7:4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call understanding a close relative,
7:5 so that they may keep you from the adulterous woman,
from the loose woman who flatters you with her words.
7:6 For at the window of my house
through my window lattice I looked out
7:7 and I saw among the naive –
I discerned among the youths –
a young man who lacked wisdom.
7:8 He was passing by the street near her corner,
making his way along the road to her house
7:9 in the twilight, the evening,
in the dark of the night.
7:10 Suddenly a woman came out to meet him!
She was dressed like a prostitute and with secret intent.
7:11 (She is loud and rebellious,
she does not remain at home –
7:12 at one time outside, at another in the wide plazas,
and by every corner she lies in wait.)
7:13 So she grabbed him and kissed him,
and with a bold expression she said to him,
7:14 “I have fresh meat at home;
today I have fulfilled my vows!
7:15 That is why I came out to meet you,
to look for you, and I found you!
7:16 I have spread my bed with elegant coverings,
with richly colored fabric from Egypt.
7:17 I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
7:18 Come, let’s drink deeply of lovemaking until morning,
let’s delight ourselves with sexual intercourse.
7:19 For my husband is not at home;
he has gone on a journey of some distance.
7:20 He has taken a bag of money with him;
he will not return until the end of the month.”
7:21 She persuaded him with persuasive words;
with her smooth talk she compelled him.
7:22 Suddenly he went after her
like an ox that goes to the slaughter,
like a stag prancing into a trapper’s snare
7:23 till an arrow pierces his liver –
like a bird hurrying into a trap,
and he does not know that it will cost him his life.
7:24 So now, sons, listen to me,
and pay attention to the words I speak.
7:25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways –
do not wander into her pathways;
7:26 for she has brought down many fatally wounded,
and all those she has slain are many.
7:27 Her house is the way to the grave,
going down to the chambers of death.
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=7 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=7 Sun, 7 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT Admonitions and Warnings against Dangerous and Destructive Acts
6:1 My child, if you have made a pledge for your neighbor,
and have become a guarantor for a stranger,
6:2 if you have been ensnared by the words you have uttered,
and have been caught by the words you have spoken,
6:3 then, my child, do this in order to deliver yourself,
because you have fallen into your neighbor’s power:
go, humble yourself,
and appeal firmly to your neighbor.
6:4 Permit no sleep to your eyes
or slumber to your eyelids.
6:5 Deliver yourself like a gazelle from a snare,
and like a bird from the trap of the fowler.
6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard;
observe its ways and be wise!
6:7 It has no commander,
overseer, or ruler,
6:8 yet it prepares its food in the summer;
it gathers at the harvest what it will eat.
6:9 How long, you sluggard, will you lie there?
When will you rise from your sleep?
6:10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to relax,
6:11 and your poverty will come like a robber,
and your need like an armed man.
6:12 A worthless and wicked person
walks around saying perverse things;
6:13 he winks with his eyes,
signals with his feet,
and points with his fingers;
6:14 he plots evil with perverse thoughts in his heart,
he spreads contention at all times.
6:15 Therefore, his disaster will come suddenly;
in an instant he will be broken, and there will be no remedy.
6:16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
even seven things that are an abomination to him:
6:17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
6:18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that are swift to run to evil,
6:19 a false witness who pours out lies,
and a person who spreads discord among family members.
6:20 My child, guard the commands of your father
and do not forsake the instruction of your mother.
6:21 Bind them on your heart continually;
fasten them around your neck.
6:22 When you walk about, they will guide you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
when you wake up, they will talk to you.
6:23 For the commandments are like a lamp,
instruction is like a light,
and rebukes of discipline are like the road leading to life,
6:24 by keeping you from the evil woman,
from the smooth tongue of the loose woman.
6:25 Do not lust in your heart for her beauty,
and do not let her captivate you with her alluring eyes;
6:26 for on account of a prostitute one is brought down to a loaf of bread,
but the wife of another man preys on your precious life.
6:27 Can a man hold fire against his chest
without burning his clothes?
6:28 Can a man walk on hot coals
without scorching his feet?
6:29 So it is with the one who has sex with his neighbor’s wife;
no one who touches her will escape punishment.
6:30 People do not despise a thief when he steals
to fulfill his need when he is hungry.
6:31 Yet if he is caught he must repay seven times over,
he might even have to give all the wealth of his house.
6:32 A man who commits adultery with a woman lacks wisdom,
whoever does it destroys his own life.
6:33 He will be beaten and despised,
and his reproach will not be wiped away;
6:34 for jealousy kindles a husband’s rage,
and he will not show mercy when he takes revenge.
6:35 He will not consider any compensation;
he will not be willing, even if you multiply the compensation.
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=6 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=6 Sat, 6 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT Admonition to Avoid Seduction to Evil
5:1 My child, be attentive to my wisdom,
pay close attention to my understanding,
5:2 in order to safeguard discretion,
and that your lips may guard knowledge.
5:3 For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey,
and her seductive words are smoother than olive oil,
5:4 but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
sharp as a two-edged sword.
5:5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.
5:6 Lest she should make level the path leading to life,
her paths are unstable but she does not know it.
5:7 So now, children, listen to me;
do not turn aside from the words I speak.
5:8 Keep yourself far from her,
and do not go near the door of her house,
5:9 lest you give your vigor to others
and your years to a cruel person,
5:10 lest strangers devour your strength,
and your labor benefit another man’s house.
5:11 And at the end of your life you will groan
when your flesh and your body are wasted away.
5:12 And you will say, “How I hated discipline!
My heart spurned reproof!
5:13 For I did not obey my teachers
and I did not heed my instructors.
5:14 I almost came to complete ruin
in the midst of the whole congregation!”
5:15 Drink water from your own cistern
and running water from your own well.
5:16 Should your springs be dispersed outside,
your streams of water in the wide plazas?
5:17 Let them be for yourself alone,
and not for strangers with you.
5:18 May your fountain be blessed,
and may you rejoice in your young wife –
5:19 a loving doe, a graceful deer;
may her breasts satisfy you at all times,
may you be captivated by her love always.
5:20 But why should you be captivated, my son, by an adulteress,
and embrace the bosom of a different woman?
5:21 For the ways of a person are in front of the Lord’s eyes,
and the Lord weighs all that person’s paths.
5:22 The wicked will be captured by his own iniquities,
and he will be held by the cords of his own sin.
5:23 He will die because there was no discipline;
because of the greatness of his folly he will reel.
]]> http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=5 http://www.proverbsfeed.com/?d=5 Fri, 5 Mar 2010 01:03:00 CDT