Warnings against Sin

¹My child, have you sinned? Don’t sin anymore.

But ask forgiveness for your past sins.

²Flee from sin as from a snake,

for if you come near sin, it will bite you.

Its teeth are the teeth of a lion,

which can destroy human lives.

³All lawlessness is like a two-edged sword;

the wound it inflicts will never heal.

⁴Terror and arrogance will cause riches to waste away.

In this way the household of the proud will be reduced to nothing.

⁵The prayer of the poor will be heard by the Lord,

and his judgment comes quickly.

⁶Those who hate correction follow in the footsteps of sinners,

but those who fear the Lord repent in their heart.

⁷The eloquent are heard by everyone,

but the sensible person notices when such people slip.

⁸To build a house with borrowed money

is like gathering stones for your own tomb.

⁹A band of wicked people is like a bundle of fibers;

they are destined to be thrown into a blazing fire.

¹⁰The way of sinners is paved with smooth stones,

but eventually it leads to death.

The Wise and the Foolish

¹¹Those who observe the law will control their thinking.

The fear of the Lord results in wisdom.

¹²Those who are not clever cannot be taught,

but a certain kind of cleverness makes a person bitter.

¹³The knowledge of the wise will swell like a flood,

and their advice is like a living spring.

¹⁴The mind of a fool is like a broken jar;

it cannot hold any knowledge.

¹⁵When intelligent people hear a wise saying,

they applaud it and add to it.

When fools hear it, they sneer at it

and throw it away.

¹⁶The talk of a fool is like a burden on a journey,

but it is delightful to hear the intelligent speak.

¹⁷The words of a sensible person are sought after in the congregation,

and they will ponder the words in their minds.

¹⁸Like a house that lies in ruins, so is wisdom to a fool,

and to the ignorant, knowledge is merely babbling speech.

¹⁹To a senseless person, education is like fetters on the feet

and shackles on the right hand.

²⁰Fools laugh loudly,

but the clever smile quietly.

²¹To the sensible person, education is like a gold ornament

or a bracelet on the right arm.

²²A fool rushes into a house,

but an experienced person waits respectfully outside.

²³An ill-mannered person peers into a house from the doorway,

but one who is well-taught waits outside.

²⁴It is bad manners for a person to listen outside someone’s door.

The discreet would be upset by such a disgrace.

²⁵Babblers merely repeat what others have said,

but the wise carefully measure their words.

²⁶Fools blurt out whatever they are thinking,

but the wise think before they speak.

²⁷When the ungodly curse their adversaries,

they are cursing themselves.

²⁸Gossips degrade themselves

and gain the hatred of the whole neighborhood.