Proverbs 13

Contrast of the Upright and the Wicked

¹A wise son accepts his father’s discipline,

But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

²From the fruit of a person’s mouth he enjoys good,[#13:2 Lit eats]

But the desire of the treacherous is violence.

³One who guards his mouth protects his life;

One who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

⁴The soul of the lazy one craves and gets nothing,[#13:4 Lit idle]

But the soul of the diligent is made prosperous.

⁵A righteous person hates a false statement,

But a wicked person acts disgustingly and shamefully.

⁶Righteousness guards the one whose way is blameless,[#13:6 Lit blamelessness of way]

But wickedness brings the sinner to ruin.

⁷There is one who pretends to be rich but has nothing;

Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth.

⁸The ransom of a person’s life is his wealth,

But the poor hears no rebuke.

⁹The light of the righteous rejoices,[#13:9 I.e., shines brightly]

But the lamp of the wicked goes out.

¹⁰Through overconfidence comes nothing but strife,[#13:10 Lit gives]

But wisdom is with those who receive counsel.

¹¹Wealth obtained from nothing dwindles,[#13:11 Prob. referring to fraud]

But one who gathers by labor increases it.

¹²Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

But desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

¹³One who despises the word will do badly,

But one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.

¹⁴The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,[#13:14 Or law]

To turn aside from the snares of death.

¹⁵Good understanding produces favor,

But the way of the treacherous is their own disaster.

¹⁶Every prudent person acts with knowledge,

But a fool displays foolishness.

¹⁷A wicked messenger falls into adversity,

But a faithful messenger brings healing.

¹⁸Poverty and shame will come to one who neglects discipline,[#13:18 Or instruction]

But one who complies with rebuke will be honored.

¹⁹Desire realized is sweet to the soul,

But it is an abomination to fools to turn away from evil.

²⁰One who walks with wise people will be wise,

But a companion of fools will suffer harm.

²¹Adversity pursues sinners,

But the righteous will be rewarded with prosperity.

²²A good person leaves an inheritance to his grandchildren,[#13:22 Lit sons’ sons]

And the wealth of a sinner is stored up for the righteous.

²³Abundant food is in the uncultivated ground of the poor,

But it is swept away by injustice.

²⁴He who withholds his rod hates his son,[#13:24 I.e., correction or discipline]

But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.

²⁵The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,[#13:25 Lit eats to the satisfaction of his soul]

But the stomach of the wicked is in need.