Various observations of moral virtues, and their contrary vices, 1-35.
1 Every wise woman builds her house,/
but the foolish plucks it down with her hands.
2 He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD,/
but he who is perverse in his ways despises him.
3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride,/
but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.
4 Where no oxen are, the manger is clean,/
but much increase is by the strength of the ox.
5 A faithful witness will not lie,/
but a false witness will utter lies.
6 A scorner seeks wisdom and does not find it,/
but knowledge is easy to him who understands.
7 Go from the presence of a foolish man,/
when you do not perceive in him the lips of knowledge.
8 The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way,/
but the folly of fools is deceit.
9 Fools make a mock at sin,/
but among the righteous there is favor.
10 The heart knows its own bitterness,/
and a stranger does not intermeddle with its joy.
11 The house of the wicked shall be overthrown,/
but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.
12 There is a way which seems right to a man,/
but the ways of death are at its end.
13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful,/
and the end of that mirth is heaviness.
14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways,/
and a good man shall be satisfied from himself.
15 The simple believes every word,/
but the prudent man looks well to his going.
16 A wise man fears and departs from evil,/
but the fool rages and is confident.
17 He who is quick to anger deals foolishly,/
and a man of wicked devices is hated.
18 The simple inherit folly,/
but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19 The evil bow before the good,/
and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
20 The poor is hated even by his own neighbor,/
but the rich has many friends.
21 He who despises his neighbor sins,/
but he who has mercy on the poor is happy.
22 Do those who devise evil not err?/
But mercy and truth shall be to those who devise good.
23 In all labor there is profit,/
but the talk of the lips tends only to penury.
24 The crown of the wise is their riches,/
but the foolishness of fools is folly.
25 A true witness delivers souls,/
but a deceitful witness speaks lies.
26 In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence,/
and his children shall have a place of refuge.
27 The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,/
to depart from the snares of death.
28 In the multitude of people is the king's honor,/
but in the lack of people is the destruction of the prince.
29 He who is slow to wrath is of great understanding,/
but he who is hasty of spirit exalts folly.
30 A sound heart is the life of the flesh,/
but envy the rottenness of the bones.
31 He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker,/
but he who honors him has mercy on the poor.
32 The wicked is driven away in his wickedness,/
but the righteous has hope in his death.
33 Wisdom rests in the heart of him who has understanding,/
and it is made known in the midst of fools.
34 Righteousness exalts a nation,/
but sin is a reproach to any people.
35 The king's favor is toward a wise servant,/
but his wrath is against him who causes shame.
Matthew Henry Commentary - Proverbs, Chapter 14[➚]
John Gill's Chapter Summary:
From the tenth chapter to the twenty-fifth are various proverbial sentences without any very apparent connection or coherence with each other, describing righteous and wicked men, setting forth their different temper, conduct, and actions, and the fruits and effects of them. It should be observed, that frequently in the preceding chapters two persons are represented as women: one goes by the name of "Wisdom," the other is called the "foolish" woman and a "harlot," the former is clearly to be understood of Christ, and the latter, being opposed to him, must be antichrist, the whore of Rome and mother of harlots. Now in the following part of this book two sorts of persons are spoken of, the one as wise, righteous, good, etc., and the other as foolish, wicked, etc., who are no other than the followers of Christ and antichrist, which observation is a key to the whole book.