1It is better to eat a dry crust of bread in peace and quiet than to eat a big dinner in a house full of fighting.2A wise servant will rule over a shameful child. He will be given part of the property as if he were a family member.3Fire tests silver, and heat tests gold. But the LORD tests our hearts.4Evil people listen to lies. Lying people listen to evil.5Anyone who laughs at those who are poor makes fun of their Maker. Anyone who is happy when others suffer will be punished.6Grandchildren are like a crown to older people. And children are proud of their parents.7Fancy words don’t belong in the mouths of ungodly fools. And lies certainly don’t belong in the mouths of rulers!8Those who give money think it will buy them favours. They think that no matter where they turn, they will succeed.9Whoever wants to show love forgives a wrong. But those who talk about it separate close friends.10A person who understands what is right learns more from just a warning than a foolish person learns from 100 strokes with a whip.11An evil person tries to keep others from obeying God. The messenger of death will be sent against them.12It is better to meet a bear whose cubs have been stolen than to meet a foolish person who is acting foolishly.13Evil will never leave the house of anyone who pays back evil for good.14Starting to argue is like making a crack in a dam. So drop the matter before a fight breaks out.15The LORD hates two things. He hates it when the guilty are set free. He also hates it when those who aren’t guilty are punished.16Why should a foolish person try to buy wisdom? They are not even able to understand it.17A friend loves at all times. They are there to help when trouble comes.18A person who has no sense agrees to pay what other people owe. It isn’t wise to promise to pay other people’s bills.19The one who loves to argue loves to sin. The one who builds a high gate is just asking to be destroyed.20If your heart is twisted, you won’t succeed. If your tongue tells lies, you will get into trouble.21It is sad to have a foolish child. The parents of a godless fool have no joy.22A cheerful heart makes you healthy. But a broken spirit dries you up.23Anyone who does wrong accepts favours in secret. Then they turn what is right into what is wrong.24Anyone who understands what is right keeps wisdom in view. But the eyes of a foolish person look everywhere else.25A foolish child makes his father sad and his mother sorry.26It isn’t good to fine those who aren’t guilty. So it certainly isn’t good to whip officials just because they are honest.27Anyone who has knowledge controls their words. Anyone who has understanding is not easily upset.28We think even foolish people are wise if they keep silent. We think they understand what is right if they control their tongues.
Proverbs 17
English Standard Version
1Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting[1] with strife. (Pr 15:17)2A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers. (2Sa 16:4; Pr 10:5; Pr 17:21; Pr 17:25; Pr 19:26)3The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the Lord tests hearts. (1Ch 29:17; Ps 26:2; Pr 27:21; Jer 17:10; Mal 3:3)4An evildoer listens to wicked lips, and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.5Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker; he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished. (Job 31:29; Pr 14:31; Pr 16:5; Pr 24:17; Ob 1:12; Mt 25:40; Mt 25:45)6Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their fathers. (Ps 127:3; Ps 128:6; Pr 16:31)7Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a prince. (Pr 6:17; Pr 19:10; Pr 26:1)8A bribe is like a magic[2] stone in the eyes of the one who gives it; wherever he turns he prospers. (Ex 23:8; Pr 17:23; Pr 18:16; Pr 19:6; Pr 21:14; Isa 1:23; Am 5:12)9Whoever covers an offense seeks love, but he who repeats a matter separates close friends. (Pr 10:12; Pr 16:28)10A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool.11An evil man seeks only rebellion, and a cruel messenger will be sent against him. (1Ki 2:29)12Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly. (2Sa 17:8; Pr 27:3; Ho 13:8)13If anyone returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house. (2Sa 12:10; Ps 35:12; Ps 109:4; Pr 20:22; Mt 5:39)14The beginning of strife is like letting out water, so quit before the quarrel breaks out. (Pr 20:3; Pr 25:8)15He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the Lord. (Ex 23:7; Job 34:17; Ps 94:21; Pr 17:26; Pr 18:5; Pr 24:24; Isa 5:23)16Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom when he has no sense? (Pr 23:23)17A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. (Ru 1:16; Job 6:14; Pr 18:24; Pr 27:10)18One who lacks sense gives a pledge and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor.19Whoever loves transgression loves strife; he who makes his door high seeks destruction. (Pr 11:2; Pr 29:23)20A man of crooked heart does not discover good, and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity. (Pr 11:20)21He who sires a fool gets himself sorrow, and the father of a fool has no joy. (Pr 10:1; Pr 19:13)22A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (Ps 22:15; Pr 12:25; Pr 15:13)23The wicked accepts a bribe in secret[3] to pervert the ways of justice. (Pr 17:8; Mic 3:11; Mic 7:3)24The discerning sets his face toward wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth. (De 30:11; Pr 14:6; Pr 15:14; Ec 2:14)25A foolish son is a grief to his father and bitterness to her who bore him. (Pr 10:1; Pr 17:21; Pr 23:25)26To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good, nor to strike the noble for their uprightness. (Pr 17:15)27Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. (Pr 10:19; Jas 1:19)28Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent. (Job 13:5)