Proverbs 20:1-21

¹Wine is a lecherous thing, and drunkenness is full of noise; whoever delighteth in these, shall not be wise.

²As the roaring of a lion, so and the dread of a king; he that stirreth him to ire, sinneth against his soul.

³It is honour to a man that separateth himself from strivings; but fond men be meddled or fools shall be mingled with despisings.

⁴A slow man would not ear for cold; therefore he shall beg in summer, and men shall not give to him.

⁵As deep water, so counsel is in the heart of a man; but a wise man shall draw it out.

⁶Many men be called merciful; but who shall find a faithful man?

⁷Forsooth a just or rightwise man that goeth in his simpleness, shall leave blessed sons after him.

⁸A king that sitteth in the seat of doom, destroyeth all evil by his looking.

⁹Who may say, Mine heart is clean; I am clean of sin?

¹⁰A weight, greater in buying, and a weight, lesser in selling, a measure and a measure, ever either is abominable at God.

¹¹A child is understood by his studies, if his works be rightful or right and clean.

¹²An ear hearing, and an eye seeing, or The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, God made ever either.

¹³Do not thou love sleep, lest needi-ness oppress thee; open thine eyes, and be thou ful filled with loaves.

¹⁴Each buyer saith, It is evil, it is evil; and when he hath gone away, then he shall have glory.

¹⁵Gold, and the multitude of gems, and a precious vessel, be the lips of knowing.

¹⁶Take thou away the cloth of him that was a borrow of another man; and for strangers take thou away a wed from him.

¹⁷The bread of a leasing, that is, gotten by a leasing, is sweet to a man; and afterward his mouth shall be filled with reckoning or with little pebble stones.

¹⁸Thoughts be made strong by counsels; and battles shall be treated by governances.

¹⁹Be thou not meddled or mingled with him that showeth privates, and goeth guilefully, and alargeth his lips.

²⁰The light of him that curseth his father and mother, shall be quenched in the midst of darknesses.

²¹Heritage to which men hasteth in the beginning, shall want blessing in the last time.