Proverbs 20:1-21

¹Wine is a scorner — strong drink is noisy, And any going astray in it is not wise.

²The fear of a king is a growl as of a young lion, He who is causing him to be wroth is wronging his soul.

³An honour to a man is cessation from strife, And every fool intermeddleth.

⁴Because of winter the slothful plougheth not, He asketh in harvest, and there is nothing.

⁵Counsel in the heart of a man is deep water, And a man of understanding draweth it up.

⁶A multitude of men proclaim each his kindness, And a man of stedfastness who doth find?

⁷The righteous is walking habitually in his integrity, O the happiness of his sons after him!

⁸A king sitting on a throne of judgment, Is scattering with his eyes all evil,

⁹Who saith, 'I have purified my heart, I have been cleansed from my sin?'

¹⁰A stone and a stone, an ephah and an ephah, Even both of them are an abomination to Jehovah.

¹¹Even by his actions a youth maketh himself known, Whether his work be pure or upright.

¹²A hearing ear, and a seeing eye, Jehovah hath made even both of them.

¹³Love not sleep, lest thou become poor, Open thine eyes — be satisfied with bread.

¹⁴'Bad, bad,' saith the buyer, And going his way then he boasteth himself.

¹⁵Substance, gold, and a multitude of rubies, Yea, a precious vessel, are lips of knowledge.

¹⁶Take his garment when a stranger hath been surety, And for strangers pledge it.

¹⁷Sweet to a man is the bread of falsehood, And afterwards is his mouth filled with gravel.

¹⁸Purposes by counsel thou dost establish, And with plans make thou war.

¹⁹A revealer of secret counsels is the busybody, And for a deceiver with his lips make not thyself surety.

²⁰Whoso is vilifying his father and his mother, Extinguished is his lamp in blackness of darkness.

²¹An inheritance gotten wrongly at first, Even its latter end is not blessed.