Proverbs 21:8-18

⁸Guilty people live crooked lives, but the innocent follow straight paths.

⁹It's better to live in a corner of a housetop than to share a whole house with an argumentative wife.

¹⁰Evil people love to do wrong, they don't care what pain they cause anyone.

¹¹When a mocker is punished, an immature person can learn wisdom. When the wise are educated, they gain knowledge.

¹²The God of justice sees what happens in the homes of the wicked, and brings the wicked down in disaster.

¹³If you refuse to hear the cries of the poor, your cries won't be heard either.

¹⁴A gift given in secret calms down anger, and a hidden bribe soothes furious rage.

¹⁵When justice is done, the good are happy, but it brings terror to those who do evil.

¹⁶Anyone who wanders away from the path of understanding ends up with the dead.

¹⁷If you love pleasure you'll become poor; if you love wine and olive oil you won't ever be rich.

¹⁸The wicked pay the price and not the good; those who are deceitful and not those who live right.