Proverbs 13–15
1 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction,
but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2 A man will eat well by the fruit of his mouth,
but the soul of the transgressor will eat violence.
3 He who guards his mouth preserves his life,
but he who opens wide his lips will have destruction.
4 The soul of the sluggard desires, and has nothing;
but the soul of the diligent will be made fat.
5 A righteous man hates lying,
but a wicked man is loathsome and comes to shame.
6 Righteousness keeps him who is upright in the way,
but wickedness overthrows the sinner.
7 There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing;
there is one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
8 The ransom of a man’s life is his riches,
but the poor does not hear rebuke.
9 The light of the righteous rejoices,
but the lamp of the wicked will be put out.
10 Only by pride comes contention,
but with the well-advised is wisdom.
11 Wealth gained by vanity will be diminished,
but he who gathers by labor will increase.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life.
13 Whoever despises the word will be destroyed,
but he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.
14 The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,
to depart from the snares of death.
15 Good understanding gives favor,
but the way of transgressors is hard.
16 Every prudent man deals with knowledge,
but a fool lays open his folly.
17 A wicked messenger falls into mischief,
but a faithful envoy is health.
18 Poverty and shame will be to him who refuses instruction,
but he who regards reproof will be honored.
19 The desire accomplished is sweet to the soul,
but it is abomination to fools to depart from evil.
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise,
but a companion of fools will be destroyed.
21 Evil pursues sinners,
but to the righteous good will be repaid.
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.
23 Much food is in the tillage of the poor,
but for lack of justice it is destroyed.
24 He who spares his rod hates his son,
but he who loves him disciplines him early.
25 The righteous eats to the satisfying of his soul,
but the stomach of the wicked will want.
Chapter 14
1 Every wise woman builds her house,
but the foolish pulls 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 will preserve them.
4 Where no oxen are, the crib 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 share its joy.
11 The house of the wicked will be overthrown,
but the tent of the upright will flourish.
12 There is a way that seems right to a man,
but its end is the way of death.
13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful,
and the end of that cheer is grief.
14 The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways,
but a good man will be satisfied with his.
15 The simple believes every word,
but the prudent man considers his steps.
16 A wise man fears and departs from evil,
but the fool rages and is self-confident.
17 He who is quick-tempered 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, happy is he.
22 Do they not err who devise evil?
But mercy and truth will be to those who devise good.
23 In all labor there is profit,
but mere talk leads only to poverty.
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 will 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 a king’s honor,
but in the lack of people is the destruction of a 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,
but that which is in the midst of fools is made known.
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.
Chapter 15
1 A soft answer turns away wrath,
but grievous words stir up anger.
2 The tongue of the wise uses knowledge aright,
but the mouth of fools pours out foolishness.
3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
keeping watch on the evil and the good.
4 A wholesome tongue is a tree of life,
but perverseness in it crushes the spirit.
5 A fool despises his father’s instruction,
but he who regards reproof is prudent.
6 In the house of the righteous is much treasure,
but in the revenue of the wicked is trouble.
7 The lips of the wise disperse knowledge,
but the heart of the foolish does not do so.
8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but the prayer of the upright is His delight.
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the Lord,
but He loves him who follows after righteousness.
10 Correction is grievous to him who forsakes the way,
and he who hates reproof will die.
11 Death and destruction are before the Lord;
so how much more the hearts of the children of men.
12 A scorner does not love one who reproves him,
nor will he go to the wise.
13 A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance,
but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
14 The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge,
but the mouth of fools feeds on foolishness.
15 All the days of the afflicted are evil,
but he who is of a merry heart has a continual feast.
16 Better is little with the fear of the Lord
than great treasure with trouble.
17 Better is a dinner of herbs where love is
than a fatted calf with hatred.
18 A wrathful man stirs up strife,
but he who is slow to anger appeases strife.
19 The way of the slothful man is as a hedge of thorns,
but the way of the righteous is made plain.
20 A wise son makes a father glad,
but a foolish man despises his mother.
21 Folly is joy to him who is destitute of wisdom,
but a man of understanding walks uprightly.
22 Without counsel, purposes are disappointed,
but in the multitude of counselors they are established.
23 A man has joy by the answer of his mouth,
and a word spoken in due season, how good it is!
24 The way of life leads above for the wise,
that he may depart from Sheol below.
25 The Lord will destroy the house of the proud,
but He will establish the border of the widow.
26 The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord,
but the words of the pure are pleasant words.
27 He who is greedy of gain troubles his own house,
but he who hates bribes will live.
28 The heart of the righteous studies to answer,
but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things.
29 The Lord is far from the wicked,
but He hears the prayer of the righteous.
30 The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
and a good report makes the bones healthy.
31 The ear that hears the reproof of life
abides among the wise.
32 He who refuses instruction despises his own soul,
but he who hears reproof gains understanding.
33 The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom,
and before honor is humility.
2 Corinthians 5
1 We know that if our earthly house, this tent, were to be destroyed, we have an eternal building of God in the heavens, a house not made with hands. 2 In this one we groan, earnestly desiring to be sheltered with our house which is from heaven. 3 Thus being sheltered, we shall not be found unsheltered. 4 For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we wish to be unclothed, but to be further clothed, so that what is mortal might be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who has created us for this very thing is God, who also has given to us the guarantee of the Spirit.
6 Therefore we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Instead, I say that we are confident and willing to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. 9 So whether present or absent, we labor that we may be accepted by Him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive his recompense in the body, according to what he has done, whether it was good or bad.
11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men. But we are revealed to God, and I trust we are also revealed in your consciences. 12 For we are not commending ourselves again to you. Instead, we give you occasion to boast on our behalf, that you may have something to answer those who boast in appearance and not in heart. 13 If we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ constrains us, because we thus judge: that if one died for all, then all have died. 15 And He died for all, that those who live should not from now on live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
16 So from now on we do not regard anyone according to the flesh. Yes, though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet we do not regard Him as such from now on. 17 Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things have passed away. Look, all things have become new. 18 All this is from God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their sins against them, and has entrusted to us the message of reconciliation. 20 So we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us. We implore you in Christ’s stead: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.