Proverbs 25-26
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Hezekiah’s Collection
2 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter(C)
and the glory of kings to investigate a matter.
3 As the heaven is high and the earth is deep,
so the hearts of kings cannot be investigated.
4 Remove impurities from silver,(D)
and a vessel will be produced[a] for a silversmith.(E)
5 Remove the wicked from the king’s presence,(F)
and his throne will be established in righteousness.(G)
6 Don’t brag about yourself before the king,
and don’t stand in the place of the great;
7 for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here!”
than to demote you in plain view of a noble.[b](H)
8 Don’t take a matter to court hastily.(I)
Otherwise, what will you do afterward
if your opponent[c] humiliates you?
9 Make your case with your opponent[d]
without revealing another’s secret;(J)
10 otherwise, the one who hears will disgrace you,
and you’ll never live it down.[e]
11 A word spoken at the right time
is like gold apples on a silver tray.[f](K)
12 A wise correction to a receptive ear(L)
is like a gold ring or an ornament of gold.
13 To those who send him, a trustworthy messenger
is like the coolness of snow on a harvest day;
he refreshes the life of his masters.(M)
14 The man who boasts about a gift that does not exist
is like clouds and wind without rain.(N)
15 A ruler can be persuaded through patience,
and a gentle tongue can break a bone.(O)
16 If you find honey,(P) eat only what you need;
otherwise, you’ll get sick from it and vomit.(Q)
17 Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house;
otherwise, he’ll get sick of you and hate you.
18 A man giving false testimony against his neighbor(R)
is like a club, a sword, or a sharp arrow.(S)
19 Trusting an unreliable person in a difficult time
is like a rotten tooth or a faltering foot.(T)
20 Singing songs to a troubled heart
is like taking off clothing on a cold day
or like pouring vinegar on soda.[g](U)
21 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat,
and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink;(V)
22 for you will heap burning coals on his head,
and the Lord will reward you.(W)
23 The north wind produces rain,
and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.
24 Better to live on the corner of a roof
than to share a house with a nagging wife.(X)
25 Good news from a distant land
is like cold water to a parched throat.[h](Y)
26 A righteous person who yields to the wicked(Z)
is like a muddied spring or a polluted well.(AA)
27 It is not good to eat too much honey(AB)
or to seek glory after glory.[i](AC)
28 A man who does not control his temper(AD)
is like a city whose wall is broken down.(AE)
26 Like snow in summer and rain at harvest,(AF)
honor is inappropriate for a fool.(AG)
2 Like a flitting sparrow or a fluttering swallow,(AH)
an undeserved curse goes nowhere.(AI)
3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,(AJ)
and a rod for the backs of fools.(AK)
4 Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness(AL)
or you’ll be like him yourself.
5 Answer a fool according to his foolishness(AM)
or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.(AN)
6 The one who sends a message by a fool’s hand(AO)
cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.(AP)
7 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like lame legs that hang limp.
8 Giving honor to a fool
is like binding a stone in a sling.[j]
9 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like a stick with thorns,
brandished by[k] the hand of a drunkard.
10 The one who hires a fool or who hires those passing by
is like an archer who wounds everyone.
11 As a dog returns to its vomit,
so a fool repeats his foolishness.(AQ)
12 Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes?(AR)
There is more hope for a fool than for him.(AS)
13 The slacker says, “There’s a lion in the road—
a lion in the public square!”(AT)
14 A door turns on its hinges,
and a slacker, on his bed.(AU)
15 The slacker buries his hand in the bowl;
he is too weary to bring it to his mouth.(AV)
16 In his own eyes, a slacker is wiser(AW)
than seven men who can answer sensibly.
17 A person who is passing by and meddles in a quarrel that’s not his
is like one who grabs a dog by the ears.
18 Like a madman who throws flaming darts and deadly arrows,(AX)
19 so is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I was only joking!”
20 Without wood, fire goes out;
without a gossip, conflict dies down.(AY)
21 As charcoal for embers and wood for fire,
so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.(AZ)
22 A gossip’s words are like choice food
that goes down to one’s innermost being.[l](BA)
23 Smooth[m] lips with an evil heart
are like glaze on an earthen vessel.(BB)
24 A hateful person disguises himself with his speech
and harbors deceit within.
25 When he speaks graciously, don’t believe him,
for there are seven abominations in his heart.(BC)
26 Though his hatred is concealed by deception,
his evil will be revealed in the assembly.
27 The one who digs a pit will fall into it,
and whoever rolls a stone—
it will come back on him.(BD)
28 A lying tongue hates those it crushes,
and a flattering mouth causes ruin.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 25:4 Lit will come out; Ex 32:24
- Proverbs 25:7 Lit you before a noble whom your eyes see
- Proverbs 25:8 Or neighbor
- Proverbs 25:9 Or neighbor
- Proverbs 25:10 Lit and your evil report will not turn back
- Proverbs 25:11 Or like apples of gold in settings of silver
- Proverbs 25:20 Lit natron, or sodium carbonate
- Proverbs 25:25 Or a weary person
- Proverbs 25:27 Lit seek their glory, glory
- Proverbs 26:8 A stone bound in a sling would not release and could harm the person using the sling. A modern equivalent is jamming a cork in a gun barrel.
- Proverbs 26:9 Lit thorn that goes up into
- Proverbs 26:22 Lit to the chambers of the belly
- Proverbs 26:23 LXX; MT reads Burning
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