Proverbs 14

²Living honestly shows that you respect and honour God. Choosing wrong paths shows that you have pushed God aside.

³A foolish person's proud words hurt others — like hitting with a stick. But wise words protect and keep you safe.

⁴No oxen means the barn stays clean. But oxen do the hard work that grows the harvest.

⁵A trustworthy person always tells the truth. A dishonest person keeps saying false things.

⁶A mocker looks for wisdom but never finds it. The person who is open to learn finds it easily.

⁷Walk away from a foolish person. If they speak no wisdom, do not stay close to them.

⁸Wise people think carefully about the path they are on. Foolish people deceive themselves and others.

⁹Foolish people laugh at doing wrong. They think sin is no big deal. But God shows favour to those who do right.

¹⁰Your own heart knows your deepest pain. And no one else can fully share your deepest joy.

¹¹The home of wicked people will fall and be destroyed. But the home of those who do right will grow and flourish.

¹²A path can seem completely right to a person. But if it goes against God's way, it leads to death in the end.

¹³Sometimes people laugh on the outside while their heart aches on the inside. And happiness that ignores real pain does not last.

¹⁴A person who turns away from God in their heart will be stuck with the results of their own wrong choices. But a good person is satisfied because they have walked well.

¹⁵A naive person believes every single thing they hear. A wise person thinks carefully before trusting and acting.

¹⁶A wise person respects God and turns away from evil. A foolish person charges ahead with confidence — into the wrong thing.

¹⁷A person who gets angry too quickly does foolish things. A person who plans wicked actions is hated by others.

¹⁸Naive people end up with nothing but foolishness as their inheritance. But careful, wise people are crowned with real knowledge.

¹⁹In the end, those who do evil will bow before those who do good. The wicked will come to the gate of the righteous.

²⁰Poor people are sometimes rejected even by those closest to them. Rich people gather many friends around them.

²¹Despising your neighbour — looking down on them — is sin. But showing mercy and kindness to those in need brings true happiness.

²²Those who plan evil are going the wrong way. But those who plan to do good receive mercy and truth in return.

²³Real work produces real results. But just talking without working leads only to poverty.

²⁴Wise people wear their gains like a crown — their riches show their wisdom. But fools only produce more foolishness.

²⁵An honest witness saves people. A lying witness destroys them with false words.

²⁶When you honour and respect God, you gain a real and strong confidence. God becomes a safe refuge for your whole family.

²⁷Honouring God is like drinking from a fountain of life. It keeps you away from the traps that lead to death.

²⁸A king's honour grows when many people are under his care. But a ruler with no one following him is being destroyed.

²⁹A person who is slow to get angry shows great understanding. A person who gets angry too fast only lifts folly higher.

³⁰A peaceful heart gives life to the whole body. But envy rots you from the inside out.

³¹Mistreating poor people insults God who made them. Honouring God means showing mercy to those in need.

³²The wicked are swept away by their own wrongdoing. But the righteous have real hope, even in death.

³³Wisdom rests quietly in the heart of the person who truly understands. But a fool's emptiness is easy to see.

³⁴When a nation does what is right, it rises up and is honoured. But when a people chooses sin, it becomes a disgrace.

³⁵A king is pleased with a servant who acts wisely. But he is angry at the one who brings disgrace.