Proverbs 21:5-16 NIV

Proverbs 21:5-16

The plans of the diligent lead to profit

as surely as haste leads to poverty.

A fortune made by a lying tongue

is a fleeting vapor and a deadly snare.21:6 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Vulgate; most Hebrew manuscripts vapor for those who seek death

The violence of the wicked will drag them away,

for they refuse to do what is right.

The way of the guilty is devious,

but the conduct of the innocent is upright.

Better to live on a corner of the roof

than share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

The wicked crave evil;

their neighbors get no mercy from them.

When a mocker is punished, the simple gain wisdom;

by paying attention to the wise they get knowledge.

The Righteous One21:12 Or The righteous person takes note of the house of the wicked

and brings the wicked to ruin.

Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor

will also cry out and not be answered.

A gift given in secret soothes anger,

and a bribe concealed in the cloak pacifies great wrath.

When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous

but terror to evildoers.

Whoever strays from the path of prudence

comes to rest in the company of the dead.

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