Read the Bible

^1 (a)Never boast about tomorrow. You don't know what will happen between now and then.

² Let other people praise you—even strangers; never do it yourself.

³ The weight of stone and sand is nothing compared to the trouble that stupidity can cause.

⁴ Anger is cruel and destructive, but it is nothing compared to jealousy.

⁵ Better to correct someone openly than to let him think you don't care for him at all.

⁶ Friends mean well, even when they hurt you. But when an enemy puts his arm around your shoulder—watch out!

⁷ When you are full, you will refuse honey, but when you are hungry, even bitter food tastes sweet.

⁸ Anyone away from home is like a bird away from its nest.

⁹ Perfume and fragrant oils make you feel happier, but trouble shatters your peace of mind.^[a]

¹⁰ Do not forget your friends or your father's friends. If you are in trouble, don't ask a relative for help; a nearby neighbor can help you more than relatives who are far away.

¹¹ Be wise, my child, and I will be happy; I will have an answer for anyone who criticizes me.

¹² Sensible people will see trouble coming and avoid it, but an unthinking person will walk right into it and regret it later.

¹³ Any people stupid enough to promise to be responsible for a stranger's debts^[b] deserve to have their own property held to guarantee payment.

¹⁴ You might as well curse your friends as wake them up early in the morning with a loud greeting.

¹⁵ A nagging wife is like water going drip-drip-drip on a rainy day. ¹⁶ How can you keep her quiet? Have you ever tried to stop the wind or ever tried to hold a handful of oil?^[c]

¹⁷ People learn from one another, just as iron sharpens iron.

¹⁸ Take care of a fig tree and you will have figs to eat. Servants who take care of their master will be honored.

¹⁹ It is your own face that you see reflected in the water and it is your own self that you see in your heart.

²⁰ Human desires are like the world of the dead—there is always room for more.

²¹ Fire tests gold and silver; a person's reputation can also be tested.

²² Even if you beat fools half to death, you still can't beat their foolishness out of them.

²³ Look after your sheep and cattle as carefully as you can, ²⁴ because wealth is not permanent. Not even nations last forever. ²⁵ You cut the hay and then cut the grass on the hillsides while the next crop of hay is growing. ²⁶ You can make clothes from the wool of your sheep and buy land with the money you get from selling some of your goats. ²⁷ The rest of the goats will provide milk for you and your family, and for your servant women as well.