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^1 (C1)Better is a dry morsel and tranquility with it
Than a house full of ^(F1)feasting with strife.

² A slave who acts insightfully will rule over a son who acts shamefully,
And will share in the inheritance among brothers.

³ The ^(C1)refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold,
But ^(C2)Yahweh tests hearts.

⁴ An ^(C1)evildoer gives heed to lips of wickedness;
^(F1)A liar gives ear to a destructive tongue.

⁵ He who mocks the ^(C1)poor reproaches his Maker;
He who is ^(C2)glad at disaster will not go unpunished.

^6 (F1)(C1)Grandchildren are the crown of old men,
And the ^(C2)beauty of sons is their fathers.

^7 (C1)Excellent lips are not fitting for a ^(F1)wicked fool,
Even less are ^(C2)lying lips for a noble man.

⁸ A ^(C1)bribe is a ^(F1)charm in the eyes of its owner;
Wherever he turns, he prospers.

⁹ He who ^(C1)covers a transgression seeks love,
But he who repeats a matter ^(C2)separates close companions.

¹⁰ A rebuke goes deeper into one who understands
Than a hundred blows into a fool.

¹¹ A rebellious man seeks only evil,
So a cruel messenger will be sent against him.

¹² Let a ^(C1)man meet a ^(C2)bear robbed of her cubs,
Rather than a fool in his folly.

¹³ He who ^(C1)returns evil for good,
^(C2)Evil will not depart from his house.

¹⁴ The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
So ^(C1)abandon the dispute before it breaks out.

¹⁵ He who ^(C1)justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous,
Both of them alike are an abomination to Yahweh.

¹⁶ Why is there a price in the hand of a fool to ^(C1)acquire wisdom,
When ^(F1)he has no heart of wisdom?

¹⁷ A ^(C1)friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.

¹⁸ A man lacking a heart of wisdom ^(C1)strikes his ^(F1)hands in pledge
And becomes guarantor in the presence of his neighbor.

¹⁹ He who ^(C1)loves transgression loves quarreling;
He who ^(C2)makes his doorway high seeks destruction.

²⁰ He who has a crooked heart ^(C1)finds no good,
And he who is ^(C2)perverted in his tongue falls into evil.

²¹ He who ^(C1)begets a fool does so to his grief,
And the father of a wicked fool is not glad.

²² A ^(C1)glad heart ^(F1)is good medicine,
But a broken spirit ^(C2)dries up the bones.

²³ A wicked man receives a ^(C1)bribe from the bosom
To ^(C2)thrust aside the paths of justice.

²⁴ Wisdom is in the presence of the one who understands,
But the ^(C1)eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.

²⁵ A ^(C1)foolish son is a vexation to his father
And ^(C2)bitterness to her who gave birth to him.

²⁶ It is also not good to ^(C1)punish the righteous,
Nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.

²⁷ He who ^(C1)holds back his words ^(F1)has knowledge,
And he who has a ^(C2)cool spirit is a man of discernment.

²⁸ Even an ignorant fool, when he ^(C1)keeps silent, is considered wise;
When he closes his lips, he is considered understanding.