4Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood,
         But who can stand before jealousy?

5Better is open rebuke
         Than love that is concealed.

6Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
         But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy.

7A sated man loathes honey,
         But to a famished man any bitter thing is sweet.

8Like a bird that wanders from her nest,
         So is a man who wanders from his home.

9Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
         So a man’s counsel is sweet to his friend.

10Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend,
         And do not go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity;
         Better is a neighbor who is near than a brother far away.

11Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad,
         That I may reply to him who reproaches me.

12A prudent man sees evil and hides himself,
         The naive proceed and pay the penalty.

13Take his garment when he becomes surety for a stranger;
         And for an adulterous woman hold him in pledge.

14He who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning,
         It will be reckoned a curse to him.

15A constant dripping on a day of steady rain
         And a contentious woman are alike;

16He who would restrain her restrains the wind,
         And grasps oil with his right hand.

17Iron sharpens iron,
         So one man sharpens another.

18He who tends the fig tree will eat its fruit,
         And he who cares for his master will be honored.

19As in water face reflects face,
         So the heart of man reflects man.

20Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied,
         Nor are the eyes of man ever satisfied.

21The crucible is for silver and the furnace for gold,
         And each is tested by the praise accorded him.

22Though you pound a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain,
         Yet his foolishness will not depart from him.

23Know well the condition of your flocks,
         And pay attention to your herds;

24For riches are not forever,
         Nor does a crown endure to all generations.

25When the grass disappears, the new growth is seen,
         And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in,

26The lambs will be for your clothing,
         And the goats will bring the price of a field,

27And there will be goats’ milk enough for your food,
         For the food of your household,
         And sustenance for your maidens.

NASB ©1995

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