Proverbs 13
New American Standard Bible►► 

Contrast of the Upright and the Wicked

1A wise son accepts his father’s discipline,

But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

2From the fruit of a person’s mouth he [a]enjoys good,

But the [b]desire of the treacherous is violence.

3One who guards his mouth protects his life;

One who opens wide his lips [c]comes to ruin.

4The soul of the [d]lazy one craves and gets nothing,

But the soul of the diligent is made [e]prosperous.

5A righteous person hates a false statement,

But a wicked person [f]acts disgustingly and shamefully.

6Righteousness guards the [g]one whose way is blameless,

But wickedness brings the [h]sinner to ruin.

7There is one who pretends to be rich but has nothing;

Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth.

8The ransom of a person’s life is his wealth,

But the poor hears no rebuke.

9The light of the righteous [i]rejoices,

But the lamp of the wicked goes out.

10Through overconfidence [j]comes nothing but strife,

But wisdom is with those who receive counsel.

11Wealth obtained from [k]nothing dwindles,

But one who gathers [l]by labor increases it.

12Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

But desire [m]fulfilled is a tree of life.

13One who despises the word will do badly,

But one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.

14The [n]teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,

To turn aside from the snares of death.

15Good understanding produces favor,

But the way of the treacherous is [o]their own disaster.

16Every prudent person acts with knowledge,

But a fool [p]displays foolishness.

17A wicked messenger falls into adversity,

But a faithful messenger brings healing.

18Poverty and shame will come to one who neglects [q]discipline,

But one who complies with rebuke will be honored.

19Desire realized is sweet to the soul,

But it is an abomination to fools to turn away from evil.

20One who walks with wise people will be wise,

But a companion of fools will suffer harm.

21Adversity pursues sinners,

But the righteous will be rewarded with prosperity.

22A good person leaves an inheritance to his [r]grandchildren,

And the wealth of a sinner is stored up for the righteous.

23Abundant food is in the uncultivated ground of the poor,

But [s]it is swept away by injustice.

24He who withholds his [t]rod hates his son,

But he who loves him [u]disciplines him diligently.

25The righteous [v]has enough to satisfy his appetite,

But the stomach of the wicked is in need.



[a] 2 Lit eats
[b] 2 Lit soul
[c] 3 Lit ruin is his
[d] 4 Lit idle
[e] 4 Lit fat
[f] 5 Lit causes a bad odor and causes shame
[g] 6 Lit blamelessness of way
[h] 6 Lit sin
[i] 9 I.e., shines brightly
[j] 10 Lit gives
[k] 11 Prob. referring to fraud
[l] 11 Lit by hand
[m] 12 Lit coming
[n] 14 Or law
[o] 15 Cf. LXX in destruction; MT constant
[p] 16 Lit spreads out
[q] 18 Or instruction
[r] 22 Lit sons’ sons
[s] 23 Lit there is what is swept
[t] 24 I.e., correction or discipline
[u] 24 Lit seeks him diligently with discipline
[v] 25 Lit eats to the satisfaction of his soul

New American Standard Bible
Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020
by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved.
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Proverbs 12
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