Proverbs 27

Iron Sharpens Iron, and One Man Another

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27:1Do not boast of things for tomorrow,
for you do not know what the coming day will bear.

27:2Let your neighbor praise you, and not your mouth,
another, and not your lips.

27:3A stone is heavy and sand hard to carry,
but a fool’s anger is heavier than both.

27:4Wrath is merciless and anger sharp,
but jealousy bears with no one.

27:5Open rebukes are better than concealed friendship.

27:6A friend’s wounds are more trustworthy
than an enemy’s willing kisses.

27:7A life in fullness mocks honeycombs,
but to a needy life even bitter things seem sweet.

27:8As when a bird flies down from its own nest,
so a person is enslaved when estranged from his own places.

27:9The heart delights in perfumes and wines and incense,
but the life is torn apart by misfortunes.

27:10Do not abandon your friend or an ancestral friend,
and do not enter your brother’s house when unfortunate;
a nearby friend is better than a brother dwelling far away.

27:11Become wise, son, so that my heart may rejoice,
and turn reproachful words away from yourself.

27:12A resourceful person hid when evils approached,
but fools who went on will pay a penalty.

27:13Take away his garment, for he has transgressed;
one who ruins another’s property is insolent.

27:14One who blesses a friend early with a loud voice
will seem no different from one cursing.

27:15Drops drive a man from his house on a wintry day,
and likewise an abusive wife from his own house.

27:16The north wind is a harsh wind,
but by name it is called favorable.

27:17Iron sharpens iron,
but a man provokes the face of a companion.

27:18One who plants a fig tree will eat its fruits,
and one who guards his own master will be honored.

27:19As faces are not like faces,
so neither are human hearts.

27:20Hades and destruction are not filled,
and likewise human eyes are insatiable.

27:20aOne who fixes an eye is an abomination to the Lord,
and the uneducated are unrestrained in tongue.

27:21A test for silver and gold is burning,
but a man is tested through the mouth of those who praise him.

27:21aA lawless person’s heart searches out evils,
but an upright heart searches out knowledge.

27:22If you whip a fool in the midst of a council, dishonoring him,
you will certainly not strip away his foolishness.

27:23Know thoroughly the lives of your flock,
and set your heart upon your herds;

27:24for a man’s might and strength do not last forever,
nor does he hand them on from generation to generation.

27:25Care for the green growth in the plain, and you will cut grass,
and gather mountain fodder,

27:26so that you may have sheep for clothing;
value a plain, so that you may have lambs.

27:27Son, from me you have strong sayings for your life,
and for the life of your attendants.

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Saints Translation · Liturgical reading edition · V1 · working draft awaiting specialist review.