Proverbs 14:23-35 - Compare All Versions

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All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. The wealth of the wise is their crown, but the folly of fools yields folly. A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is deceitful. Whoever fears the LORD has a secure fortress, and for their children it will be a refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning a person from the snares of death. A large population is a king’s glory, but without subjects a prince is ruined. Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly. A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones. Whoever oppresses the poor shows contempt for their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors God. When calamity comes, the wicked are brought down, but even in death the righteous seek refuge in God. Wisdom reposes in the heart of the discerning and even among fools she lets herself be known. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people. A king delights in a wise servant, but a shameful servant arouses his fury.

In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their wealth, but the folly of fools brings folly. A truthful witness saves lives, but one who breathes out lies is deceitful. In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death. In a multitude of people is the glory of a king, but without people a prince is ruined. Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him. The wicked is overthrown through his evildoing, but the righteous finds refuge in his death. Wisdom rests in the heart of a man of understanding, but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. A servant who deals wisely has the king’s favor, but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty! Wealth is a crown for the wise; the effort of fools yields only foolishness. A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is a traitor. Those who fear the LORD are secure; he will be a refuge for their children. Fear of the LORD is a life-giving fountain; it offers escape from the snares of death. A growing population is a king’s glory; a prince without subjects has nothing. People with understanding control their anger; a hot temper shows great foolishness. A peaceful heart leads to a healthy body; jealousy is like cancer in the bones. Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker, but helping the poor honors him. The wicked are crushed by disaster, but the godly have a refuge when they die. Wisdom is enshrined in an understanding heart; wisdom is not found among fools. Godliness makes a nation great, but sin is a disgrace to any people. A king rejoices in wise servants but is angry with those who disgrace him.

There is profit in all hard work, but endless talk  leads only to poverty.  The crown of the wise is their wealth, but the foolishness of fools produces foolishness. A truthful witness rescues lives, but one who utters lies is deceitful.  In the fear of the  LORD one has strong confidence and his children have a refuge.  The fear of the  LORD is a fountain of life, turning people away from the snares of death.  A large population is a king’s splendor, but a shortage of people is a ruler’s devastation. A patient person shows great understanding,  but a quick-tempered one promotes foolishness. A tranquil heart is life to the body,  but jealousy is rottenness to the bones.  The one who oppresses the poor person insults his Maker,  but one who is kind to the needy honors him.  The wicked one is thrown down by his own sin,  but the righteous one has a refuge in his death.  Wisdom resides in the heart of the discerning;  she is known  even among fools. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.  A king favors a prudent servant,  but his anger falls on a disgraceful one.

In all labour there is profit: But the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury. The crown of the wise is their riches: But the foolishness of fools is folly. A true witness delivereth souls: But a deceitful witness speaketh lies. In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: And his children shall have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, To depart from the snares of death. In the multitude of people is the king's honour: But in the want of people is the destruction of the prince. He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: But he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly. A sound heart is the life of the flesh: But envy the rottenness of the bones. He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: But he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor. The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: But the righteous hath hope in his death. Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: But that which is in the midst of fools is made known. Righteousness exalteth a nation: But sin is a reproach to any people. The king's favour is toward a wise servant: But his wrath is against him that causeth shame.

In all labor there is profit, But idle chatter leads only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their riches, But the foolishness of fools is folly. A true witness delivers souls, But a deceitful witness speaks lies. In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, To turn one away from the snares of death. In a multitude of people is a king’s honor, But in the lack of people is the downfall of a prince. He who is slow to wrath has great understanding, But he who is impulsive exalts folly. A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones. He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, But he who honors Him has mercy on the needy. The wicked is banished in his wickedness, But the righteous has a refuge in his death. Wisdom rests in the heart of him who has understanding, But what is in the heart of fools is made known. Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people. The king’s favor is toward a wise servant, But his wrath is against him who causes shame.

Hard work always pays off; mere talk puts no bread on the table. The wise accumulate wisdom; fools get stupider by the day. Souls are saved by truthful witness and betrayed by the spread of lies. The Fear-of-GOD builds up confidence, and makes a world safe for your children. The Fear-of-GOD is a spring of living water so you won’t go off drinking from poisoned wells. The mark of a good leader is loyal followers; leadership is nothing without a following. Slowness to anger makes for deep understanding; a quick-tempered person stockpiles stupidity. A sound mind makes for a robust body, but runaway emotions corrode the bones. You insult your Maker when you exploit the powerless; when you’re kind to the poor, you honor God. The evil of bad people leaves them out in the cold; the integrity of good people creates a safe place for living. Lady Wisdom is at home in an understanding heart— fools never even get to say hello. God-devotion makes a country strong; God-avoidance leaves people weak. Diligent work gets a warm commendation; shiftless work earns an angry rebuke.

In all labor there is profit, But mere talk leads only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their riches, But the foolishness of fools is simply foolishness. A truthful witness saves lives, But one who declares lies is deceitful. In the fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And his children will have refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, By which one may avoid the snares of death. In a multitude of people is a king’s glory, But in the scarcity of people is a prince’s ruin. One who is slow to anger has great understanding; But one who is quick-tempered exalts foolishness. A tranquil heart is life to the body, But jealousy is rottenness to the bones. One who oppresses the poor taunts his Maker, But one who is gracious to the needy honors Him. The wicked is thrust down by his own wrongdoing, But the righteous has a refuge when he dies. Wisdom rests in the heart of one who has understanding, But among fools it is made known. Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a disgrace to any people. The king’s favor is toward a servant who acts wisely, But his anger is toward him who acts shamefully.

In all labor there is profit, But mere talk leads only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their wealth [of wisdom], But the foolishness of [closed-minded] fools is [nothing but] folly. A truthful witness saves lives, But he who speaks lies is treacherous. In the [reverent] fear of the LORD there is strong confidence, And His children will [always] have a place of refuge. The [reverent] fear of the LORD [that leads to obedience and worship] is a fountain of life, So that one may avoid the snares of death. [John 4:10, 14] In a multitude of people is a king’s glory, But in a lack of people is a [pretentious] prince’s ruin. He who is slow to anger has great understanding [and profits from his self-control], But he who is quick-tempered exposes and exalts his foolishness [for all to see]. [Prov 16:32; James 1:19] A calm and peaceful and tranquil heart is life and health to the body, But passion and envy are like rottenness to the bones. He who oppresses the poor taunts and insults his Maker, But he who is kind and merciful and gracious to the needy honors Him. [Prov 17:5; Matt 25:40, 45] The wicked is overthrown through his wrongdoing, But the righteous has hope and confidence and a refuge [with God] even in death. Wisdom rests [silently] in the heart of one who has understanding, But what is in the heart of [shortsighted] fools is made known. [Is 32:6] Righteousness [moral and spiritual integrity and virtuous character] exalts a nation, But sin is a disgrace to any people. The king’s favor and good will are toward a servant who acts wisely and discreetly, But his anger and wrath are toward him who acts shamefully. [Matt 24:45, 47]

In all hard work there is profit, but merely talking about it only brings poverty. The crown of the wise is their riches, but the folly of fools is folly. A truthful witness rescues lives, but the one who breathes lies brings deception. In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and it will be a refuge for his children. The fear of the LORD is like a life-giving fountain, to turn people from deadly snares. A king’s glory is the abundance of people, but the lack of subjects is the ruin of a ruler. The one who is slow to anger has great understanding, but the one who has a quick temper exalts folly. A tranquil spirit revives the body, but envy is rottenness to the bones. The one who oppresses the poor insults his Creator, but whoever shows favor to the needy honors him. The wicked will be thrown down in his trouble, but the righteous have refuge even in the threat of death. Wisdom rests in the heart of the discerning; it is known even in the heart of fools. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people. The king shows favor to a wise servant, but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.