THE WORD Proverbs 24:1–34 (The Living Bible) Don’t envy godless men; don’t even enjoy their company. 2For they spend their days plotting violence and cheating. 3-4Any enterprise is built by wise planning, becomes strong through common sense, and profits wonderfully by keeping abreast of the facts. 5A wise man is mightier than a strong man. Wisdom is mightier than strength. 6Don’t go to war without wise guidance; there is safety in many counselors. 7Wisdom is too much for a rebel. He’ll not be chosen as a counselor! 8To plan evil is as wrong as doing it. 9The rebel’s schemes are sinful, and the mocker is the scourge of all mankind. 10You are a poor specimen if you can’t stand the pressure of adversity. 11-12Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don’t stand back and let them die. Don’t try to disclaim responsibility by saying you didn’t know about it. For God, who knows all hearts, knows yours, and he knows you knew! And he will reward everyone according to his deeds. 13-14My son, honey whets the appetite and so does wisdom! When you enjoy becoming wise, there is hope for you! A bright future lies ahead! 15-16O evil man, leave the upright man alone and quit trying to cheat him out of his rights. Don’t you know that this good man, though you trip him up seven times, will each time rise again? But one calamity is enough to lay you low. 17Do not rejoice when your enemy meets trouble. Let there be no gladness when he falls—18for the Lord may be displeased with you and stop punishing him! 19-20Don’t envy the wicked. Don’t covet his riches. For the evil man has no future; his light will be snuffed out. 21-22My son, watch your step before the Lord and the king, and don’t associate with radicals. For you will go down with them to sudden disaster, and who knows where it all will end? 23It is wrong to sentence the poor and let the rich go free. 24He who says to the wicked, “You are innocent,” shall be cursed by many people of many nations; 25but blessings shall be showered on those who rebuke sin fearlessly. 26It is an honor to receive a frank reply. 27Develop your business first before building your house. 28-29Don’t testify spitefully against an innocent neighbor. Why lie about him? Don’t say, “Now I can pay him back for all his meanness to me!” 30-31I walked by the field of a certain lazy fellow and saw that it was overgrown with thorns; it was covered with weeds, and its walls were broken down. 32-33Then, as I looked, I learned this lesson: “A little extra sleep, A little more slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest” 34means that poverty will break in upon you suddenly like a robber and violently like a bandit. GOODNESS.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Jul 2013 21:08:19 +0000
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