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27 Don’t brag about tomorrow,
    since you don’t know what the day will bring.

Let someone else praise you, not your own mouth—
    a stranger, not your own lips.

A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,
    but the resentment caused by a fool is even heavier.

Anger is cruel, and wrath is like a flood,
    but jealousy is even more dangerous.

An open rebuke
    is better than hidden love!

Wounds from a sincere friend
    are better than many kisses from an enemy.

A person who is full refuses honey,
    but even bitter food tastes sweet to the hungry.

A person who strays from home
    is like a bird that strays from its nest.

The heartfelt counsel of a friend
    is as sweet as perfume and incense.

10 Never abandon a friend—
    either yours or your father’s.
When disaster strikes, you won’t have to ask your brother for assistance.
    It’s better to go to a neighbor than to a brother who lives far away.

11 Be wise, my child,[a] and make my heart glad.
    Then I will be able to answer my critics.

12 A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions.
    The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.

13 Get security from someone who guarantees a stranger’s debt.
    Get a deposit if he does it for foreigners.[b]

14 A loud and cheerful greeting early in the morning
    will be taken as a curse!

15 A quarrelsome wife is as annoying
    as constant dripping on a rainy day.
16 Stopping her complaints is like trying to stop the wind
    or trying to hold something with greased hands.

17 As iron sharpens iron,
    so a friend sharpens a friend.

18 As workers who tend a fig tree are allowed to eat the fruit,
    so workers who protect their employer’s interests will be rewarded.

19 As a face is reflected in water,
    so the heart reflects the real person.

20 Just as Death and Destruction[c] are never satisfied,
    so human desire is never satisfied.

21 Fire tests the purity of silver and gold,
    but a person is tested by being praised.[d]

22 You cannot separate fools from their foolishness,
    even though you grind them like grain with mortar and pestle.

23 Know the state of your flocks,
    and put your heart into caring for your herds,
24 for riches don’t last forever,
    and the crown might not be passed to the next generation.
25 After the hay is harvested and the new crop appears
    and the mountain grasses are gathered in,
26 your sheep will provide wool for clothing,
    and your goats will provide the price of a field.
27 And you will have enough goats’ milk for yourself,
    your family, and your servant girls.

Footnotes

  1. 27:11 Hebrew my son.
  2. 27:13 As in Greek and Latin versions (see also 20:16); Hebrew reads for a promiscuous woman.
  3. 27:20 Hebrew Sheol and Abaddon.
  4. 27:21 Or by flattery.

27 Do not boast(A) about tomorrow,
    for you do not know what a day may bring.(B)

Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth;
    an outsider, and not your own lips.(C)

Stone is heavy and sand(D) a burden,
    but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.

Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming,
    but who can stand before jealousy?(E)

Better is open rebuke
    than hidden love.

Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
    but an enemy multiplies kisses.(F)

One who is full loathes honey from the comb,
    but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.

Like a bird that flees its nest(G)
    is anyone who flees from home.

Perfume(H) and incense bring joy to the heart,
    and the pleasantness of a friend
    springs from their heartfelt advice.

10 Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family,
    and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster(I) strikes you—
    better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.

11 Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart;(J)
    then I can answer anyone who treats me with contempt.(K)

12 The prudent see danger and take refuge,
    but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.(L)

13 Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;
    hold it in pledge if it is done for an outsider.(M)

14 If anyone loudly blesses their neighbor early in the morning,
    it will be taken as a curse.

15 A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping(N)
    of a leaky roof in a rainstorm;
16 restraining her is like restraining the wind
    or grasping oil with the hand.

17 As iron sharpens iron,
    so one person sharpens another.

18 The one who guards a fig tree will eat its fruit,(O)
    and whoever protects their master will be honored.(P)

19 As water reflects the face,
    so one’s life reflects the heart.[a]

20 Death and Destruction[b] are never satisfied,(Q)
    and neither are human eyes.(R)

21 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,(S)
    but people are tested by their praise.

22 Though you grind a fool in a mortar,
    grinding them like grain with a pestle,
    you will not remove their folly from them.

23 Be sure you know the condition of your flocks,(T)
    give careful attention to your herds;
24 for riches do not endure forever,(U)
    and a crown is not secure for all generations.
25 When the hay is removed and new growth appears
    and the grass from the hills is gathered in,
26 the lambs will provide you with clothing,
    and the goats with the price of a field.
27 You will have plenty of goats’ milk to feed your family
    and to nourish your female servants.

Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 27:19 Or so others reflect your heart back to you
  2. Proverbs 27:20 Hebrew Abaddon