Proverbs 17

1 Better [is] a dry morsel, and rest with it, Than a house full of the sacrifices of strife.

2 A wise servant rules over a son causing shame, And he apportions an inheritance in the midst of brothers.

3 A refining pot [is] for silver, and a furnace for gold, And the trier of hearts [is] YHWH.

4 An evildoer is attentive to lips of vanity, Falsehood is giving ear to a mischievous tongue.

5 Whoever is mocking at the poor Has reproached his Maker, Whoever is rejoicing at calamity is not acquitted.

6 Sons’ sons [are] the crown of old men, And the glory of sons [are] their fathers.

7 A lip of excellence is not fitting for a fool, much less a lip of falsehood for a noble.

8 A stone of grace [is] the bribe in the eyes of its possessors, Wherever it turns, it prospers.

9 Whoever is covering transgression is seeking love, And whoever is repeating a matter Is separating a familiar friend.

10 Rebuke comes down on the intelligent More than one hundred stripes on a fool.

11 An evil man seeks only rebellion, And a fierce messenger is sent against him.

12 The meeting of a bereaved bear by a man, And—not a fool in his folly.

13 Whoever is returning evil for good, Evil does not move from his house.

14 The beginning of contention [is] a letting out of waters, And leave the strife before it is meddled with.

15 Whoever is justifying the wicked, And condemning the righteous, Even both of these [are] an abomination to YHWH.

16 Why [is] this—a price in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom, And a heart—there is none?

17 The friend is loving at all times, And a brother is born for adversity.

18 A man lacking heart is striking hands, He becomes a guarantor before his friend.

19 Whoever is loving transgression is loving debate, Whoever is making his entrance high is seeking destruction.

20 The perverse of heart does not find good, And the [one] turned in his tongue falls into evil.

21 Whoever is begetting a fool has affliction for it, Indeed, the father of a fool does not rejoice.

22 A rejoicing heart does good to the body, And a struck spirit dries the bone.

23 The wicked takes a bribe from the bosom, To turn aside the paths of judgment.

24 The face of the intelligent [is] to wisdom, And the eyes of a fool—at the end of the earth.

25 A foolish son [is] a provocation to his father, And bitterness to her bearing him.

26 Also, [it] is not good to fine the righteous, To strike nobles for uprightness.

27 One acquainted with knowledge is sparing his words, And the cool of temper [is] a man of understanding.

28 Even a fool keeping silence is reckoned wise, He who is shutting his lips [seems] intelligent!