17:1 Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it
Than a house full of ①feasting with strife.
▷ ①Lit sacrifices of strife
17:2 A servant who acts wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully,
And will share in the inheritance among brothers.
17:3 The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold,
But the LORD tests hearts.
17:4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips;
A ①liar pays attention to a destructive tongue.
▷ ①Lit falsehood
17:5 One who mocks the poor taunts his Maker;
One who rejoices at disaster will not go unpunished.
17:6 Grandchildren are the crown of the old,
And the glory of sons is their fathers.
17:7 ①Excellent speech is not fitting for a fool,
Much less are lying lips to a prince.
▷ ①Lit A lip of abundance
17:8 A bribe is a ①charm in the sight of its owner;
Wherever he turns, he prospers.
▷ ①Lit stone of favor
17:9 One who conceals an offense seeks love,
But one who repeats a matter separates close friends.
17:10 A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding
Than a hundred blows into a fool.
17:11 A rebellious person seeks only evil,
So a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
17:12 Let a person meet a bear robbed of her cubs,
Rather than a fool in his foolishness.
17:13 One who returns evil for good,
Evil will not depart from his house.
17:14 The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
So abandon the quarrel before it breaks out.
17:15 One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous,
Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.
17:16 Why is there money in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom,
When ①he has no sense?
▷ ①Lit there is no heart
17:17 A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.
17:18 A person lacking in ①sense shakes hands
And becomes guarantor in the presence of his neighbor.
▷ ①Lit heart
17:19 One who loves wrongdoing loves strife;
One who makes his doorway high seeks destruction.
17:20 One who has a crooked ①mind finds nothing good,
And one who is ②corrupted in his language falls into evil.
▷ ①Lit heart ②Lit altered in his tongue
17:21 He who fathers a fool does so to his sorrow,
And the father of a fool has no joy.
17:22 A joyful heart ①is good medicine,
But a broken spirit dries up the bones.
▷ ①Lit causes good healing
17:23 A wicked person accepts a bribe ①from an inside pocket
To pervert the ways of justice.
▷ ①Lit a fold in a robe; i.e., secretly
17:24 Wisdom is in the presence of one who has understanding,
But the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
17:25 A foolish son is a grief to his father,
And bitterness to her who gave birth to him.
17:26 It is also not good to fine the righteous,
Nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
17:27 One who withholds his words ①has knowledge,
And one who has a cool spirit is a person of understanding.
▷ ①Lit knows
17:28 Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise;
When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.