Chapter 21
Dangers from Sin
1 My child, if you have sinned, do so no more,
and for your past sins pray to be forgiven.
2 Flee from sin as from a serpent
that will bite you if you go near it;
Its teeth, lion’s teeth,
destroying human lives.
3 All lawlessness is like a two-edged sword;
when it cuts, there is no healing.(A)
4 Panic and pride wipe out wealth;
so too the house of the proud is uprooted.
5 Prayer from the lips of the poor is heard at once,
and justice is quickly granted them.
6 Whoever hates correction walks the sinner’s path,(B)
but whoever fears the Lord repents in his heart.
7 Glib speakers are widely known,
but when they slip the sensible perceive it.
8 Those who build their houses with someone else’s money
are like those who collect stones for their funeral mounds.
9 A band of criminals is like a bundle of tow;
they will end in a flaming fire.(C)
10 The path of sinners is smooth stones,
but its end is the pit of Sheol.
The Wise and Foolish: A Contrast
11 Those who keep the Law control their thoughts;
perfect fear of the Lord is wisdom.
12 One who is not clever can never be taught,
but there is a cleverness filled with bitterness.
13 The knowledge of the wise wells up like a flood,
and their counsel like a living spring.(D)
14 A fool’s mind is like a broken jar:
it cannot hold any knowledge at all.
15 When the intelligent hear a wise saying,
they praise it and add to it.
The wanton hear it with distaste
and cast it behind their back.
16 A fool’s chatter is like a load on a journey,
but delight is to be found on the lips of the intelligent.
17 The views of the prudent are sought in an assembly,
and their words are taken to heart.
18 Like a house in ruins is wisdom to a fool;
to the stupid, knowledge is incomprehensible chatter.
19 To the senseless, education is fetters on the feet,
like manacles on the right hand.
20 Fools raise their voice in laughter,
but the prudent at most smile quietly.(E)
21 Like a gold ornament is education to the wise,
like a bracelet on the right arm.
22 A fool steps boldly into a house,
while the well-bred are slow to make an entrance.(F)
23 A boor peeps through the doorway of a house,
but the educated stay outside.
24 It is rude for one to listen at a door;
the discreet person would be overwhelmed by the disgrace.
25 The lips of the arrogant talk of what is not their concern,
but the discreet carefully weigh their words.
26 The mind of fools is in their mouths,
but the mouth of the wise is in their mind.
27 When the godless curse their adversary,
they really curse themselves.
28 Slanderers sully themselves,
and are hated by their neighbors.
Footnotes
- 21:1–10
- 21:10
- 21:11–28
- 21:26
- 21:27
Cross references
- 21:3 : Prv 5:4.
- 21:6 : Prv 12:1.
- 21:9 : Sir 16:6; Ps 21:10.
- 21:13 : Prv 13:14; 16:22; 18:4.
- 21:20 : Eccl 7:6.
- 21:22 : Prv 25:17.
