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Proverbs 24 (CEV)

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¹ Don't be jealous of crooks or want to be their friends. ² All they think about and talk about is violence and cruelty. ³ Use wisdom and understanding to establish your home; ⁴ let good sense fill the rooms with priceless treasures. ⁵ Wisdom brings strength, and knowledge gives power. ⁶ Battles are won by listening to advice and making a lot of plans. ⁷ Wisdom is too much for fools! Their advice is no good. ⁸ No one but troublemakers think up trouble. ⁹ Everyone hates senseless fools who think up ways to sin. ¹⁰ Don't give up and be helpless in times of trouble. ¹¹ Don't fail to rescue those who are doomed to die. ¹² Don't say, "I didn't know it!" God can read your mind. He watches each of us and knows our thoughts. And God will pay us back for what we do. ¹³ Honey is good for you, my children, and it tastes sweet. ¹⁴ Wisdom is like honey for your life-- if you find it, your future is bright. ¹⁵ Don't be a cruel person who attacks good people and hurts their families. ¹⁶ Even if good people fall seven times, they will get back up. But when trouble strikes the wicked, that's the end of them. ¹⁷ Don't be happy to see your enemies trip and fall down. ¹⁸ The LORD will find out and be unhappy. Then he will stop being angry with them. ¹⁹ Don't let evil people worry you or make you jealous. ²⁰ They will soon be gone like the flame of a lamp that burns out. ²¹ My children, you must respect the LORD and the king, and you must not make friends with anyone who rebels against either of them. ²² Who knows what sudden disaster the LORD or a ruler might bring? ²³ Here are some more sayings that make good sense: When you judge, you must be fair. ²⁴ If you let the guilty go free, people of all nations will hate and curse you. ²⁵ But if you punish the guilty, things will go well for you, and you will prosper. ²⁶ Giving an honest answer is a sign of true friendship. ²⁷ Get your fields ready and plant your crops before starting a home. ²⁸ Don't accuse anyone who isn't guilty. Don't ever tell a lie ²⁹ or say to someone, "I'll get even with you!" ³⁰ I once walked by the field and the vineyard of a lazy fool. ³¹ Thorns and weeds were everywhere, and the stone wall had fallen down. ³² When I saw this, it taught me a lesson: ³³ Sleep a little. Doze a little. Fold your hands and twiddle your thumbs. ³⁴ Suddenly poverty hits you and everything is gone!