1 Do not boast about tomorrow;
for you do not know what a day may bring forth.
2 Let another praise you, and not your own mouth;
someone else, and not your own lips.
3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,
but vexation by a fool is more burdensome than the two of them.
4 Wrath is cruel and anger is overwhelming,
but who can stand before jealousy?
5 Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.
6 Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
but the kisses of an enemy are excessive.
7 The one whose appetite is satisfied loathes honey,
but to the hungry mouth every bitter thing is sweet.
8 Like a bird that wanders from its nest,
so is a person who wanders from his home.
9 Ointment and incense make the heart rejoice,
likewise the sweetness of one’s friend from sincere counsel.
10 Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend,
and do not enter your brother’s house in the day of your disaster;
a neighbor nearby is better than a brother far away.
11 Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad,
so that I may answer anyone who taunts me.
12 A shrewd person saw danger—he hid himself;
the naive passed right on by—they had to pay for it.
13 Take a man’s garment when he has given security for a stranger,
and hold him in pledge on behalf of a stranger.
14 If someone blesses his neighbor with a loud voice early in the morning,
it will be counted as a curse to him.
15 A continual dripping on a rainy day—
a contentious wife makes herself like that.
16 Whoever contains her has contained the wind
or can grasp oil with his right hand.
17 As iron sharpens iron,
so a person sharpens his friend.
18 The one who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,
and whoever takes care of his master will be honored.
19 As in water the face is reflected as a face,
so a person’s heart reflects the person.
20 As Death and Destruction are never satisfied,
so the eyes of a person are never satisfied.
21 As the crucible is for silver and the furnace is for gold,
so a person must put his praise to the test.
22 If you should pound the fool in the mortar
among the grain with the pestle,
his foolishness would not depart from him.
23 Pay careful attention to the condition of your flocks,
set your mind on your herds,
24 for riches do not last forever,
nor does a crown last from generation to generation.
25 When the hay is removed and new grass appears,
and the grass from the hills is gathered in,
26 the lambs will be for your clothing,
and the goats will be for the price of a field.
27 And there will be enough goat’s milk for your food,
for the food of your household,
and for the sustenance of your servant girls.
1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—alive, holy, and pleasing to God—which is your reasonable service. 2 Do not be conformed to this present world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve what is the will of God—what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I say to every one of you not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think, but to think with sober discernment, as God has distributed to each of you a measure of faith. 4 For just as in one body we have many members, and not all the members serve the same function, 5 so we who are many are one body in Christ, and individually we are members who belong to one another. 6 And we have different gifts according to the grace given to us. If the gift is prophecy, that individual must use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is service, he must serve; if it is teaching, he must teach; 8 if it is exhortation, he must exhort; if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity; if it is leadership, he must do so with diligence; if it is showing mercy, he must do so with cheerfulness.
9 Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil, cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another with mutual love, showing eagerness in honoring one another. 11 Do not lag in zeal, be enthusiastic in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, endure in suffering, persist in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints, pursue hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you, bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil; consider what is good before all people. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all people. 19 Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 Rather, if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing this you will be heaping burning coals on his head. 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
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