Bible Reading Plan – Day 140

₁When you sit down to eat with someone important, keep in mind who he is. ₂If you have a big appetite, restrain yourself. ₃Don't be greedy for the fine food he serves; he may be trying to trick you.

₄Be wise enough not to wear yourself out trying to get rich. ₅Your money can be gone in a flash, as if it had grown wings and flown away like an eagle.

₆Don't eat at the table of a stingy person or be greedy for the fine food he serves. ₇“Come on and have some more,” he says, but he doesn't mean it. What he thinks is what he really is. ₈You will vomit up what you have eaten, and all your flattery will be wasted.

₉Don't try to talk sense to a fool; he can't appreciate it.

₁₀Never move an old boundary mark or take over land owned by orphans. ₁₁The LORD is their powerful defender, and he will argue their case against you.

₁₂Pay attention to your teacher and learn all you can.

₁₃Don't hesitate to discipline children. A good spanking won't kill them. ₁₄As a matter of fact, it may save their lives.

₁₅Son, if you become wise, I will be very happy. ₁₆I will be proud when I hear you speaking words of wisdom.

₁₇Don't be envious of sinful people; let reverence for the LORD be the concern of your life. ₁₈If it is, you have a bright future.

₁₉Listen, my child, be wise and give serious thought to the way you live. ₂₀Don't associate with people who drink too much wine or stuff themselves with food. ₂₁Drunkards and gluttons will be reduced to poverty. If all you do is eat and sleep, you will soon be wearing rags.

₂₂Listen to your father; without him you would not exist. When your mother is old, show her your appreciation.

₂₃Truth, wisdom, learning, and good sense — these are worth paying for, but too valuable for you to sell.

₂₄A righteous man's father has good reason to be happy. You can take pride in a wise son.

₂₅Make your father and mother proud of you; give your mother that happiness.

₂₆Pay close attention, son, and let my life be your example. ₂₇Prostitutes and immoral women are a deadly trap. ₂₈They wait for you like robbers and cause many men to be unfaithful.

_29-30Show me someone who drinks too much, who has to try out some new drink, and I will show you someone miserable and sorry for himself, always causing trouble and always complaining. His eyes are bloodshot, and he has bruises that could have been avoided. ₃₁Don't let wine tempt you, even though it is rich red, though it sparkles in the cup, and it goes down smoothly. ₃₂The next morning you will feel as if you had been bitten by a poisonous snake. ₃₃Weird sights will appear before your eyes, and you will not be able to think or speak clearly. ₃₄You will feel as if you were out on the ocean, sea-sick, swinging high up in the rigging of a tossing ship. ₃₅“I must have been hit,” you will say; “I must have been beaten up, but I don't remember it. Why can't I wake up? I need another drink.”

₁Don't be envious of evil people, and don't try to make friends with them. ₂Causing trouble is all they ever think about; every time they open their mouth someone is going to be hurt.

₃Homes are built on the foundation of wisdom and understanding. ₄Where there is knowledge, the rooms are furnished with valuable, beautiful things.

₅Being wise is better than being strong; yes, knowledge is more important than strength. ₆After all, you must make careful plans before you fight a battle, and the more good advice you get, the more likely you are to win.

₇Wise sayings are too deep for stupid people to understand. They have nothing to say when important matters are being discussed.

₈If you are always planning evil, you will earn a reputation as a troublemaker. ₉Any scheme a fool thinks up is sinful. People hate a person who has nothing but scorn for others.

₁₀If you are weak in a crisis, you are weak indeed.

₁₁Don't hesitate to rescue someone who is about to be executed unjustly. ₁₂You may say that it is none of your business, but God knows and judges your motives. He keeps watch on you; he knows. And he will reward you according to what you do.

₁₃Son, eat honey; it is good. And just as honey from the comb is sweet on your tongue, ₁₄you may be sure that wisdom is good for the soul. Get wisdom and you have a bright future.

₁₅Don't be like the wicked who scheme to rob honest people or to take away their homes. ₁₆No matter how often honest people fall, they always get up again; but disaster destroys the wicked.

₁₇Don't be glad when your enemies meet disaster, and don't rejoice when they stumble. ₁₈The LORD will know if you are gloating, and he will not like it; and then he might not punish them.

₁₉Don't let evil people worry you; don't be envious of them. ₂₀A wicked person has no future — nothing to look forward to.

₂₁Have reverence for the LORD, my child, and honour the king. Have nothing to do with people who rebel against them; ₂₂such people could be ruined in a moment. Do you realize the disaster that God or the king can cause?

₂₃The wise have also said these things:

It is wrong for judges to be prejudiced. ₂₄If they pronounce a guilty person innocent, they will be cursed and hated by everyone. ₂₅Judges who punish the guilty, however, will be prosperous and enjoy a good reputation.

₂₆An honest answer is a sign of true friendship.

₂₇Don't build your house and establish a home until your fields are ready, and you are sure that you can earn a living.

₂₈Don't give evidence against someone else without good reason, or say misleading things about him. ₂₉Don't say, “I'll do to him just what he did to me! I'll get even with him!”

₃₀I walked through the fields and vineyards of a lazy, stupid person. ₃₁They were full of thorn bushes and overgrown with weeds. The stone wall round them had fallen down. ₃₂I looked at this, thought about it, and learned a lesson from it: ₃₃have a nap and sleep if you want to. Fold your hands and rest awhile, ₃₄but while you are asleep, poverty will attack you like an armed robber.

₁Here are more of Solomon's proverbs, copied by men at the court of King Hezekiah of Judah.

₂We honour God for what he conceals; we honour kings for what they explain.

₃You never know what a king is thinking; his thoughts are beyond us, like the heights of the sky or the depths of the ocean.

₄Take the impurities out of silver and the artist can produce a thing of beauty. ₅Keep evil advisers away from the king and his government will be known for its justice.

₆When you stand before the king, don't try to impress him and pretend to be important. ₇It is better to be asked to take a higher position than to be told to give your place to someone more important.

₈Don't be too quick to go to court about something you have seen. If another witness later proves you wrong, what will you do then?

₉If you and your neighbour have a difference of opinion, settle it between yourselves and do not reveal any secrets. ₁₀Otherwise everyone will learn that you can't keep a secret, and you will never live down the shame.

₁₁An idea well expressed is like a design of gold, set in silver.

₁₂A warning given by an experienced person to someone willing to listen is more valuable than gold rings or jewellery made of the finest gold.

₁₃A reliable messenger is refreshing to the one who sends him, like cold water in the heat of harvest time.

₁₄People who promise things that they never give are like clouds and wind that bring no rain.

₁₅Patient persuasion can break down the strongest resistance and can even convince rulers.

₁₆Never eat more honey than you need; too much may make you vomit. ₁₇Don't visit your neighbours too often; they may get tired of you and come to hate you.

₁₈A false accusation is as deadly as a sword, a club, or a sharp arrow.

₁₉Depending on an unreliable person in a crisis is like trying to chew with a loose tooth or walk with a crippled foot.

₂₀Singing to a person who is depressed is like taking off his clothes on a cold day or like rubbing salt in a wound.

₂₁If your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them a drink. ₂₂You will make them burn with shame, and the LORD will reward you.

₂₃Gossip brings anger just as surely as the north wind brings rain.

₂₄Better to live on the roof than share the house with a nagging wife.

₂₅Finally, hearing good news from a distant land is like a drink of cold water when you are dry and thirsty.

₂₆A good person who gives in to someone who is evil reminds you of a polluted spring or a poisoned well.

₂₇Too much honey is bad for you, and so is trying to win too much praise.

₂₈If you cannot control your anger, you are as helpless as a city without walls, open to attack.