Proverbs 14 - English Standard Version Anglicised (ESVUK)

14 (A)The wisest of women (B)builds her house,
but folly with her own hands (C)tears it down.
2 Whoever (D)walks in uprightness fears the Lord,
but he who is (E)devious in his ways despises him.
3 By the mouth of a fool comes (F)a rod for his back,[a]
(G)but the lips of the wise will preserve them.
4 Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean,
but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.
5 (H)A faithful witness does not lie,
but (I)a false witness breathes out lies.
6 (J)A scoffer seeks wisdom (K)in vain,
but (L)knowledge is easy for a man of understanding.
7 Leave the presence of a fool,
for there you do not meet words of knowledge.
8 The wisdom of the prudent is to discern his way,
but the folly of fools is deceiving.
9 (M)Fools mock at the guilt offering,
but the upright enjoy acceptance.[b]
10 The heart knows its own (N)bitterness,
and no stranger shares its joy.
11 (O)The house of the wicked will be destroyed,
but the tent of the upright will flourish.
12 (P)There is a way that seems right to a man,
but (Q)its end is the way to death.[c]
13 Even in laughter the heart may ache,
and (R)the end of joy may be (S)grief.
14 The backslider in heart will be (T)filled with the fruit of his ways,
and (U)a good man will be filled with the fruit of his ways.
15 (V)The simple believes everything,
but the prudent gives thought to his steps.
16 (W)One who is wise is cautious[d] and (X)turns away from evil,
but a fool is reckless and careless.
17 A man of (Y)quick temper acts foolishly,
and a man of evil devices is hated.
18 The simple inherit folly,
but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19 (Z)The evil bow down before the good,
the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
20 (AA)The poor is disliked even by his neighbour,
(AB)but the rich has many friends.
21 Whoever (AC)despises his neighbour is a sinner,
but (AD)blessed is he who is generous to the poor.
22 Do they not go astray who (AE)devise evil?
Those who devise good meet[e] (AF)steadfast love and faithfulness.
23 In all toil there is profit,
but mere talk (AG)tends only to poverty.
24 The crown of the wise is their wealth,
but the folly of fools brings folly.
25 A truthful witness saves lives,
but one who (AH)breathes out lies is deceitful.
26 In the fear of the Lord one has (AI)strong confidence,
and (AJ)his children will have (AK)a refuge.
27 The fear of the Lord is (AL)a fountain of life,
that one may (AM)turn away from the snares of death.
28 In (AN)a multitude of people is the glory of a king,
but without people a prince is ruined.
29 Whoever is (AO)slow to anger has great understanding,
but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.
30 A tranquil[f] heart gives (AP)life to the flesh,
but (AQ)envy[g] makes (AR)the bones rot.
31 Whoever oppresses a poor man (AS)insults his (AT)Maker,
(AU)but he who is generous to the needy honours him.
32 (AV)The wicked is overthrown through his evildoing,
but (AW)the righteous finds refuge in his death.
33 Wisdom (AX)rests in the heart of a man of understanding,
but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools.[h]
34 Righteousness exalts a nation,
but sin is a reproach to any people.
35 A servant who deals wisely has (AY)the king's favour,
but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 14:3 Or In the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride
  2. Proverbs 14:9 Hebrew but among the upright is acceptance
  3. Proverbs 14:12 Hebrew ways of death
  4. Proverbs 14:16 Or fears [the Lord]
  5. Proverbs 14:22 Or show
  6. Proverbs 14:30 Or healing
  7. Proverbs 14:30 Or jealousy
  8. Proverbs 14:33 Or Wisdom rests quietly in the heart of a man of understanding, but makes itself known in the midst of fools

Cross references

  1. Proverbs 14:1 : [ch. 9:1; 24:3]
  2. Proverbs 14:1 : Deut. 25:9; Ruth 4:11
  3. Proverbs 14:1 : [ch. 11:11]
  4. Proverbs 14:2 : ch. 19:1; 28:6
  5. Proverbs 14:2 : ch. 2:15
  6. Proverbs 14:3 : [Jer. 18:18]
  7. Proverbs 14:3 : ch. 12:6
  8. Proverbs 14:5 : [Ex. 23:1]
  9. Proverbs 14:5 : See ch. 6:19
  10. Proverbs 14:6 : [ch. 24:7]
  11. Proverbs 14:6 : [Ps. 25:9; 1 Pet. 5:5]
  12. Proverbs 14:6 : [ch. 8:9; 15:14; 17:24]
  13. Proverbs 14:9 : [ch. 10:23]
  14. Proverbs 14:10 : [1 Sam. 1:10]; See Job 3:20
  15. Proverbs 14:11 : [ch. 3:33; 15:25; Job 8:15; 21:28]
  16. Proverbs 14:12 : ch. 16:25; See ch. 12:15
  17. Proverbs 14:12 : [ch. 5:5; Rom. 6:21]; See ch. 7:27
  18. Proverbs 14:13 : [Eccles. 2:2; Luke 6:25]
  19. Proverbs 14:13 : ch. 10:1
  20. Proverbs 14:14 : [ch. 1:31; Matt. 6:2, 5]
  21. Proverbs 14:14 : ch. 12:14; Isa. 3:10
  22. Proverbs 14:15 : See ch. 1:4
  23. Proverbs 14:16 : [ch. 22:3; 27:12]
  24. Proverbs 14:16 : [ch. 3:7]; See Job 28:28; Ps. 34:14
  25. Proverbs 14:17 : [ver. 29]
  26. Proverbs 14:19 : [Gen. 42:6; 1 Sam. 2:36]
  27. Proverbs 14:20 : ch. 19:7
  28. Proverbs 14:20 : ch. 19:4
  29. Proverbs 14:21 : ch. 11:12
  30. Proverbs 14:21 : Ps. 41:1
  31. Proverbs 14:22 : See ch. 3:29
  32. Proverbs 14:22 : ch. 3:3
  33. Proverbs 14:23 : [ch. 11:24; 21:5; 22:16]
  34. Proverbs 14:25 : ver. 5
  35. Proverbs 14:26 : [ch. 1:33]
  36. Proverbs 14:26 : [Ps. 73:15]
  37. Proverbs 14:26 : See Ps. 14:6
  38. Proverbs 14:27 : See ch. 10:11
  39. Proverbs 14:27 : See ch. 13:14
  40. Proverbs 14:28 : [1 Kgs. 4:20]
  41. Proverbs 14:29 : ch. 16:32; 19:11; [ver. 17; Eccles. 7:9; James 1:19]
  42. Proverbs 14:30 : See ch. 4:22
  43. Proverbs 14:30 : [Ps. 112:10]
  44. Proverbs 14:30 : ch. 12:4
  45. Proverbs 14:31 : ch. 17:5; [Matt. 25:40, 45]
  46. Proverbs 14:31 : ch. 22:2; See Job 35:10
  47. Proverbs 14:31 : ch. 28:8
  48. Proverbs 14:32 : ch. 24:16
  49. Proverbs 14:32 : Gen. 49:18; Ps. 16:11; 17:15; 23:4; 2 Cor. 1:9; 5:8; 2 Tim. 4:18; [Num. 23:10]; See Job 19:25-27
  50. Proverbs 14:33 : Eccles. 7:9; ch. 12:16; 29:11
  51. Proverbs 14:35 : [ch. 16:13; 22:11]; See Matt. 24:45-47

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14 A wise woman buildeth her house; and an unwise woman shall destroy with hands, that is, with her evil works, an house builded. (A wise woman buildeth up her own house; but an unwise woman shall destroy with her own hands, that is, with her own evil works, the house that she hath built.) 2 A man g...
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14 Every wise woman builds her house, but the foolish one tears it down with her own hands.2 He who walks in his uprightness fears Yahweh, but he who is perverse in his ways despises him.3 The fool’s talk brings a rod to his back, but the lips of the wise protect them.4 Where no oxen are, the crib i...
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14 Wisdom[a] builds her house,but folly with her own hands tears it down.2 He who walks in uprightness fears the Lord, but he who is devious in his ways despises him.3 The talk of a fool is a rod for his back,[b] but the lips of the wise will preserve them.4 Where there are no oxen, there is no[c] g...
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Proverbs 14 - New Living Translation (NLT)

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