Proverbs 27:1-24

Boast not thyself of to-morrow; For thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; A stranger, and not thine own lips. A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; But a fool’s vexation is heavier than they both. Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; But who is able to stand before jealousy? Better is open rebuke Than love that is hidden. Faithful are the wounds of a friend; But the kisses of an enemy are profuse. The full soul loatheth a honeycomb; But to the hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet. As a bird that wandereth from her nest, So is a man that wandereth from his place. Oil and perfume rejoice the heart; So doth the sweetness of a man’s friend that cometh of hearty counsel. Thine own friend, and thy father’s friend, forsake not; And go not to thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity: Better is a neighbor that is near than a brother far off. My son, be wise, and make my heart glad, That I may answer him that reproacheth me. A prudent man seeth the evil, and hideth himself; But the simple pass on, and suffer for it. Take his garment that is surety for a stranger; And hold him in pledge that is surety for a foreign woman. He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, It shall be counted a curse to him. A continual dropping in a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike: He that would restrain her restraineth the wind; And his right hand encountereth oil. Iron sharpeneth iron; So a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. Whoso keepeth the fig-tree shall eat the fruit thereof; And he that regardeth his master shall be honored. As in water face answereth to face, So the heart of man to man. Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied; And the eyes of man are never satisfied. The refining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold; And a man is tried by his praise. Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with bruised grain, Yet will not his foolishness depart from him. Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, And look well to thy herds: For riches are not for ever; And doth the crown endure unto all generations?