Proverbs 21
21
God Examines Our Motives
1Good leadership is a channel of water controlled by God;
he directs it to whatever ends he chooses.
2We justify our actions by appearances;
God examines our motives.
3Clean living before God and justice with our neighbors
mean far more to God than religious performance.
4Arrogance and pride—distinguishing marks in the wicked—
are just plain sin.
5Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run;
hurry and scurry puts you further behind.
6Make it to the top by lying and cheating;
get paid with smoke and a promotion—to death!
7The wicked get buried alive by their loot
because they refuse to use it to help others.
8Mixed motives twist life into tangles;
pure motives take you straight down the road.
Do Your Best, Prepare for the Worst
9Better to live alone in a tumbledown shack
than share a mansion with a nagging spouse.
10Wicked souls love to make trouble;
they feel nothing for friends and neighbors.
11Simpletons only learn the hard way,
but the wise learn by listening.
12A God-loyal person will see right through the wicked
and undo the evil they’ve planned.
13If you stop your ears to the cries of the poor,
your cries will go unheard, unanswered.
14A quietly given gift soothes an irritable person;
a heartfelt present cools a hot temper.
15Good people celebrate when justice triumphs,
but for the workers of evil it’s a bad day.
16Whoever wanders off the straight and narrow
ends up in a congregation of ghosts.
17You’re addicted to thrills? What an empty life!
The pursuit of pleasure is never satisfied.
18What a bad person plots against the good, boomerangs;
the plotter gets it in the end.
19Better to live in a tent in the wild
than with a cross and petulant spouse.
20Valuables are safe in a wise person’s home;
fools put it all out for yard sales.
21Whoever goes hunting for what is right and kind
finds life itself—glorious life!
22One sage entered a whole city of armed soldiers—
their trusted defenses fell to pieces!
23Watch your words and hold your tongue;
you’ll save yourself a lot of grief.
24You know their names—Brash, Impudent, Blasphemer—
intemperate hotheads, every one.
25Lazy people finally die of hunger
because they won’t get up and go to work.
26Sinners are always wanting what they don’t have;
the God-loyal are always giving what they do have.
27Religious performance by the wicked stinks;
it’s even worse when they use it to get ahead.
28A lying witness is unconvincing;
a person who speaks truth is respected.
29Unscrupulous people fake it a lot;
honest people are sure of their steps.
30Nothing clever, nothing conceived, nothing contrived,
can get the better of God.
31Do your best, prepare for the worst—
then trust God to bring victory.
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Proverbs 21: MSG
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
Proverbs 21
21
The LORD Controls Wise and Foolish People
1The king’s heart is like streams of water.
Both are under the Lord’s control.
He turns them in any direction he chooses.
2A person thinks everything he does is right,
but the Lord weighs hearts.
3Doing what is right and fair
is more acceptable to the Lord than offering a sacrifice.
4A conceited look and an arrogant attitude,
which are the lamps of wicked people, are sins.
5The plans of a hard-working person lead to prosperity,
but everyone who is ⌞always⌟ in a hurry ends up in poverty.
6Those who gather wealth by lying are wasting time.
They are looking for death.
7The violence of wicked people will drag them away
since they refuse to do what is just.
8The way of a guilty person is crooked,
but the behavior of those who are pure is moral.
9Better to live on a corner of a roof
than to share a home with a quarreling woman.
10The mind of a wicked person desires evil
and has no consideration for his neighbor.
11When a mocker is punished, a gullible person becomes wise,
and when a wise person is instructed, he gains knowledge.
12A righteous person wisely considers the house of a wicked person.
He throws wicked people into disasters.
13Whoever shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will call and not be answered.
14A gift ⌞given⌟ in secret calms anger,
and a secret bribe calms great fury.
15When justice is done, a righteous person is delighted,
but troublemakers are terrified.
16A person who wanders from the way of wise behavior
will rest in the assembly of the dead.
17Whoever loves pleasure will become poor.
Whoever loves wine and expensive food will not become rich.
18Wicked people become a ransom for righteous people,
and treacherous people will take the place of decent people.
19Better to live in a desert
than with a quarreling and angry woman.
20Costly treasure and wealth are in the home of a wise person,
but a fool devours them.
21Whoever pursues righteousness and mercy
will find life, righteousness, and honor.
22A wise man attacks a city of warriors
and pulls down the strong defenses in which they trust.
23Whoever guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble.
24An arrogant, conceited person is called a mocker.
His arrogance knows no limits.
25The desire of a lazy person will kill him
because his hands refuse to work.
26All day long he feels greedy,
but a righteous person gives and does not hold back.
27The sacrifice of wicked people is disgusting,
especially if they bring it with evil intent.
28A lying witness will die,
but a person who listens to advice will continue to speak.
29A wicked person puts up a bold front,
but a decent person’s way of life is his own security.
30No wisdom, no understanding, and no advice
⌞can stand up⌟ against the Lord.
31The horse is made ready for the day of battle,
but the victory belongs to the Lord.
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