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Proverbs 14
1Every wise woman builds her house, but the foolish one tears it down with her own hands.
2He who walks in his uprightness fears the LORD, but he who is perverse in his ways despises him.
3The fool’s talk brings a rod to his back, but the lips of the wise protect them.
4Where no oxen are, the crib is clean, but much increase is by the strength of the ox.
5A truthful witness will not lie, but a false witness pours out lies.
6A scoffer seeks wisdom, and doesn’t find it, but knowledge comes easily to a discerning person.
7Stay away from a foolish man, for you won’t find knowledge on his lips.
8The wisdom of the prudent is to think about his way, but the folly of fools is .
9Fools mock at making for sins, but among the upright there is good will.
10The heart knows its own bitterness and joy; he will not share these with a stranger.
11The house of the wicked will be overthrown, but the tent of the upright will flourish.
12There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
13Even in laughter the heart may be sorrowful, and mirth may end in heaviness.
14The unfaithful will be repaid for his own ways; likewise a good man will be rewarded for his ways.
15A simple man believes everything, but the prudent man carefully considers his ways.
16A wise man fears and shuns evil, but the fool is hot headed and reckless.
17He who is quick to become angry will commit folly, and a crafty man is hated.
18The simple inherit folly, but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19The evil bow down before the good, and the wicked at the gates of the .
20The poor person is shunned even by his own neighbor, but the rich person has many friends.
21He who despises his neighbor sins, but he who has pity on the poor is blessed.
22Don’t they go astray who plot evil? But love and faithfulness belong to those who plan good.
23In all hard work there is profit, but the talk of the lips leads only to poverty.
24The of the wise is their riches, but the folly of fools crowns them with folly.
25A truthful witness saves souls, but a false witness is deceitful.
26In the fear of the LORD is a secure fortress, and he will be a refuge for his children.
27The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, turning people from the snares of death.
28In the multitude of people is the ’s glory, but in the lack of people is the destruction of the prince.
29He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a quick temper displays folly.
30The life of the body is a heart at peace, but envy rots the bones.
31He who oppresses the poor shows contempt for his Maker, but he who is kind to the needy honors him.
32The wicked is brought down in his calamity, but in death, the has a refuge.
33Wisdom rests in the heart of one who has understanding, and is even made known in the inward part of fools.
34 exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.
35The ’s favor is toward a servant who deals wisely, but his wrath is toward one who causes shame.
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Questions this passage answers
How do I stop committing the same sin over and over?
Scripture answers a repeated sin by changing what the believer reckons to be true, then by naming the ordinary means: consider yourself dead to sin, stop presenting your body to it, bring it out of secrecy by confession, walk by the Spirit, and remove what feeds the desire. It does not promise a single moment that ends the struggle, and it does not treat repeated falling as proof that grace has run out.
How do I trust God when life is difficult?
Biblical trust is not a feeling you generate. It is leaning your weight on what God has revealed about himself, especially when your circumstances suggest otherwise. Scripture builds trust the same way every time: by remembering what God has already done, telling him the truth about what you feel now, and obeying the next small thing while the outcome is still hidden.
How do I know God's will for my life?
Scripture speaks of God's will in two ways. His revealed will is what he has already told us plainly and is not in doubt: holiness, love, gratitude, obedience. His hidden will concerns the future and is not given to us in advance. The Bible directs almost all its attention to the first, and it teaches us to make wise decisions inside it rather than to decode secret guidance.
What does it mean to fear the Lord?
The fear of the LORD is not terror of an unpredictable God. It is the reverence of a creature who has rightly understood who God is, holy, sovereign and near, and who therefore takes him seriously in every decision. Proverbs calls it the beginning of knowledge, because a person who has not reckoned with God has not yet begun to understand anything rightly.