PROVERBS A CHAPTER A DAY

For the ease of the reader I have interleaved my comments with the text.

CHAPTER 12

To accept correction is wise,

    to reject it is stupid.

THIS PROVERB IS REPEATED FREQUENTLY POSSIBLY AS ADVICE TO THE READER!

2 

The Lord likes everyone

    who lives right,

    but he punishes everyone

    who makes evil plans.

3 

Sin cannot offer security!

    But if you live right,

    you will be as secure

    as a tree with deep roots.

THE TREE THAT SHALL NOT BE MOVED IS A COMMON IMAGE IN WISDOM WRITING. ITS USE BY MODERN PROTEST MOVEMENTS SHOW ITS POWER.

4 

A helpful wife is a jewel

    for her husband,

    but a shameless wife

    will make his bones rot.

YES, BUT WRITE IT ALSO ABOUT A HUSBAND.

5 

Good people have kind thoughts,

    but you should never trust

    the advice of someone evil.

6 

Bad advice is a deadly trap,

    but good advice

    is like a shield.

7 

Once the wicked are defeated,

    they are gone forever,

    but one who obeys God

    will never be thrown down.

MARTIN LUTHER KING IS WELL-KNOWN, BUT WHO WAS THE MAN WHO SHOT HIM?

8 

Good sense is worthy of praise,

    but stupidity is a curse.

9 

It’s better to be ordinary

    And work for a living,

    than to think you are somebody

    and starve to death.

10 

Good people are kind

to their animals,

    but a mean person is cruel.

I WOULD NEVER TRUST SOMEONE WHO WAS CRUEL TO AN ANIMAL

11 

Hard working farmers have more

    than enough food;

    daydreamers are nothing more

    than fools.

12 

An evil person hides behind

    A crumbling wall;

    good people are like trees

    with deep roots.

THERE’S A TERRIBLE FILM ABOUT THE LAST DAYS OF HITLER, AS HIS WALLS CRUMBLE.

13 

We trap ourselves

    by telling lies,

    but we stay out of trouble

    by living in truth.

THE TRUTH MAY CAUSE TROUBLE, BUT IT’S NEVER A TRAP.

14 

We are rewarded or punished

    for what we say and do.

15 

Fools think they know

    what is best,

    but a sensible person

    listens to advice.

SAME AS 1 ABOVE

16 

Losing your temper is foolish;

    ignoring an insult is smart.

YES, BUT JUST SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO SAY, “YOU TALKIN’ TAE ME, PAL?”

7 An honest person

    tells the truth in court,

    but a dishonest person

    tells nothing but lies.

18 

Sharp words cut like a sword,

    but words of wisdom heal.

I’VE HAD TO LEARN THIS ONE

19 

Truth will last forever;

    lies are soon found out.

20 

An evil mind is deceitful,

    but peaceful intentions

    bring happiness.

21 

Good people never have trouble,

    but troublemakers

    have more than enough.

I’VE SOMETIMES SYMPATHISED WITH A MAN’S TROUBLES UNTIL I FOUND OUT HE WAS A TROUBLEMAKER

22 

The Lord hates every liar,

    but he is the friend of all

    who can be trusted.

THE LORD IS LIKE OURSELVES IN THIS RESPECT 

31

Be sensible and don’t tell

    everything you know—

    only fools spread

    foolishness everywhere.

24 

Work hard, and you

    will be a leader;

    be lazy, and you

    will end up a slave.

IN ISRAEL BANKRUPTS WERE SOLD AS SLAVES

25 

Worry is a heavy burden,

    but a kind word

    lifts it.

YES, YES!

26 

You are better off to do right,

    than to lose your way

    by doing wrong.

WE SAY, HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY

27 

Anyone too lazy to cook

    will starve,

    but diligence

    is a valuable treasure.

28 

The path of justice

Is life

But the highway of injustice

Leads to death.

I HOPE THIS IS TRUE; SOMETIMES IT DOESN’T SEEM SO.

The great thing about these sayings is that they take the risk of being clear and definite. When I started this study I feared they might be boring, but I was wide of the mark. They force you to agree or disagree.