Proverbs 27

1Do not boast of tomorrow,For you do not know what the day will bring.

2Let the mouth of another praise you, not yours,The lips of a stranger, not your own.

3A stone has weight, sand is heavy,But a fool’s vexation outweighs them both.

4There is the cruelty of fury, the overflowing of anger,But who can withstand jealousy?

5Open reproof is better than concealed love.

6Wounds by a loved one are long lasting;The kisses of an enemy are profuse.

7A sated appetite disdains honey,But to a ravenous appetite, even the bitter is sweet.

8Like a sparrow wandering from its nestIs a man who wanders from his home.

9Oil and incense gladden the heart,And the sweetness of a friend is better than one’s own counsel.

10Do not desert your friend and your father’s friend;Do not enter your brother’s house in your time of misfortune;A close neighbor is better than a distant brother.

11Get wisdom, my son, and gladden my heart,That I may have what to answer those who taunt me.

12The shrewd man saw trouble and took cover;The simple kept going and paid the penalty.

13Seize his garment, for he stood surety for another; Take it as a pledge, [for he stood surety] for an unfamiliar woman.

14He who greets his fellow loudly early in the morningShall have it reckoned to him as a curse.

15An endless dripping on a rainy dayAnd a contentious wife are alike;

16As soon repress her as repress the wind,Or declare one’s right hand to be oil.

17As iron sharpens ironSo a man sharpens the wit of his friend.

18One who tends a fig tree will enjoy its fruit,And one who cares for a master will be honored.

19As face answers to face in water,So does one’s heart to another’s.

20Sheol and Abaddon cannot be satisfied,Nor can the human eye be satisfied.

21For silver—the crucible, for gold—the furnace,And a person is tested by praise.

22Even if you pound the fool in a mortarWith a pestle along with grain,His folly will not leave him.

23Mind well the looks of your flock;Pay attention to your herds;

24For property does not last forever,Or a crown for all generations.

25Grass vanishes, new grass appears,And the herbage of the hills is gathered in.

26The lambs will provide you with clothing,The he-goats, the price of a field.

27The goats’ milk will suffice for your food,The food of your household,And the maintenance of your maids.