Proverbs 17:7-21

7Eloquent words are not appropriate on a fool’s lips; how much worse are lies for a ruler.

8A bribe seems like a magic stone to its owner; wherever he turns, he succeeds.

9Whoever conceals an offense promotes love, but whoever gossips about it separates friends.

10A rebuke cuts into a perceptive person more than a hundred lashes into a fool.

11An evil person desires only rebellion; a cruel messenger will be sent against him.

12Better for a person to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his foolishness.

13If anyone returns evil for good, evil will never depart from his house.

14To start a conflict is to release a flood; stop the dispute before it breaks out.

15Acquitting the guilty and condemning the just  — both are detestable to the Lord.

16Why does a fool have money in his hand with no intention of buying wisdom?

17A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a difficult time.

18One without sense enters an agreement and puts up security for his friend.

19One who loves to offend loves strife; one who builds a high threshold invites injury.

20One with a twisted mind will not succeed, and one with deceitful speech will fall into ruin.

21A man fathers a fool to his own sorrow; the father of a fool has no joy.