Online Bible

Contrast of the Upright and the Wicked

A ^afalse balance is an abomination to the LORD,But a ^bjust weight is His delight.2 When ^apride comes, then comes dishonor;But with the humble there is wisdom.3 The ^aintegrity of the upright will guide them,But the ^bperversity of the treacherous will destroy them.4 ^aRiches do not benefit on the day of wrath,But ^brighteousness rescues from death.5 The ^arighteousness of the blameless will smooth his way,But ^bthe wicked will fall by his own wickedness.6 The righteousness of the upright will rescue them,But the treacherous will ^abe caught by their own greed.7 When a wicked person dies, his ^aexpectation will perish,And the ^bhope of strong people perishes.8 The righteous is rescued from trouble,But the wicked ¹takes his place.9 With his ^amouth the godless person destroys his neighbor,But through knowledge the ^brighteous will be rescued.10 When things ^ago well for the righteous, the city rejoices,And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.11 By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,But by the mouth of the wicked, it is torn down.12 One who despises his neighbor lacks ¹sense,But a person of understanding keeps silent.13 One ^awho goes about as a slanderer reveals secrets,But one who is ¹trustworthy ^bconceals a matter.14 Where there is no ^aguidance the people fall,But in an abundance of counselors there is ¹victory.15 One who is a ^aguarantor for a stranger will certainly suffer for it,But one who hates ¹being a guarantor is secure.16 A ^agracious woman attains honor,And ruthless men attain riches.17 A ^amerciful person does ¹himself good,But the cruel person ²does himself harm.18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,But one who ^asows righteousness gets a true reward.19 One who is steadfast in ^arighteousness attains life,But ^bone who pursues evil attains his own death.20 The perverse in heart are an abomination to the LORD,But the ^ablameless in their ¹walk are His ^bdelight.21 ¹Be assured, the evil person will not go unpunished,But the ²descendants of the righteous will be rescued.22 As a ^aring of gold in a pig’s snoutSo is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion.23 The desire of the righteous is only good,But the ^aexpectation of the wicked is wrath.24 There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in poverty.25 A ¹^agenerous person will be ²prosperous,And one who ^bgives others plenty of water will himself be given plenty.26 One who withholds grain, the ^apeople will curse him,But ^bblessing will be on the head of him who ^csells it.27 One who diligently seeks good seeks favor,But ^aone who seeks evil, evil will come to him.28 One who ^atrusts in his riches will fall,But ^bthe righteous will flourish like the green leaf.29 One who ^atroubles his own house will ^binherit wind,And ^cthe foolish will be servant to the wise-hearted.30 The fruit of the righteous is ^aa tree of life,And ^bone who is wise ¹gains souls.31 If ^athe righteous will be repaid on the earth,How much more the wicked and the sinner!