26Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, honor is not fitting for a fool. 2Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest. 3A whip for the horse, a halter for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools! 4
25These are more proverbs of Solomon, copied by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah: 2It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings. 3As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings are u
24Do not envy wicked men, do not desire their company; 2for their hearts plot violence, and their lips talk about making trouble. 3By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; 4through knowledge its rooms are filled with r
1O Lord , hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief. 2Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you. 3The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground; h
1Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. 2He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me. 3O Lord , what is man that you c
1Praise the Lord . Praise the Lord , O my soul. 2I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. 3Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. 4When their spirit departs, they return to the gro
9So I reflected on all this and concluded that the righteous and the wise and what they do are in God's hands, but no man knows whether love or hate awaits him. 2All share a common destiny-the righteous and the wicked, the good and the bad, the clean
10As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. 2The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left. 3Even as he walks along the road, the fool lacks sense and shows everyone how
11Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. 2Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land. 3If clouds are full of water, they pour rain upon the earth. Whether a tre
1I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever. 2Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. 3Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. 4One generation will com
12Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, I find no pleasure in them- 2before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark, and the clouds return after
18In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother's name was Abijah daughter of Ze
19When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into the temple of the Lord . 2He sent Eliakim the palace administrator, Shebna the secretary and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son
20In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover. 2Hezekiah turned his face
21Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years. His mother's name was Hephzibah. 2He did evil in the eyes of the Lord , following the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had driven out befor
29Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother's name was Abijah daughter of Zechariah. 2He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord , just as his father David had done. 3In the