Proverbs 18 — Legacy Standard Bible

18He who separates himself seeks his own desire,He ^abreaks out in dispute against all sound wisdom.²A fool does not delight in discernment,But only ^ain revealing his own heart.³When a wicked man comes, despising also comes,And with disgrace comes reproach.⁴The words of a man’s mouth are ^adeep waters;¹The fountain of wisdom is a flowing brook.⁵To ^ashow partiality to the wicked is not good,Nor to ^bthrust aside the righteous in judgment.⁶A fool’s lips come with strife,And his mouth calls for ^abeatings.⁷A ^afool’s mouth is his ruin,And his lips are the snare of his soul.⁸The words of a whisperer are like dainty morsels,And they go down into the ¹innermost parts of the stomach.⁹He also who is ^aslack in his work^bIs brother to him who destroys.¹⁰The ^aname of Yahweh is a ^bstrong tower;The righteous runs into it and is ^cset securely on high.¹¹A ^arich man’s wealth is his strong city,And like a high wall in his own delusion.¹²^aBefore destruction the heart of man is haughty,But ^bhumility goes before glory.¹³He who ^aresponds with a word before he hears,It is folly and shame to him.¹⁴The ^aspirit of a man can endure his sickness,But as for a ^bbroken spirit, who can bear it?¹⁵The ^aheart of the understanding acquires knowledge,And the ^bear of the wise seeks knowledge.¹⁶A man’s ^agift makes room for himAnd leads him into the presence of great men.¹⁷The first ¹to plead his case seems right,Until ²another comes and examines him.¹⁸The cast ^alot puts an end to contentionsAnd ¹decides between the mighty ones.¹⁹A brother offended is harder to win over than a strong city,And contentions are like the bars of a citadel.²⁰From the ¹^,^afruit of a man’s mouth his stomach will be satisfied;^bWith the produce of his lips he will be satisfied.²¹^aDeath and life are in the ¹power of the tongue,And those who love it will eat its ^bfruit.²²He who finds a ^awife finds a good thingAnd ^bobtains favor from Yahweh.²³The ^apoor man speaks supplications,But the ^brich man ^canswers with strong words.²⁴A man of too many friends comes to ¹ruin,But there is ^aa ²friend who sticks closer than a brother.