Proverbs 17

1You may have to eat a bit of dry bread. But to eat it with a quiet mind is better than to eat plenty in a house full of quarrels.

2A wise servant will rule over a son that makes his father ashamed. He will receive part of the valuable things of his master when his master dies.

3Fire will show how good gold and silver are. In the same way, the LORD shows what a man is like.

4Bad people listen to bad ideas. Those who speak false words listen to false words.

5You should not say things that are not kind about poor people. If you do, you are not speaking well about God. You should not be happy when trouble has happened to someone. If you are, God will punish you.

6Grandparents enjoy their grandchildren. In the same way, children think that their parents are great.

7It does not seem right when a fool speaks very good words. It seems even worse when a ruler does not speak true things.

8Some people think that a bribe does impossible things. They believe that it can do anything.

9People may do bad things to you. If you want them to love you, do not remember those bad things. Remember that those bad things can cause a quarrel among very good friends.

10You can tell a wise man that he has done something wrong. He will learn from that, but a fool learns nothing. He will not learn, even if someone hits him 100 times.

11A man that always causes trouble wants bad things to happen. So a cruel man will tell him bad news.

12When someone takes a young animal away from its mother, the mother is very angry. But it is better to meet this mother animal than to meet a fool who is doing silly things.

13Do not give bad things for what is good. If you do, bad things will always happen to you and to your family.

14To start a quarrel is like the first small hole in a dam. Stop it before it is too late.

15People may let a man be free when he has done wrong things. Or they may punish a man who has not done anything wrong. The LORD hates it when people do those things.

16Money does not do anything good for a fool because he does not want to be wise.

17A friend loves at all times and a brother is always there to help at the bad times.

18Only a fool promises to pay the debts of another man.

19A man who loves a quarrel really loves sin. And a man may think of himself as great because of what he does. Or he may build a better house than he has money for. But he is really causing trouble for himself in the end.

20A man who thinks wrong things cannot do well. The man who speaks false words gets into trouble.

21To have a foolish son makes parents sad. The father of a fool is never happy.

22A happy mind is like good medicine. But when you are sad and lonely you will become ill.

23Bad judges may take money secretly. Then they are not fair to anybody.

24A wise man judges things with wisdom. But a fool looks everywhere.

25To have a foolish son makes his father sad. And it makes his mother very sad.

26It is not good to punish a man who has done nothing wrong. And it is not good to hit officers because they have been honest.

27A wise man is careful with the words that he uses. A man who is wise always keeps quiet.

28Even a fool seems to be wise if he keeps quiet. He should keep his mouth shut. So people will think that he is wise.