Proverbs 29

1A man should not refuse to listen when someone checks his words. If he refuses to listen again and again, something will destroy him very quickly. And nothing will be able to make it better.

2If you show to me a good ruler, I will show to you happy people. If you show to me a bad ruler, I will show to you sad people.

3A man that loves wise words makes his father happy. But if he likes to be with prostitutes he will waste his money.

4When the king makes fair rules, he will have a strong country. But when he takes money to do wrong things, he will destroy his country.

5Do not tell your friends that they are really great. If you continue to tell this to them, it will cause you to have a difficult time.

6A bad man cannot escape from the results of his sins. But an honest person is so happy that he sings.

7Good people want good rules for poor people. Bad people have no interest in poor people.

8People that laugh at other people can cause difficult problems in a city. But wise men keep things quiet.

9If a wise man goes to a judge with a fool, the fool will laugh. Or he will shout. There will be trouble.

10Men that want to kill people will hate an honest man. They will try to kill him.

11Silly people show that they are angry. Wise people are patient people. They do not show that they are angry.

12When a ruler listens to lies, all his officers will become bad men.

13The LORD gave eyes to the poor person and also to the officer that is cruel to him.

14If the rules of the king are fair to the poor people, he will rule for a long time.

15Do not let a child do always what he wants to do. If he is wrong, hit him. Or tell him that he must not do it. You should not let a child do whatever he wants to do. If you do, he will make his mother ashamed.

16When rulers are bad people, more and more people will sin. But good people will live to see those rulers lose their power.

17Do not let your children do always what they want to do. So they will not make you ashamed of them. They will always make you happy.

18Only God can be the leader of a country. Without him, people do what they want to do. Happy are those people who obey God’s rules.

19If you use only words you cannot cause servants to obey you. Even if they understand you, they will not obey you.

20A man may speak before he thinks. Better things will happen to a fool than will happen to that man.

21You may give to a servant everything that he wants. You may have done this since he was a child. If you do, one day he will be like a son. He will take everything that is yours.

22An angry man causes quarrels and angry men sin often.

23People will not always like a man that is proud. They will not think that he is great. But they will like a man that is not proud. They will think that he is great.

24When a man helps someone to rob other people he becomes his own enemy. The judge asks him what happened. But he does not tell the judge what happened. So God will punish him.

25If you are afraid of other people you will never feel safe. But if you trust the LORD, he will keep you safe.

26Everybody wants to speak with the ruler. But only the LORD is fair.

27The good man does not like the bad man, and the bad man does not like the good man.