1. There is a bad timeto rebuke someone.Those who keep silentare the prudent ones.
2. How much better to investigatethan to be angry!
3. And those who confess openlywill be kept from loss.
4. Like eunuchs desiring to violate a girl,so are those who make decisionsby force.
5. There are people who are silentand are found to be wise,and there are those who are hatedbecause they talk a lot.
6. There are those who keep silentbecause they have nothing to sayin response,and there are those who keep silentbecause they know the right time.
7. Wise people keep silentuntil the proper moment,but those who swagger and are senseless will miss the right moment.
8. Those who talk excessively will be loathed,and those who pretendto have authority will be hated.
9. Some people have successin bad circumstances,and there’s a windfall that resultsin loss.
10. There’s a gift that won’t profit you,and there’s a gift that will bringtwice the return.
11. There are losses sufferedfor the sake of one’s reputation,and there are people who have raisedtheir heads from humiliation.
12. There are those who buy a lot for a little,and they pay for it seven times over.
13. Wise people make themselvesdearly loved by means of words,but fools pour out gifts.
14. Gifts from senseless peoplewon’t profit you,because they look for a lotrather than a little in return.
15. They will give a little and reproach a lot,and they will open their mouthslike a town crier.Today they will lendand tomorrow ask for it back;such people are hateful.
16. Fools say, "I don’t have a friend,and there’s no gratitudefor my good deeds."Those who eat the bread of such peoplehave mean tongues.
17. How many will ridicule them,and how often?
18. A slip on the pavement is preferableto a slip of the tongue;so the downfall of evil peoplewill come quickly.
19. A disagreeable person, an untimely story—it will always bein the mouth of the uneducated.
20. Proverbs told by fools will be rejected,because they’ll never tell themat their proper time.
21. Some are prevented from sinningbecause of poverty,and their conscience won’t be painedwhen they rest.
22. Some destroy their life through shame,and they destroy itbecause of foolish appearances.
23. Some promise a favor to a friendout of shame,and they create an enemy for no reason.
24. A lie is a bad blemish on a person;ignorant people tell them incessantly.
25. A thief is preferable to someonewho continuously lies,but both will inherit destruction.
26. The character of liars is dishonorable;their shame is continuouslywith them.
27. Wise people distinguish themselvesby their words,and prudent people will pleasethe powerful.
28. Those who work the soilwill pile up their harvest,and those who please the powerfulwill secure reconciliation for injuries.
29. Friendly relationships and giftswill blind the eyes of the wise;like a muzzle on a mouth,they turn away reproof.
30. Hidden wisdom and unseen treasure—of what benefit is either?
31. Better are those who hidetheir foolishnessthan those who hide their wisdom.