Proverbs 13
You got your good, you got your bad
Two ways of life
1Kids are smart to take their parents’ advice.But kids who are constant critics don’t want anything to do with it.
2We eat from the words we speak, so speak good words.
Lying crooks have an appetite for violence.
3Control your mouth and live longer.
Open your mouth and ruin everything.
4Lazy people want everything, but get nothing.
Hard workers get what they want.
5Good people hate liars and fakes.
Bad people—shameless and disgraceful—don’t care.
6Honesty itself guards honest people.
Evil takes a sinner down.
7Some pretend they’re rich, but they’re broke.
Others pretend they’re poor, but they own the bank.
8Kidnappers demand a rich person’s money.
Nobody kidnaps the poor.
9Good people live happily in the light of day.
Bad people live in darkness.
10Arrogance gets you nothing but argument.
Good advice gets you wisdom.
11Wealth by fraud doesn’t last.
Hard work builds assets.
It’s smart to take good advice
12It’s disappointing to have to wait for what you want.But it sure is great when you finally get it.
13Folks who hate the law will pay for it.
But people who respect the rules get a reward.
14Advice from wise people can empower a life,
And steer you away from death.
15People with a good head on their shoulders are likable.
Crooks and liars have a tougher time in life.
16Cautious people think before they act.
Foolish people act like fools, then brag about it.
17A messenger you can’t trust causes problems.
A dependable messenger fixes problems.
18Ignoring advice will get poverty and a bad reputation.
Taking the advice will get you a standing ovation.
19It warms the soul when we get what we want.
A fool hates the very idea of giving up the bad life for the good.
20Hanging out with wise people is a wise idea.
Hanging out with fools puts you in harm’s way.
21Trouble chases troublemakers.
Good and godly people enjoy good times.
22Good people leave an inheritance behind, for their grandkids.
A sinner’s wealth goes to good and godly folks.
23There’s a big harvest from a poor person’s farm.
But injustice takes it all in a raid.
24If you don’t take a stick [1] to your kid from time to time, you hate the kid.
You show your love by teaching your kid to behave.
25Good and godly people have all they hunger for.
Bad people live with painful hunger and growling guts.
Footnotes
The Hebrew word can mean a switch, club, or staff—something you could bop a kid with. Some who argue against corporal punishment remind us that shepherds used a staff to gently nudge a straying sheep away from trouble. They didn’t club sheep like some parents wallop their rowdy kid in the candy aisle of the grocery store. People in Bible times—Jews and non-Jews alike—taught contact discipline, so to speak. We’re talking a spanking. Check out Proverbs 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15. The question for many parents of faith today is whether wise advice for farmers and herders 3,000 years ago is good advice today. Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings, some of which were picked up almost verbatim from earlier Egyptian wise sayings. With that in mind, many Bible teachers would argue this advice is best read as a snippet from history, not a rule intended for everyone everywhere until Jesus comes. Besides, they add, how many parents walloping kids in the candy aisle look loving—as opposed to looking like they’re leading the Charge of the Light Brigade. To which some parents would add that we really need to meet their kid.
Discussion Questions
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