Proverbs Chapter 14
Showing all 35 verses for Proverbs Chapter 14.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands. "
"A wise woman builds her household up brick by brick; a foolish woman tears it down with her own two hands."
I built my life on quiet, patient acts of love, not grand gestures - and I'm telling you the same thing builds a home. Every small kindness you choose today is a brick; every cruelty is a hand pulling one out. Choose building.
"He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him. "
"Someone who lives honestly shows real respect for God by how they live; someone whose life is crooked is showing contempt for him, whether they realise it or not."
I care less about the words you say to me than the honesty in how you treat people when no one's watching. Integrity in the small, unseen moments is the realest form of respect you can show me.
"In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them. "
"A fool's proud talk becomes a stick that beats him; a wise person's careful words protect them instead."
Watch what pride dressed up as confidence does to your words - it usually wounds you before it wounds anyone else. Speak with humility and your words become armour instead of a weapon turned on yourself.
"Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox. "
"No oxen means an empty, spotless feeding trough - but also no ploughing done. It's the ox's hard, messy work that actually brings in the harvest."
I never promised you an easy, mess-free life - growth in love and purpose always costs something. Don't be so afraid of the mess that you end up with an empty, tidy life and nothing to show for it.
"A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies. "
"An honest witness won't lie; a dishonest witness tells lies as easily as breathing."
Let your yes be yes and your no be no. I'm asking for a consistency of truth that doesn't bend just because bending would be more convenient in the moment.
"A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth. "
"A cynical mocker searches for wisdom and never finds it, but for someone genuinely open to understanding, knowledge comes easily."
I revealed truth to the humble and the childlike, not to those who were sure they already had it figured out. Come to me ready to learn, not to win an argument, and things will open up for you.
"Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge. "
"Walk away from a foolish person the moment you realise they've got nothing wise to say."
I often withdrew to be alone and chose carefully who I spent my time with. It isn't unloving to limit time with people who drag you down - it's wise stewardship of the one life you've been given.
"The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit. "
"A sensible person's wisdom is understanding their own path clearly; a fool's folly is deceiving themselves."
I said to examine the plank in your own eye before pointing at the speck in someone else's. Honest self-awareness, even when it's uncomfortable, is where real change with me always begins.
"Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour. "
"Fools laugh off wrongdoing like it's nothing; but among decent, upright people there's real goodwill towards one another."
I never mocked sin, but I never crushed the person caught in it either. I named wrong for what it was while still offering welcome and grace to anyone honest enough to own it.
"The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy. "
"Only you truly know how bitter your own pain feels; and no outsider can ever fully share in your joy either."
I see what's hidden in your heart even when no one else can reach it. You're never as alone in your pain as it feels, because I know it completely, from the inside.
"The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish. "
"The wicked person's household - however solid it looks - will collapse; the honest person's home, even if it's just a tent, will thrive."
Build your life on rock, not sand. What looks flimsy but is built honestly will outlast what looks solid but is built on wrongdoing.
"There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death. "
"There's a path that feels completely right to a person - but it ends in death."
I said the road to destruction is wide and many find it, while the narrow way to life takes real discernment. Don't trust an easy, popular feeling alone - test where it's actually leading.
"Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness. "
"Even while laughing, the heart can be sad underneath - and partying can end up leaving you feeling heavier than before."
I wept, even on my way towards the joy set before me. You don't have to fake happiness with me - bring me the sorrow hiding behind the smile.
"The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be satisfied from himself. "
"Someone who drifts away in their heart gets a full dose of where their own choices lead; a good person is satisfied by the fruit of their own life."
I welcome the one who wanders home, but I also want you to know: the distant country never actually satisfies the way coming home does. Turn back before the emptiness runs any deeper.
"The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going. "
"A naive person will believe absolutely anything they're told; a sensible person thinks carefully about where their next step is taking them."
I told my followers to be as wise as serpents and as harmless as doves. Kindness and caution can live together - don't let a soft, open heart mean a switched-off mind.
"A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident. "
"A wise person stays cautious and steers clear of wrongdoing; a fool charges ahead recklessly, full of misplaced confidence."
I warned Peter he would deny me, even though he was completely sure he never would. A little humility about your own weak spots protects you far more than bold confidence ever will.
"He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated. "
"Someone quick to anger acts foolishly; someone who schemes maliciously ends up hated by others."
Anger left to fester leads to worse things. Pause before you react - the person you're about to snap at is someone I love too.
"The simple inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge. "
"Naive people end up saddled with foolishness as their inheritance; sensible people are crowned with knowledge."
Seek and you will find, I said. The effort you put into understanding life and love pays you back with real honour, not just information.
"The evil bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous. "
"Eventually, evil people end up bowing before good people; the wicked end up at the gates of the righteous, in the position of subjects or beggars."
The last will be first. Don't measure your worth by who seems to be winning today - I see the whole story, and character wins in the end.
"The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends. "
"A poor person is disliked even by their own neighbour, while a rich person has plenty of friends."
I ate with the poor and the outcast when respectable people wouldn't. Don't let money decide who's worth your friendship - overturning exactly that bias is part of why I came.
"He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he. "
"Looking down on your neighbour is genuinely wrong; showing kindness to the poor brings real happiness."
Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me. Your happiness isn't found in status or wealth, but in how you treat the person who has nothing to offer you back.
"Do they not err that devise evil? but mercy and truth shall be to them that devise good. "
"Don't people who plot evil end up lost and mistaken? But those who deliberately plan good are met with loyal love and truth."
I want you to plan good on purpose, not stumble into it by accident. Deliberate, thought-through kindness is what real love looks like.
"In all labour there is profit: but the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury. "
"All hard work brings some gain, but empty talk only leads to poverty."
Not everyone who says "Lord, Lord" enters the kingdom, but the one who does the will of my Father. What you actually do matters far more than what you say you'll do.
"The crown of the wise is their riches: but the foolishness of fools is folly. "
"Wisdom itself is the wealth of the wise, like a crown; but a fool's foolishness just stays foolishness, getting them nowhere."
Store up treasure that doesn't rust or get stolen. The wisdom and character you build with me are riches no market crash can touch.
"A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies. "
"An honest witness can save lives; a dishonest witness speaks lies that can destroy them."
I am the truth, and the truth sets people free. When you tell the truth even under pressure, you're doing rescue work, whether you realise it in the moment or not.
"In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. "
"Deep reverence for God gives you real, solid confidence, and it becomes a safe refuge for your children too."
Build your house on me and the storms won't destroy you. My peace isn't the absence of trouble - it's the confidence that holds you steady inside it.
"The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. "
"Reverence for God is like a spring of fresh, flowing water that keeps you alive, and it helps you steer clear of deadly traps."
I offer living water; whoever drinks it will never thirst again. Reverence for what's real and good keeps refreshing you, instead of running dry like the world's cheap substitutes.
"In the multitude of people is the king’s honour: but in the want of people is the destruction of the prince. "
"A king's greatness is shown by having many people under him; a ruler with few followers is heading for ruin."
I came not to be served but to serve, and I gave my life for many. Real greatness isn't in commanding people - it's in being worth following.
"He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly. "
"Someone slow to anger shows real understanding; someone quick-tempered just puts their own foolishness on display."
Blessed are the peacemakers, I said. The patience it costs you to hold your tongue in anger is exactly the quiet strength I call blessed.
"A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones. "
"A calm, healthy heart gives life to the whole body, but envy rots you right down to the bones."
I said don't worry about your life - anxiety and envy eat you alive. Let go of comparison and receive the peace I give, which isn't like the world's kind of peace.
"He that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy on the poor. "
"Mistreating the poor is an insult to their Maker; honouring God means showing mercy to the poor."
Whatever you did to the least of these, you did to me. I take how you treat the vulnerable personally, because I am with them.
"The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death. "
"The wicked person is brought down by their own wrongdoing; but the righteous person has hope even in death."
I am the resurrection and the life. Death doesn't get the last word for those who trust and walk with me - and that hope can steady you long before you ever have to face it.
"Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known. "
"Wisdom sits quietly at rest in the heart of someone with understanding, but whatever's inside a fool blurts itself out for everyone to see."
I often told people to keep some things between just us, not to broadcast their good deeds for applause. Real depth doesn't need an audience to be real.
"Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people. "
"Doing what's right raises a whole nation up; wrongdoing is a disgrace to any people."
You are the light of the world, a city on a hill. Collective goodness isn't abstract - it's built one honest, compassionate life at a time, and it can change what a whole community becomes.
"The king’s favour is toward a wise servant: but his wrath is against him that causeth shame. "
"A king favours a wise, capable servant, but his anger falls on one who brings shame and disgrace."
Well done, good and faithful servant. I notice the quiet, faithful diligence you bring to ordinary responsibilities - it matters more than you think.