God hates cheating in the marketplace;
he loves it when business is aboveboard.
The stuck-up fall flat on their faces,
but down-to-earth people stand firm.
The integrity of the honest keeps them on track;
the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin.
A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart,
but a principled life can stand up to the worst.
Moral character
makes for smooth traveling;
an evil life is a hard life.
Good character is the best insurance;
crooks get trapped in their sinful lust.
When the wicked die, that’s it—
the story’s over, end of hope.
A good person is saved from much
trouble;
a bad person runs straight into it.
The loose tongue of the godless spreads destruction;
the common sense of the godly preserves them.
When it goes well for good people, the whole town cheers;
when it goes badly for bad people, the town celebrates.
When
right-living people bless the city, it flourishes;
evil talk turns it into a ghost town in no time.
Mean-spirited slander is heartless;
quiet discretion accompanies good
sense.
A gadabout gossip can’t be trusted with a secret,
but someone of integrity won’t violate a confidence.
Without good direction,
people lose their way;
the more wise counsel you follow, the better your chances.
Whoever makes deals with strangers is sure to get burned;
if you keep a cool head, you’ll avoid rash bargains.
A woman of gentle grace gets respect,
but men of rough violence grab for loot.
