New King James Version

Proverbs 20:1-16 New King James Version (NKJV)

1. Wine is a mocker,Strong drink is a brawler,And whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

2. The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion;Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life.

3. It is honorable for a man to stop striving,Since any fool can start a quarrel.

4. The lazy man will not plow because of winter;He will beg during harvest and have nothing.

5. Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water,But a man of understanding will draw it out.

6. Most men will proclaim each his own goodness,But who can find a faithful man?

7. The righteous man walks in his integrity;His children are blessed after him.

8. A king who sits on the throne of judgmentScatters all evil with his eyes.

9. Who can say, “I have made my heart clean,I am pure from my sin”?

10. Diverse weights and diverse measures,They are both alike, an abomination to the Lord.

11. Even a child is known by his deeds,Whether what he does is pure and right.

12. The hearing ear and the seeing eye,The Lord has made them both.

13. Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty;Open your eyes, and you will be satisfied with bread.

14. “It is good for nothing,” cries the buyer;But when he has gone his way, then he boasts.

15. There is gold and a multitude of rubies,But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

16. Take the garment of one who is surety for a stranger,And hold it as a pledge when it is for a seductress.