Proverbs — Chapter 16
Mortals may arrange their thoughts,But what they say depends on GOD.
People look approvingly on their own ways,But GOD probes motives.
Entrust your affairs to GOD,And your plans will succeed.
GOD made everything for a purpose,Even the wicked for an evil day.
Everyone haughty is an abomination to GOD;Assuredly,aAssuredly Lit. “Hand to hand”; meaning of Heb. uncertain. they will not go unpunished.
Iniquity is expiated by loyalty and faithfulness,And evil is avoided through fear of GOD.
GOD, when pleased with someone’s conduct,May turn even their enemies into allies.
Better a little with righteousnessThan a large income with injustice.
Mortals may plot out their course,But it is GOD who directs their steps.
There is magic on the lips of the king;He cannot err in judgment.
Honest scales and balances are GOD’s,Whose work includes all the weights in the bag.
Wicked deeds are an abomination to kings,For the throne is established by righteousness.
Truthful speech wins the favor of kings;They love those who speak honestly.
The king’s wrath is a messenger of death,But a man who is wise can appease it.
The king’s smile means life;His favor is like a rain cloud in spring.
How much better to acquire wisdom than gold;To acquire understanding is preferable to silver.
The highway of the upright avoids evil;Those who would preserve their lives watch their way.
Pride goes before ruin,Arrogance, before failure.
Better to be humble and among the lowlyThan to share spoils with the proud.
One who is adept in a matter will attain success;Happy is the one who trusts in GOD.
The wise-hearted are called discerning;Those whose speech is pleasing gain wisdom.
Good sense is a fountain of life to those who have it,And folly is the punishment of fools.
The mind of the wise makes their speech effectiveAnd increases the wisdom on their lips.
Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,Sweet to the palate and a cure for the body.
The road ahead may seem right,But in the end it can be a road to death.
The appetite of laborers labors for them,Because their hungerbhunger Lit. “mouth.” forces them on.cforces them on Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
A worthless man plotsdplots Meaning of Heb. uncertain. evil;What is on his lips is like a scorching fire.
A shifty man stirs up strife,And a querulous one alienates his friend.
A lawless man misleads his friend,Making him take the wrong way.
He closes his eyes while meditating deception;He purses his lips while deciding upon evil.
Gray hair is a crown of glory;It is attained by the way of righteousness.
Better to be forbearing than mighty,To have self-control than to conquer a city.
Lots are cast into the lap;The decision depends on GOD.
✦ Connected Across Traditions
The Golden Rule
Matthew 7:12
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
Hadith (An-Nawawi 13)
“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”
Mahabharata 5.1517
“One should never do to another what one regards as injurious to oneself.”
Dhammapada 10:1
“All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill.”
Impermanence & Letting Go
Dhammapada 20:277
“All conditioned things are impermanent. When one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.”
Tao Te Ching 76
“A man is born gentle and weak. At his death he is hard and stiff. The soft and yielding is the disciple of life.”
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.”
Bhagavad Gita 2:22
“As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, the soul similarly accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones.”
The Path to Wisdom
Dhammapada 20:282
“Wisdom springs from meditation; without meditation wisdom wanes.”
Analects 2:11
“If you study the past and use it to understand the present, you are worthy of being a teacher.”
Tao Te Ching 33
“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.”
Quran 39:9
“Are those who know equal to those who do not know?”
Humility & Surrender
Bhagavad Gita 18:66
“Abandon all varieties of dharma and simply surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions; do not fear.”
Matthew 5:5
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”
Tao Te Ching 22
“If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become full, let yourself be empty.”
Quran 2:45
“Seek help through patience and prayer. It is indeed exacting, but not for those who are humble.”
Good vs Evil / Light vs Darkness
Yasna 30:3
“Now the two primal Spirits, who reveal themselves as Twins, are the Better and the Bad, in thought and word and action.”
John 1:5
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
Dhammapada 1:1-2
“Mind is the forerunner of all actions. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, happiness follows like a shadow.”
Bhagavad Gita 16:21
“There are three gates to self-destructive hell: lust, anger, and greed. Therefore, one must learn to give these up.”