Proverbs 23 :: New International Version (NIV)

Saying 7

Pro 23:1

Pro 23:1When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what[fn] is before you,

Pro 23:2

Pro 23:2and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.

Pro 23:3

Pro 23:3Do not crave his delicacies, for that food is deceptive.

Saying 8

Pro 23:4

Pro 23:4Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.

Pro 23:5

Pro 23:5Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

Saying 9

Pro 23:6

Pro 23:6Do not eat the food of a begrudging host, do not crave his delicacies;

Pro 23:7

Pro 23:7for he is the kind of person who is always thinking about the cost.[fn] “Eat and drink,” he says to you, but his heart is not with you.

Pro 23:8

Pro 23:8You will vomit up the little you have eaten and will have wasted your compliments.

Saying 10

Pro 23:9

Pro 23:9Do not speak to fools, for they will scorn your prudent words.

Saying 11

Pro 23:10

Pro 23:10Do not move an ancient boundary stone or encroach on the fields of the fatherless,

Pro 23:11

Pro 23:11for their Defender is strong; he will take up their case against you.

Saying 12

Pro 23:12

Pro 23:12Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.

Saying 13

Pro 23:13

Pro 23:13Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.

Pro 23:14

Pro 23:14Punish them with the rod and save them from death.

Saying 14

Pro 23:15

Pro 23:15My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad indeed;

Pro 23:16

Pro 23:16my inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right.

Saying 15

Pro 23:17

Pro 23:17Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD.

Pro 23:18

Pro 23:18There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.

Saying 16

Pro 23:19

Pro 23:19Listen, my son, and be wise, and set your heart on the right path:

Pro 23:20

Pro 23:20Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat,

Pro 23:21

Pro 23:21for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

Saying 17

Pro 23:22

Pro 23:22Listen to your father, who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.

Pro 23:23

Pro 23:23Buy the truth and do not sell it— wisdom, instruction and insight as well.

Pro 23:24

Pro 23:24The father of a righteous child has great joy; a man who fathers a wise son rejoices in him.

Pro 23:25

Pro 23:25May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful!

Saying 18

Pro 23:26

Pro 23:26My son, give me your heart and let your eyes delight in my ways,

Pro 23:27

Pro 23:27for an adulterous woman is a deep pit, and a wayward wife is a narrow well.

Pro 23:28

Pro 23:28Like a bandit she lies in wait and multiplies the unfaithful among men.

Saying 19

Pro 23:29

Pro 23:29Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

Pro 23:30

Pro 23:30Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.

Pro 23:31

Pro 23:31Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly!

Pro 23:32

Pro 23:32In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper.

Pro 23:33

Pro 23:33Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things.

Pro 23:34

Pro 23:34You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging.

Pro 23:35

Pro 23:35“They hit me,” you will say, “but I’m not hurt! They beat me, but I don’t feel it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?”

See the NIV Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

NIV Footnotes

(23:1)

Or who

(23:7)

Or for as he thinks within himself, / so he is; or for as he puts on a feast, / so he is

For more information on this translation, see the NIV Preface.

Proverbs Chapter 23 — Additional Translations:

King James Version New King James Version New Living Translation English Standard Version Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible 2020 New American Standard Bible 1995 Legacy Standard Bible Amplified Bible New English Translation Revised Standard Version American Standard Version Young's Literal Translation Darby Translation Webster's Bible Hebrew Names Version Latin Vulgate Westminster Leningrad Codex Septuagint Smith Van Dyck Arabic Bible Open New Arabic Version Brenton's English Septuagint Reina Valera 1909 Reina-Valera 1960 Bible in Basic English Chinese Traditional Union Espanol Moderno Korean Holy Bible Louis Segond German Luther Russian Synodal Translation Sagradas Escrituras