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17:1 Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife. 17:2 A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully, and will share the inheritance as one of the family. 17:3 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, but the LORD tests the heart. 17:4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips; and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue. 17:5 Those who mock the poor insult their Maker; those who are glad at calamity will not go unpunished. 17:6 Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their parents. 17:7 Fine speech is not becoming to a fool; still less is false speech to a ruler. 17:8 A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of those who give it; wherever they turn they prosper. 17:9 One who forgives an affront fosters friendship, but one who dwells on disputes will alienate a friend. 17:10 A rebuke strikes deeper into a discerning person than a hundred blows into a fool. 17:11 Evil people seek only rebellion, but a cruel messenger will be sent against them. 17:12 Better to meet a she-bear robbed of its cubs than to confront a fool immersed in folly. 17:13 Evil will not depart from the house of one who returns evil for good. 17:14 The beginning of strife is like letting out water; so stop before the quarrel breaks out. 17:15 One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous are both alike an abomination to the LORD. 17:16 Why should fools have a price in hand to buy wisdom, when they have no mind to learn? 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and kinsfolk are born to share adversity. 17:18 It is senseless to give a pledge, to become surety for a neighbor. 17:19 One who loves transgression loves strife; one who builds a high threshold invites broken bones. 17:20 The crooked of mind do not prosper, and the perverse of tongue fall into calamity. 17:21 The one who begets a fool gets trouble; the parent of a fool has no joy. 17:22 A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones. 17:23 The wicked accept a concealed bribe to pervert the ways of justice. 17:24 The discerning person looks to wisdom, but the eyes of a fool to the ends of the earth. 17:25 Foolish children are a grief to their father and bitterness to her who bore them. 17:26 To impose a fine on the innocent is not right, or to flog the noble for their integrity. 17:27 One who spares words is knowledgeable; one who is cool in spirit has understanding. 17:28 Even fools who keep silent are considered wise; when they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.