‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭21:1‭-‬31‬ ‭MSG‬‬
[1] Good leadership is a channel of water controlled by God; he directs it to whatever ends he chooses. [2] We justify our actions by appearances; God examines our motives. [3] Clean living before God and justice with our neighbors mean far more to God than religious performance. [4] Arrogance and pride—distinguishing marks in the wicked— are just plain sin. [5] Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run; hurry and scurry puts you further behind. [6] Make it to the top by lying and cheating; get paid with smoke and a promotion—to death! [7] The wicked get buried alive by their loot because they refuse to use it to help others. [8] Mixed motives twist life into tangles; pure motives take you straight down the road. [9] Better to live alone in a tumbledown shack than share a mansion with a nagging spouse. [10] Wicked souls love to make trouble; they feel nothing for friends and neighbors. [11] Simpletons only learn the hard way, but the wise learn by listening. [12] A God-loyal person will see right through the wicked and undo the evil they’ve planned. [13] If you stop your ears to the cries of the poor, your cries will go unheard, unanswered. [14] A quietly given gift soothes an irritable person; a heartfelt present cools a hot temper. [15] Good people celebrate when justice triumphs, but for the workers of evil it’s a bad day. [16] Whoever wanders off the straight and narrow ends up in a congregation of ghosts. [17] You’re addicted to thrills? What an empty life! The pursuit of pleasure is never satisfied. [18] What a bad person plots against the good, boomerangs; the plotter gets it in the end. [19] Better to live in a tent in the wild than with a cross and petulant spouse. [20] Valuables are safe in a wise person’s home; fools put it all out for yard sales. [21] Whoever goes hunting for what is right and kind finds life itself—glorious life! [22] One sage entered a whole city of armed soldiers— their trusted defenses fell to pieces! [23] Watch your words and hold your tongue; you’ll save yourself a lot of grief. [24] You know their names—Brash, Impudent, Blasphemer— intemperate hotheads, every one. [25] Lazy people finally die of hunger because they won’t get up and go to work. [26] Sinners are always wanting what they don’t have; the God-loyal are always giving what they do have. [27] Religious performance by the wicked stinks; it’s even worse when they use it to get ahead. [28] A lying witness is unconvincing; a person who speaks truth is respected. [29] Unscrupulous people fake it a lot; honest people are sure of their steps. [30] Nothing clever, nothing conceived, nothing contrived, can get the better of God. [31] Do your best, prepare for the worst— then trust God to bring victory.

https://bible.com/bible/97/pro.21.1.MSG