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20:1  Wine and ·beer [T strong drink; C an alcoholic beverage made from grain] make people ·loud [mockers] and ·uncontrolled [carousers; brawlers]; it is not wise to ·get drunk on [L be led astray by] them.
20:2  An angry king is like a ·roaring [growling] lion. Making him angry may cost you your life.
20:3  Foolish people are always fighting, but ·avoiding quarrels [backing away from an accusation] will bring you ·honor [glory; praise].
20:4  Lazy farmers don’t plow ·when they should [L in the winter]; they ·expect [look for] a harvest, but there is none.
20:5  People’s ·thoughts [advice; purpose] can be like a deep ·well [L waters], but someone with understanding can ·find the wisdom there [draw it out].
20:6  Many people claim to be loyal, but it is hard to find a ·trustworthy [reliable] person.
20:7  The ·good [righteous] people who ·live honest lives [walk about in innocence] will be a blessing to their children.
20:8  When a king sits on his throne to judge, he ·knows evil when he sees it [or scatters evil with his eyes].
20:9  No one can say, “I am innocent; I ·have never done anything wrong [am cleansed from my sin].”
20:10  The Lord hates both these things: ·dishonest weights and dishonest measures [L stone and stone, ephah and ephah].
20:11  Even children are known by their behavior; their actions show if they are ·innocent [pure] and ·good [upright].
20:12  The Lord has made both these things: ears to hear and eyes to see.
20:13  ·If you love to sleep, you [L Do not love to sleep, or you] will be poor. ·If you stay awake [L Keep your eyes open, and], you will have plenty of food.
20:14  Buyers say, “·This is bad. It’s no good [L Bad, bad].” Then they go away and brag about what they bought.
20:15  There is gold and plenty of ·rubies [or pearls], but ·only a few people speak with knowledge [L the most precious jewels are knowledgeable lips].
20:16  Take the coat of someone who promises to pay a stranger’s debts, and keep it until he pays what the ·stranger [L foreigner] owes.
20:17  ·Stolen [Fraudulent; False] food may taste sweet at first, but later it will feel like a mouth full of gravel.
20:18  Get advice if you want your plans to ·work [be firm]. If you go to war, get ·the advice of others [guidance].
20:19  Gossips ·can’t keep [reveal] secrets, so avoid people who ·talk too much [L are foolish with their lips].
20:20  Those who curse their father or mother will be like a light going out in darkness [Job 18:6; 21:17].
20:21  Wealth inherited quickly in the beginning will ·do you no good [not bless you] in the end.
20:22  Don’t say, “I’ll pay you back for the wrong you did.” Wait for the Lord, and he will ·make things right [save you; Rom. 12:17–20].
20:23  The Lord ·hates [detests] ·dishonest weights [L stone and stone], and ·dishonest [fraudulent] scales ·do not please him [L are not good].
20:24  The Lord decides ·what a person will do [L the steps of a person]; ·no one understands what his life is all about [L how can people understand their path?].
20:25  It’s ·dangerous [L a trap] to ·promise something to God too quickly [speak rashly about holy things]. ·After you’ve thought about it, it may be too late [L And to think about it after you made a vow; Lev. 7:16–17; 22:18–23; Judg. 11:29–40; Eccl. 5:1–7].
20:26  A wise king ·sorts out [winnows; scatters] the evil people, and he ·punishes them as they deserve [L rolls a threshing sledge over them].
20:27  The lamp of the Lord looks deep inside people and searches through ·their thoughts [L all their inner parts].
20:28  Loyalty and ·truth [faithfulness] ·keep a king in power [protect a king]; he ·continues to rule [supports his throne] if he is loyal.
20:29  The young glory in their strength, and the old are honored for their gray hair.
20:30  ·Hard punishment [L Blows and bruises] ·will get rid of [cleanses away] evil, and ·whippings [beatings] ·can change an evil heart [L the inner parts].