¹Do not become  ²dissimilarly yoked with unbelievers. For what  ³partnership do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what fellowship does light have  ⁴with darkness?

And what concord does Christ have  ¹with Belial? Or what part does a believer have with an unbeliever?

And what agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are the temple of the  ¹living God, even as God said, “I will dwell among them and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”

Therefore “come out from their midst and be  ¹separated, says the Lord, and do not touch  ²what is unclean; and I will  ³welcome you”;

“And I will be  ¹a Father to you, and you will be  ²sons and daughters to Me, says the Lord Almighty.”

 ¹Therefore since we have  ²these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all  ³defilement of flesh and of spirit,  ⁴perfecting holiness in the  ⁵fear of God.

 ¹Make room for us; we have  ²wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one.

I do not say this to condemn you, for I have said before that you are  ¹in our hearts for our dying together and our living together.

Great is my boldness toward you, great is my boasting on your behalf; I am filled with comfort, I overflow with  ¹joy in all our affliction.

For even when we came into Macedonia, our  ¹flesh had no rest, but we were afflicted in everything; without were fightings, within were fears.

But He who comforts those who are  ¹downcast, that is, God,  ²comforted us by the  ³coming of Titus;

And not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted because of you, declaring to us your longing, your lamentation, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced the more.

For though I caused you sorrow by the  ¹letter, I do not regret it. Even if I  ²did regret it (for I see that that letter, even if for an hour,  ³caused you sorrow),

Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to  ¹repentance; for you were made  ²sorrowful according to God, that in nothing you might suffer loss from us.

For sorrow according to God works repentance unto  ¹salvation, which is without regret; but the sorrow of the world works out death.

For behold this very thing, your being made sorrowful according to God, what  ¹earnestness it has  ²worked out in you,  ³indeed what  ⁴defense, indeed what  ⁵indignation, indeed what  ⁶fear, indeed what  ⁷longing, indeed what  ⁸zeal, indeed what  ⁹punishment! In everything you have commended yourselves to be pure in  ¹⁰the matter.

So then, though I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of  ¹him who did the wrong, nor for the sake of  ²him who was wronged, but for the sake of  ³manifesting to you before God your earnestness for us.

Because of this we have been comforted. And in addition to our comfort, we rejoiced  ¹more abundantly over the joy of  ²Titus, because his  ³spirit has been refreshed by all of you.

For if in anything I boasted to him on your behalf, I have not been put to shame; on the contrary, as we spoke all things in truth to you, so also our boasting before Titus turned out to be the truth.

And his  ¹affections are abundantly toward you, he remembering the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling.

I rejoice that in everything I  ¹have boldness because of you.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler;
And whoever errs by it does not become wise.

The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion;
He who provokes him to anger sins against his own life.

It is an honor for a man to keep away from strife,
But every fool rushes headlong into it.

The sluggard will not plow because of winter;
Therefore he will beg in harvest and have nothing.

Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water,
But a man of understanding will draw it out.

Many a man will proclaim his own kindness,
But who can find a faithful man?

A righteous man who walks in his integrity,
Blessed are his children after him.

A king who sits on the throne of judgment
Scatters away all evil with his eyes.

Who can say, I have made my heart clean;
I am pure from my sin?

Differing weights and differing measures,
Both of them are an abomination to Jehovah.

Even a child makes himself known by his deeds,
Whether his work is pure and whether it is upright.

The hearing ear and the seeing eye —
Jehovah has made both of them.

Do not love sleep, or else you will come to poverty;
Open your eyes, and be satisfied with bread.

It is bad, it is bad, says the buyer;
But when he has gone away, then he boasts in his purchase.

There is gold and an abundance of corals,
But the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.

Take his garment when he becomes surety for a stranger,
And hold the pledge when he becomes surety for foreigners.

The bread of falsehood is sweet to a man,
But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.

Every plan is established by counsel,
And by sound counsel make war.

He who goes about as a gossip reveals secrets;
Therefore do not associate with one who opens his lips wide.

Whoever curses his father or his mother,
His lamp will go out in deep darkness.

An inheritance gained hurriedly at the beginning
Will not be blessed in the end.

Do not say, I will recompense evil;
Wait for Jehovah, and He will save you.

Differing weights are an abomination to Jehovah,
And false scales are not good.

A man's steps are ordered by Jehovah;
How then can man understand his own way?

It is a snare to a man to rashly say, It is holy,
And after making the vows to begin to consider.

A wise king winnows the wicked
And drives the threshing wheel over them.

The  ¹spirit of man is the  ²lamp of Jehovah,
Searching all the innermost parts of the inner being.

Lovingkindness and truth preserve the king,
And his throne is upheld by kindness.

The glory of young men is their strength,
And the honor of old men is gray hair.

Stripes that wound purge away evil,
And strokes reach the innermost parts of the inner being.

The king's heart is like streams of water in the hand of Jehovah;
He turns it wherever He wishes.

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,
But Jehovah weighs the hearts.

To do righteousness and justice
Is more acceptable to Jehovah than sacrifice.

A high look and a proud heart —
The lamp of the wicked — is sin.

The plans of the diligent lead only to plentifulness,
But everyone who is hasty comes only to want.

The getting of treasures by a lying tongue
Is a fleeting vapor, a  ¹snare of death.

The violence of the wicked will sweep them away
Because they refuse to do justice.

The way of a guilty man is crooked;
But as for the pure, his work is right.

It is better to dwell in a corner of a housetop
Than in a house shared with a contentious woman.

The soul of the wicked man desires evil;
His neighbor finds no favor in his eyes.

When the scorner is punished, the simple man becomes wise;
And when the wise man is instructed, he receives knowledge.

The righteous One considers the house of the wicked man,
Overthrowing the wicked to their ruin.

Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor man
Also will cry and will not be heard.

A gift in secret pacifies anger;
And a present in the bosom, strong wrath.

It is joy to the righteous man to do justice,
But it is destruction to the workers of iniquity.

The man who wanders from the way of understanding
Will rest in the assembly of the dead.

He who loves pleasure will be a poor man;
He who loves wine and oil will not be rich.

The wicked man is a ransom for the righteous man,
And the treacherous man is in the place of the upright.

It is better to dwell in a desert land
Than with a contentious and vexing woman.

There is precious treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise man,
But a foolish man swallows it up.

He who pursues righteousness and kindness
Finds life, righteousness, and honor.

A wise man scales the city of the mighty
And brings down the strength in which they trust.

Whoever guards his mouth and his tongue
Keeps his soul from troubles.

Proud, Haughty, Scorner are the names
Of him who works in the arrogance of pride.

The desire of the sluggard puts him to death,
For his hands refuse to work.

All day long one covets greedily,
But the righteous man gives and does not hold back.

The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
How much more when he brings it with evil intent!

A false witness will perish,
But the man who hears will speak so as to endure.

A wicked man hardens his face;
But as for the upright, he establishes his ways.

There is no wisdom nor understanding
Nor counsel that can avail against Jehovah.

The horse is prepared for the day of battle,
But victory belongs to Jehovah.