Deliver me, O Lord, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue. | Save me, Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. |
Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. | Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. |
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The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse— who can understand it? I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings. | The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.” |
Put away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you. | Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. |
The wicked earn no real gain, but those who sow righteousness get a true reward. | A wicked person earns deceptive wages, but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward. |
A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit. | The soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit. |
As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. | The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. |
For “Those who desire life and desire to see good days, let them keep their tongues from evil and their lips from speaking deceit; let them turn away from evil and do good; let them seek peace and pursue it.” | For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. They must turn from evil and do good; they must seek peace and pursue it.” |