No person has enough wisdom to make all his own decisions and get them right every time. Sometimes wisdom hurts, but it must be followed if it's right. Wisdom will never violate Scripture.

25 words of advice and wisdom

These are words of advice and wisdom

1.    It is easy to steal from the poor, but don't do it. And don't take advantage of them in court. The LORD is on their side. He supports the poor, and he will take from those who take from them. This is a warning to those who enjoy ruling with an iron hand. Sometimes God intervenes and directly destroys tyrants. More often, he uses other rulers to overthrow them or their own oppressed people to rebel against them. If you are in a position of authority at church, work, or home, remember what happens to tyrants. Leadership through kindness is more effective and longer lasting than leadership by force.

2.    Don't be friends with people who become angry easily. Don't stay around with quick-tempered people. If you do, you may learn to be like them. Then you will have the same problems they do. People tend to become like those with whom they spend a lot of time. Even the negative characteristics and habits can rub off. Choose people with qualities you would like to develop in your own life.

3.    Don't promise to pay someone else's debt. If you don't have the means or resources to do so, then you are the one who will lose everything—down to your very bed!

4.    Do not attempt to move the land boundary marks. That is stealing. Don't take land that belongs to orphans. The Lord will be against you. God cares for the fatherless in special ways. 

5.    Skilled workers will always serve kings. They will never have to work for less important people. How can a worker gain a promotion? The best way to move ahead is to become skilled in your work. The word skilled can include the idea of quick or prompt. When a king or other leader discovers someone who does not stop with a job that is merely "good enough," he will want to employ him.

6.    Be careful when eating with an important or influential person because he or she may try to influence or bribe you. Unwary meetings over meals can lead to undermined convictions. No good will come from such meals.

7.    Don't ruin your health trying to get rich. In the blink of an eye, money can disappear, as if it grew wings and flew away like a bird. We have all heard of people who have won millions of dollars and then lost everything. Even the average person can spend an inheritance—or a paycheck—with lightning speed and have little to show for it. Don't spend your time chasing fleeting earthly treasures. Instead, store up treasures in heaven, for such treasures will never be lost. 

8.    Don't eat with selfish people. Control any desire you have for their finest foods.  They might tell you to eat and drink all you want, but they don't really mean it. They are the kind of people who are only thinking about the cost. And if you eat their food, you will get sick and be embarrassed. Their "friendship" is phony—they will just use you for their own gain.

9.    Don't try to teach fools. They will make fun of your wise words. A fool (thick-headed, dull) is unresponsive to truth. No matter how sensible your words are, they will be wasted on this scorner. Jesus used a similar perception when he said “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” Matthew 7:6 (NKJV).

10.    Listen to your teacher and learn all you can. Knowledge is vitally important, so give yourself the task of gaining it. Here is the key to true education: use not only your ears but your heart, be receptive to be changed by what you hear.

11.    Don't fail to correct your children; discipline won't hurt them. They won't die if you use a stick on them. In fact, punishment will keep them out of hell. However, many parents are reluctant to discipline their children at all. Some fear that they will forfeit their relationship, their children will resent them, or they will stifle their children's development. But correction won't kill children, and it may prevent them from foolish moves that will.

12.    Never envy evil people, but always respect the LORD. This will give you something to hope for that will not disappoint you. How easy it is to envy those who get ahead and are successful despite not following God's laws. For a time they do seem to prosper without paying any attention to what God wants, but they have no future. To those who follow him, God promises a hope and a wonderful future, even if they don't achieve it in this life.

13.    Listen to your father. Without him, you would never have been born. Respect your mother, even when she is old. Truth, wisdom, learning, and understanding are worth paying money for. They are worth far too much to ever sell. The father of a good person is very happy. A wise child brings him joy. Make both of your parents happy. Give your mother that same joy.

14.    Prostitutes and wayward women are a trap. They are like a deep well that you cannot escape. A loose woman waits for you like a thief, and she causes many men to be unfaithful to their wives. And her sinful activities drag down the moral level of society.

15.    Who are those who get into fights and arguments? Who are those who get hurt for no reason and have red, bloodshot eyes? It's those who spend the night with a bottle, for whom drinking is serious business. It goes down so smoothly when you drink it. But in the end, it will bite like a snake. Do you really prefer seeing double, with your speech all slurred? When you lie down, you will think you are on a rough sea and feel like you are at the top of the mast. And afterwards you will say, "I didn't even know it when they beat me up”. The soothing comfort of alcohol is only temporary. Real relief comes from dealing with the cause of the anguish and sorrow and turning to God for peace. Don't lose yourself in alcohol; find yourself in God.