5 If you are polite and courteous, you will enjoy the friendship of many people.
6 Exchange greetings with many, but take advice from only one person out of a thousand.
7 When you make friends, don't be too quick to trust them; make sure that they have proved themselves.
8 Some people will be your friends only when it is convenient for them, but they won't stand by you in trouble.
9 Others will fall out with you over some argument, and then embarrass you by letting everyone know about it.
10-11 Others will sit at your table as long as things are going well; they will stick to you like your shadow and give orders to your servants, but they will not stand by you in trouble.
12 If your situation takes a turn for the worse, they will turn against you, and you won't be able to find them anywhere.