8 A bribe seems like a magic stone to its owner;wherever he turns, he succeeds.
9 Whoever conceals an offense promotes love, but whoever gossips about it separates friends.
10 A rebuke cuts into a perceptive personmore than a hundred lashes into a fool.
11 An evil man seeks only rebellion;a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
12 Better for a man to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his foolishness.
13 If anyone returns evil for good, evil will never depart from his house.
14 To start a conflict is to release a flood;stop the dispute before it breaks out.