<p class="poetry">How painful<n id="1" /> are honest words!p> <p class="poetry">But<n id="2" /> what does your reproof<n id="3" /> prove?<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">He would certainly rebuke<n id="1" /> youp> <p class="poetry">if you secretly<n id="2" /> showed partiality!p>

<p class="poetry">Do not reprove<n id="1" /> a mocker or<n id="2" /> he will hate you;p> <p class="poetry">reprove a wise person and he will love you.p>

<p class="poetry">Do you intend to criticize mere words,p> <p class="poetry">and treat<n id="1" /> the words of a despairing man as wind?p>

<p class="poetry">Is it because of your piety<n id="1" /> that he rebukes youp> <p class="poetry">and goes to judgment with you?<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">But there will be delight<n id="1" /> for those who convict<n id="2" /> the guilty,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and a pleasing blessing<n id="4" /> will come on them.p>

<p class="poetry">The Israelites<n id="1" /> hate anyone who arbitrates at the city gate;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">they despise anyone who speaks honestly.p>

You must not hate your brother in your heart. You must surely reprove your fellow citizen so that you do not incur sin on account of him.<n id="1" />

<p class="poetry">He let no one oppress them,p> <p class="poetry">he disciplined kings for their sake,p>

<p class="poetry">Nor is there an arbiter<n id="1" /> between us,p> <p class="poetry">who<n id="2" /> might lay<n id="3" /> his hand on us both,<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">Does he argue<n id="1" /> with useless<n id="2" /> talk,p> <p class="poetry">with words that have no value in them?p>

<p class="poetry">and<n id="1" /> he contends with God on behalf of manp> <p class="poetry">as a man<n id="2" /> pleads<n id="3" /> for his friend.p>

<p class="poetry">If indeed<n id="1" /> you would exalt yourselves<n id="2" /> above mep> <p class="poetry">and plead my disgrace against me,<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">There<n id="1" /> an upright personp> <p class="poetry">could present his case<n id="2" /> before him,p> <p class="poetry">and I would be delivered forever from my judge.p>

<p class="poetry">Or a person is chastened<n id="1" /> by pain on his bed,p> <p class="poetry">and with the continual strife of his bones,<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;Will the one who contends<n id="1" /> with the Almighty correct him?<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Let the person who accuses God give him an answer!&#8221;p>

<p class="poetry">I am not condemning<n id="1" /> you because of your sacrifices,p> <p class="poetry">or because of your burnt sacrifices that you continually offer me.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">Does the one who disciplines the nations not punish?p> <p class="poetry">He is the one who imparts knowledge to human beings!p>

<p class="poetry">He let no one oppress them;p> <p class="poetry">he disciplined kings for their sake,p>

<p class="poetry">Whoever corrects<n id="1" /> a mocker is asking for<n id="2" /> insult;<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">whoever reproves a wicked person receives<n id="4" /> abuse.p>