The first thing to catch my eye was v. 14 "A gift given in secret soothes anger, and a bribe concealed in the cloak pacifies great wrath." What?! Though it does seem to speak to the truth of the world sometimes, I never expected to see anything about advocating bribes in the Bible anywhere.
I also spent some time with v. 3 "To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice." This one's a little hard for me. Because I do sacrifice - my time, my energy, my talents, my money, and sometimes my sanity - for the betterment of the kingdom and God's church. And though I'd certainly love to say that I act justly - it's hard to confirm. Doing what is right and just is something that pervades my whole life --- and I don't always succeed. I have a definite mean streak, and can be quite selfish. And acting with justice in this complex world requires attention to all sorts of things like manufacturing processes and ethical business practices and ecological effects of my actions.
Sacrifice can be contained to certain times and events. Justice and righteousness require full-life attention. No wonder God prefers them.
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