Proverbs 4
1 Give ear, my sons, to the teaching of a father; give attention so that you may have knowledge:
Sones, here ye the teching of the fadir; and perseiue ye, that ye kunne prudence.
2 For I give you good teaching; do not give up the knowledge you are getting from me.
Y schal yyue to you a good yifte; forsake ye not my lawe.
3 For I was a son to my father, a gentle and an only one to my mother.
For whi and Y was the sone of my fadir, a tendir sone, and oon `gendride bifore my modir.
4 And he gave me teaching, saying to me, Keep my words in your heart; keep my rules so that you may have life:
And my fadir tauyte me, and seide, Thin herte resseyue my wordis; kepe thou myn heestis, and thou schalt lyue.
5 Get wisdom, get true knowledge; keep it in memory, do not be turned away from the words of my mouth.
Welde thou wisdom, welde thou prudence; foryete thou not, nethir bowe thou awey fro the wordis of my mouth.
6 Do not give her up, and she will keep you; give her your love, and she will make you safe.
Forsake thou not it, and it schal kepe thee; loue thou it, and it schal kepe thee.
7 The first sign of wisdom is to get wisdom; go, give all you have to get true knowledge.
The bigynnyng of wisdom, welde thou wisdom; and in al thi possessioun gete thou prudence.
8 Put her in a high place, and you will be lifted up by her; she will give you honour, when you give her your love.
Take thou it, and it schal enhaunse thee; thou schalt be glorified of it, whanne thou hast biclippid it.
9 She will put a crown of grace on your head, giving you a head-dress of glory.
It schal yyue encresyngis of graces to thin heed; and a noble coroun schal defende thee.
10 Give ear, O my son, and let your heart be open to my sayings; and long life will be yours.
Mi sone, here thou, and take my wordis; that the yeris of lijf be multiplied to thee.
11 I have given you teaching in the way of wisdom, guiding your steps in the straight way.
Y schal schewe to thee the weie of wisdom; and Y schal lede thee bi the pathis of equyte.
12 When you go, your way will not be narrow, and in running you will not have a fall.
In to whiche whanne thou hast entrid, thi goyngis schulen not be maad streit; and thou schalt rennen, and schalt not haue hirtyng.
13 Take learning in your hands, do not let her go: keep her, for she is your life.
Holde thou teching, and forsake it not; kepe thou it, for it is thi lijf.
14 Do not go in the road of sinners, or be walking in the way of evil men.
Delite thou not in the pathis of wyckid men; and the weie of yuele men plese not thee.
15 Keep far from it, do not go near; be turned from it, and go on your way.
Fle thou fro it, and passe thou not therbi; bowe thou awei, and forsake it.
16 For they take no rest till they have done evil; their sleep is taken away if they have not been the cause of someone's fall.
For thei slepen not, `no but thei han do yuele; and sleep is rauyschid fro hem, no but thei han disseyued.
17 The bread of evil-doing is their food, the wine of violent acts their drink.
Thei eten the breed of vnpite, and drinken the wyn of wickidnesse.
18 But the way of the upright is like the light of early morning, getting brighter and brighter till the full day.
But the path of iust men goith forth as liyt schynynge, and encreessith til to perfit dai.
19 The way of sinners is dark; they see not the cause of their fall.
The weie of wickid men is derk; thei witen not where thei schulen falle.
20 My son, give attention to my words; let your ear be turned to my sayings.
Mi sone, herkene thou my wordis; and bowe doun thin eeris to my spechis.
21 Let them not go from your eyes; keep them deep in your heart.
Go not tho awei fro thyn iyen; kepe thou hem in the myddil of thin herte.
22 For they are life to him who gets them, and strength to all his flesh.
For tho ben lijf to men fyndynge thoo, and heelthe `of al fleisch.
23 And keep watch over your heart with all care; so you will have life.
With al keping kepe thin herte, for lijf cometh forth of it.
24 Put away from you an evil tongue, and let false lips be far from you.
Remoue thou a schrewid mouth fro thee; and backbitynge lippis be fer fro thee.
25 Keep your eyes on what is in front of you, looking straight before you.
Thin iyen se riytful thingis; and thin iyeliddis go bifore thi steppis.
26 Keep a watch on your behaviour; let all your ways be rightly ordered.
Dresse thou pathis to thi feet, and alle thi weies schulen be stablischid.
27 Let there be no turning to the right or to the left, keep your feet from evil.
Bowe thou not to the riytside, nether to the leftside; turne awei thi foot fro yuel. For the Lord knowith the weies that ben at the riytside; but the weies ben weiward, that ben at the leftside. Forsothe he schal make thi goyngis riytful; and thi weies schulen be brouyt forth in pees.
