Proverbs 1
1 The Proverbs of Solomon son of David, who reigned in Israel;
The wise sayings of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel.
2 to know wisdom and instruction, and to perceive words of understanding;
To have knowledge of wise teaching; to be clear about the words of reason:
3 to receive also hard saying, and to understand true justice, and [how] to direct judgment;
To be trained in the ways of wisdom, in righteousness and judging truly and straight behaviour:
4 that he might give subtlety to the simple, and to the young man discernment and understanding.
To make the simple-minded sharp, and to give the young man knowledge, and serious purpose:
5 For by the hearing of these a wise man will be wiser, and man of understanding will gain direction;
(The wise man, hearing, will get greater learning, and the acts of the man of good sense will be wisely guided: )
6 and will understand a parable, and a dark speech; the saying of the wise also, and riddles.
To get the sense of wise sayings and secrets, and of the words of the wise and their dark sayings.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and [there is] good understanding to all that practise it: and piety toward God is the beginning of discernment; but the ungodly will set at nothing wisdom and instruction.
The fear of the Lord is the start of knowledge: but the foolish have no use for wisdom and teaching.
8 Hear, [my] son, the instruction of your father, and reject not the rules of your mother.
My son, give ear to the training of your father, and do not give up the teaching of your mother:
9 For you shall receive for your head a crown of graces, and a chain of gold round your neck.
For they will be a crown of grace for your head, and chain-ornaments about your neck.
10 [My] son, let not ungodly men lead you astray, neither consent you [to them].
My son, if sinners would take you out of the right way, do not go with them.
11 If they should exhort you, saying, Come with us, partake in blood, and let us unjustly hide the just man in the earth:
If they say, Come with us; let us make designs against the good, waiting secretly for the upright, without cause;
12 and let us swallow him alive, as Hades [would], and remove the memorial of him from the earth: (Sheol h7585)
Let us overcome them living, like the underworld, and in their strength, as those who go down to death; (Sheol h7585)
13 let us seize on his valuable property, and let us fill our houses with spoils:
Goods of great price will be ours, our houses will be full of wealth;
14 but do you cast in your lot with us, and let us all provide a common purse, and let us have one pouch:
Take your chance with us, and we will all have one money-bag:
15 go not in the way with them, but turn aside your foot from their paths:
My son, do not go with them; keep your feet from their ways:
16 [For their feet run to do evil, and are swift to shed blood. ]
For their feet are running after evil, and they are quick to take a man's life.
17 for nets are not without cause spread for birds.
Truly, to no purpose is the net stretched out before the eyes of the bird:
18 For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; and the overthrow of transgressors is evil.
And they are secretly waiting for their blood and making ready destruction for themselves.
19 These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; for by ungodliness they destroy their own life.
Such is the fate of everyone who goes in search of profit; it takes away the life of its owners.
20 Wisdom sings aloud in passages, and in the broad places speaks boldly.
Wisdom is crying out in the street; her voice is loud in the open places;
21 And she makes proclamation on the top of the walls, and sits by the gates of princes; and at the gates of the city boldly says,
Her words are sounding in the meeting-places, and in the doorways of the town:
22 So long as the simple cleave to justice, they shall not be ashamed: but the foolish being lovers of haughtiness, having become ungodly have hated knowledge, and are become subject to reproofs.
How long, you simple ones, will foolish things be dear to you? and pride a delight to the haters of authority? how long will the foolish go on hating knowledge?
23 Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, and I will instruct you in my speech.
Be turned again by my sharp words: see, I will send the flow of my spirit on you, and make my words clear to you.
24 Since I called, and you did not listen; and I spoke at length, and you gave no heed;
Because your ears were shut to my voice; no one gave attention to my out-stretched hand;
25 but you set at nothing my counsels, and disregarded my reproofs;
You were not controlled by my guiding, and would have nothing to do with my sharp words:
26 therefore I also will laugh at your destruction; and I will rejoice against [you] when ruin comes upon you:
So in the day of your trouble I will be laughing; I will make sport of your fear;
27 yes when dismay suddenly comes upon you, and [your] overthrow shall arrive like a tempest; and when tribulation and distress shall come upon you, or when ruin shall come upon you.
When your fear comes on you like a storm, and your trouble like a rushing wind; when pain and sorrow come on you.
28 For it shall be that when you call upon me, I will not listen to you: wicked men shall seek me, but shall not find [me].
Then I will give no answer to their cries; searching for me early, they will not see me:
29 For they hated wisdom, and did not choose the word of the Lord:
For they were haters of knowledge, and did not give their hearts to the fear of the Lord:
30 neither would they attend to my counsels, but derided my reproofs.
They had no desire for my teaching, and my words of protest were as nothing to them.
31 Therefore shall they eat the fruits of their own way, and shall be filled with their own ungodliness.
So the fruit of their way will be their food, and with the designs of their hearts they will be made full.
32 For because they wronged the simple, they shall be slain; and an inquisition shall ruin the ungodly.
For the turning back of the simple from teaching will be the cause of their death, and the peace of the foolish will be their destruction.
33 But he that hearkens to me shall dwell in confidence, and shall rest securely from all evil.
But whoever gives ear to me will take his rest safely, living in peace without fear of evil.
