Proverbs 1
1 The Proverbs of Solomon son of David, who reigned in Israel;
The proverbs of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel:
2 to know wisdom and instruction, and to perceive words of understanding;
That one may learn wisdom and instruction, And receive words of understanding;
3 to receive also hard saying, and to understand true justice, and [how] to direct judgment;
That one may gain the instruction of prudence, Justice, equity, and uprightness;
4 that he might give subtlety to the simple, and to the young man discernment and understanding.
Which will give caution to the simple, To the young man wisdom and discretion;
5 For by the hearing of these a wise man will be wiser, and man of understanding will gain direction;
Let the wise man hear, and he will increase his knowledge, And the man of understanding will gain wise counsels;
6 and will understand a parable, and a dark speech; the saying of the wise also, and riddles.
So as to understand a proverb and a deep maxim, 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 beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
8 Hear, [my] son, the instruction of your father, and reject not the rules of your mother.
Hear, O my son! the instruction of thy father, And neglect not the teaching of thy mother!
9 For you shall receive for your head a crown of graces, and a chain of gold round your neck.
For they shall be a graceful wreath for thy head, And a chain around thy neck.
10 [My] son, let not ungodly men lead you astray, neither consent you [to them].
My son, if sinners entice thee, Consent thou not!
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 lie in wait for blood, Let us lurk secretly for him who is innocent in vain;
12 and let us swallow him alive, as Hades [would], and remove the memorial of him from the earth: (Sheol h7585)
Let us swallow them up alive, like the underworld, Yea, in full health, as those that go down into the pit; (Sheol h7585)
13 let us seize on his valuable property, and let us fill our houses with spoils:
We shall find all kinds of precious substance, We shall fill our houses with spoil;
14 but do you cast in your lot with us, and let us all provide a common purse, and let us have one pouch:
Thou shalt cast thy lot among us; We will all have one purse;”—
15 go not in the way with them, but turn aside your foot from their paths:
My son, walk thou not in their way, Refrain thy foot from their path!
16 [For their feet run to do evil, and are swift to shed blood. ]
For their feet run to evil, And make haste to shed blood.
17 for nets are not without cause spread for birds.
For as the net is spread in vain Before the eyes of any bird,
18 For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; and the overthrow of transgressors is evil.
So they lie in wait for their own blood; They lurk secretly for their own lives.
19 These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; for by ungodliness they destroy their own life.
Such are the ways of every one greedy of unjust gain; It taketh away the life of the possessor thereof.
20 Wisdom sings aloud in passages, and in the broad places speaks boldly.
Wisdom crieth out in the highway; In the market-place she uttereth her voice;
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,
At the head of the noisy streets she crieth aloud; At the entrances of the gates, throughout the city, she proclaimeth her words [[saying]]:
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, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? How long will scoffers delight themselves in scoffing, And fools hate knowledge?
23 Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, and I will instruct you in my speech.
Turn ye at my reproof! Behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make known my words to you!
24 Since I called, and you did not listen; and I spoke at length, and you gave no heed;
“Because I have called, and ye have refused, —Because I have stretched out my hand, and no one hath regarded.
25 but you set at nothing my counsels, and disregarded my reproofs;
Because ye have rejected all my counsel, And have slighted my rebuke, —
26 therefore I also will laugh at your destruction; and I will rejoice against [you] when ruin comes upon you:
I also will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh;
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 cometh upon you like a storm. And destruction overtaketh you like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon 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 will they call upon me, but I will not answer! They will seek me early, But they shall not find me!
29 For they hated wisdom, and did not choose the word of the Lord:
Because they have hated knowledge, And have not chosen the fear of the LORD, —
30 neither would they attend to my counsels, but derided my reproofs.
Because they would not attend to my counsel, And have despised all my reproof, —
31 Therefore shall they eat the fruits of their own way, and shall be filled with their own ungodliness.
Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, And be filled to the full with their own devices;
32 For because they wronged the simple, they shall be slain; and an inquisition shall ruin the ungodly.
Yea, the turning away of the simple shall slay them, And the carelessness of fools shall destroy them.
33 But he that hearkens to me shall dwell in confidence, and shall rest securely from all evil.
But whoso hearkeneth to me shall dwell securely, And shall not be disquieted with the fear of evil.”
