Proverbs 2
1 My son, if you accept my sayings, And lay up my commands with you,
My son, if thou receivest my words, and layest up my commandments with thee,
2 To cause your ear to attend to wisdom, You incline your heart to understanding,
so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom [and] thou apply thy heart to understanding;
3 For if you call for intelligence, [And] give forth your voice for intelligence,
yea, if thou criest after discernment [and] liftest up thy voice to understanding;
4 If you seek her as silver, And search for her as hid treasures,
if thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hidden treasures:
5 Then you understand the fear of YHWH, And you find the knowledge of God.
then shalt thou understand the fear of Jehovah, and find the knowledge of God.
6 For YHWH gives wisdom, Knowledge and understanding from His mouth.
For Jehovah giveth wisdom; out of his mouth [come] knowledge and understanding.
7 Even to lay up substance for the upright, A shield for those walking uprightly.
He layeth up sound wisdom for the upright; [he] is a shield to them that walk in integrity;
8 To keep the paths of judgment, And He preserves the way of His saints.
guarding the paths of just judgment and keeping the way of his godly ones.
9 Then you understand righteousness, And judgment, and uprightness—every good path.
Then shalt thou understand righteousness and judgment and equity: every good path.
10 For wisdom comes into your heart, And knowledge is pleasant to your soul,
When wisdom entereth into thy heart and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul,
11 Thoughtfulness watches over you, Understanding keeps you,
discretion shall keep thee, understanding shall preserve thee:
12 To deliver you from an evil way, From any speaking contrary things,
To deliver thee from the way of evil, from the man that speaketh froward things;
13 Who are forsaking paths of uprightness, To walk in ways of darkness,
[from those] who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;
14 Who are rejoicing to do evil, They delight in [the] contrariness of the wicked,
who rejoice to do evil, [and] delight in the frowardness of evil;
15 Whose paths [are] crooked, Indeed, they are perverted in their ways.
whose paths are crooked, and who are perverted in their course:
16 To deliver you from the strange woman, From the stranger who has made her sayings smooth,
To deliver thee from the strange woman, from the stranger who flattereth with her words;
17 Who is forsaking the guide of her youth, And has forgotten the covenant of her God.
who forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God;
18 For her house has inclined to death, And her paths to Rephaim.
— for her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead;
19 None going in to her return, Nor do they reach the paths of life.
none that go unto her return again, neither do they attain to the paths of life:
20 That you go in the way of the good, And keep the paths of the righteous.
— that thou mayest walk in the way of the good, and keep the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright inhabit the earth, And the perfect are left in it,
For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it;
22 And the wicked are cut off from the earth, And treacherous dealers plucked out of it!
but the wicked shall be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful shall be plucked up out of it.
