Proverbs 3
1 My son, mine instruction, do not thou forget, and, my commandment, let thy heart observe;
[My] son, forget not my laws; but let thine heart keep my words:
2 For, length of days and years of life, and blessedness, shall they add to thee.
for length of existence, and years of life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
3 Lovingkindness and faithfulness, let them not forsake thee, —bind them, upon thy neck, write them upon the tablet of thy heart:
Let not mercy and truth forsake thee; but bind them about thy neck:
4 So find thou favour and good repute, in the eyes of God and man.
so shalt thou find favour: and do thou provide things honest in the sight of the Lord, and of men.
5 Trust thou in Yahweh, with all thy heart, and, unto thine own understanding, do not lean:
Trust in God with all thine heart; and be not exalted in thine own wisdom.
6 In all thy ways, acknowledge him, and, he, will make straight thy paths.
In all thy ways acquaint thyself with her, that she may rightly direct thy paths.
7 Do not become wise in thine own eyes, revere Yahweh, and avoid evil:
Be not wise in thine own conceit; but fear God, and depart from all evil.
8 Healing, shall it be to thy body, and refreshing, to thy bones.
Then shall there be health to thy body, and good keeping to thy bones.
9 Honour thou Yahweh, with thy substance, and with the firstfruit of all thine increase;
Honour the Lord with thy just labours, and give him the first of thy fruits of righteousness:
10 So shall thy storehouses be filled with plenty, and, with new wine, shall thy vats overflow.
that thy storehouses may be completely filled with corn, and that thy presses may burst forth with wine.
11 The, chastening of Yahweh, my son, do not reject, nor loathe his rebuke;
[My] son, despise not the chastening of the Lord; nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
12 For, whom Yahweh loveth, he correcteth, he causeth pain to the son in whom he delighteth.
for whom the Lord loves, he rebukes, and scourges every son whom he receives.
13 How happy the man who hath found wisdom, and the man who draweth forth understanding,
Blessed is the man who has found wisdom, and the mortal who knows prudence.
14 For better is her merchandise, than the merchandise of silver, yea, than gold, her increase;
For it is better to traffic for her, than for treasures of gold and silver.
15 More precious, is she, than corals, yea, none of thy delightful things, doth equal her:
And she is more valuable than precious stones: no evil thing shall resist her: she is well known to all that approach her, and no precious thing is equal to her in value.
16 Length of days, is in her right hand, in her left, are riches and honour;
For length of existence and years of life are in her right hand; and in her left hand are wealth and glory: out of her mouth proceeds righteousness, and she carries law and mercy upon her tongue.
17 Her ways, are ways of pleasantness, and, all her paths, are peace;
Her ways are good ways, and all her paths are peaceful.
18 A tree of life, is she, to them who secure her, —and, they who hold her fast, are every one to be pronounced happy.
She is a tree of life to all that lay hold upon her; and she is [a] secure [help] to all that stay themselves on her, as on the Lord.
19 Yahweh, in wisdom, founded the earth, establishing the heavens with understanding;
God by wisdom founded the earth, and by prudence he prepared the heavens.
20 By his knowledge, the resounding deeps were burst open, and, the skies, drop down dew.
By understanding were the depths broken up, and the clouds dropped water.
21 My son, let them not depart from thine eyes, guard thou counsel, and purpose:
[My] son, let [them] not pass from [thee], but keep my counsel and understanding:
22 So shall they become life to thy soul, and an adorning to thy neck;
that thy soul may live, and that there may be grace round thy neck; and it shall be health to thy flesh, and safety to thy bones:
23 Then, shalt thou walk securely in thy way, and, thy foot, shall not stumble;
that thou mayest go confidently in peace in all thy ways, and that thy foot may not stumble.
24 When thou sittest down, thou shalt have no dread, yea thou shalt lie down, and sweet shall be thy sleep.
For if thou rest, thou shalt be undismayed; and if thou sleep, thou shalt slumber sweetly.
25 Be not thou afraid of sudden dread, nor of the desolation of the lawless, when it cometh.
And thou shalt not be afraid of alarm coming upon thee, neither of approaching attacks of ungodly men.
26 For, Yahweh, will be in all thy ways, and will keep thy foot from the snare.
For the Lord shall be over all thy ways, and shall establish thy foot that thou be not moved.
27 Withhold not good from them who ask it, when it is in power of thy hand to do it:
Forbear not to do good to the poor, whensoever thy hand may have [power] to help [him].
28 Do not say to thy neighbour, Go and come again, and to-morrow I will give, when thou hast it by thee.
Say not, Come back another time, to-morrow I will give; while thou art able to do [him] good: for thou knowest not what the next day will bring forth.
29 Devise not against thy neighbour an injury, seeing that, he, dwelleth securely by thee.
Devise not evil against thy friend, living near thee and trusting in thee.
30 Contend not with a man without cause, if he hath dealt thee no wrong.
Be not ready to quarrel with a man without a cause, lest he do thee some harm.
31 Do not thou envy the man of violence, neither choose thou any of his ways;
Procure not the reproaches of bad men, neither do thou covet their ways.
32 For, an abomination to Yahweh, is the tortuous man, but, with the upright, he is intimate.
For every transgressor is unclean before the Lord; neither does he sit among the righteous.
33 The curse of Yahweh, is in the house of the lawless one, but, the home of the righteous, he blesseth.
The curse of God is in the houses of the ungodly; but the habitations of the just are blessed.
34 Though at scoffers he scoffeth, yet, to the humbled, he granteth favour.
The Lord resists the proud; but he gives grace to the humble.
35 Honour, shall the wise inherit, —but, as for dullards, shame shall carry them away.
The wise shall inherit glory; but the ungodly have exalted [their own] dishonour.
