Proverbs 2

1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;

Oh, my son, that thou wouldst receive my words, And treasure up my precepts within thee;

2 So that thou incline thy ear to wisdom, [and] apply thy heart to understanding;

That thou wouldst apply thine ear to wisdom, And incline thy heart to understanding!

3 Yes, if thou criest after knowledge, [and] liftest up thy voice for understanding;

For if thou wilt call aloud to knowledge, And lift up thy voice to understanding, —

4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as [for] hid treasures;

If thou wilt seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures,

5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.

Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God.

6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth [cometh] knowledge and understanding.

For the LORD giveth wisdom; From his mouth proceed knowledge and understanding:

7 He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: [he is] a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

He layeth up safety for the righteous; He is a shield to them that walk uprightly:

8 He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.

He guardeth the paths of equity, And defendeth the way of his servants.

9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; [and] every good path.

Then shalt thou understand righteousness and equity And uprightness, yea, every good path.

10 When wisdom entereth into thy heart, and knowledge is pleasant to thy soul;

When wisdom entereth into thy heart, And knowledge is pleasant to thy soul,

11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:

Discretion will guard thee, Understanding will preserve thee.

12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil [man], from the man that speaketh froward things;

It will deliver thee from the way of the wicked, From the men who speak perverse things;

13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;

Who forsake the paths of uprightness, To walk in the ways of darkness;

14 Who rejoice to do evil, [and] delight in the frowardness of the wicked;

Who rejoice in doing evil, And delight in the perverseness of the wicked;

15 Whose ways [are] crooked, and [they] froward in their paths:

Whose paths are crooked, And who are froward in their ways.

16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, [even] from the stranger [who] flattereth with her words;

It will deliver thee from the wife of another, From the stranger, who useth smooth words;

17 Who forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.

Who forsaketh the friend of her youth, And forgetteth the covenant of her God.

18 For her house inclineth to death, and her paths to the dead.

For her house sinketh down to Death, And her paths to the shades of the dead:

19 None that go to her return again, neither do they take hold of the paths of life.

None that go to her return again; They will not attain the paths of life.

20 That thou mayest walk in the way of good [men], and keep the paths of the righteous.

Therefore walk thou in the way of good men, And keep the paths of the righteous:

21 For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.

For the upright shall dwell in the land, And the righteous shall remain in it;

22 But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.

But the wicked shall be cut off from the land, And transgressors shall be rooted out of it.