Proverbs 4
1 Listen, sons, to a father’s instruction. Pay attention and know understanding;
Sones, here ye the teching of the fadir; and perseiue ye, that ye kunne prudence.
2 for I give you sound learning. Don’t forsake my law.
Y schal yyue to you a good yifte; forsake ye not my lawe.
3 For I was a son to my father, tender and an only child in the sight of my mother.
For whi and Y was the sone of my fadir, a tendir sone, and oon `gendride bifore my modir.
4 He taught me, and said to me: “Let your heart retain my words. Keep my commandments, and live.
And my fadir tauyte me, and seide, Thin herte resseyue my wordis; kepe thou myn heestis, and thou schalt lyue.
5 Get wisdom. Get understanding. Don’t forget, and don’t deviate from the words of my mouth.
Welde thou wisdom, welde thou prudence; foryete thou not, nethir bowe thou awey fro the wordis of my mouth.
6 Don’t forsake her, and she will preserve you. Love her, and she will keep you.
Forsake thou not it, and it schal kepe thee; loue thou it, and it schal kepe thee.
7 Wisdom is supreme. Get wisdom. Yes, though it costs all your possessions, get understanding.
The bigynnyng of wisdom, welde thou wisdom; and in al thi possessioun gete thou prudence.
8 Esteem her, and she will exalt you. She will bring you to honor when you embrace her.
Take thou it, and it schal enhaunse thee; thou schalt be glorified of it, whanne thou hast biclippid it.
9 She will give to your head a garland of grace. She will deliver a crown of splendor to you.”
It schal yyue encresyngis of graces to thin heed; and a noble coroun schal defende thee.
10 Listen, my son, and receive my sayings. The years of your life will be many.
Mi sone, here thou, and take my wordis; that the yeris of lijf be multiplied to thee.
11 I have taught you in the way of wisdom. I have led you in straight paths.
Y schal schewe to thee the weie of wisdom; and Y schal lede thee bi the pathis of equyte.
12 When you go, your steps will not be hampered. When you run, you will not stumble.
In to whiche whanne thou hast entrid, thi goyngis schulen not be maad streit; and thou schalt rennen, and schalt not haue hirtyng.
13 Take firm hold of instruction. Don’t let her go. Keep her, for she is your life.
Holde thou teching, and forsake it not; kepe thou it, for it is thi lijf.
14 Don’t enter into the path of the wicked. Don’t walk in the way of evil men.
Delite thou not in the pathis of wyckid men; and the weie of yuele men plese not thee.
15 Avoid it, and don’t pass by it. Turn from it, and pass on.
Fle thou fro it, and passe thou not therbi; bowe thou awei, and forsake it.
16 For they don’t sleep unless they do evil. Their sleep is taken away, unless they make someone fall.
For thei slepen not, `no but thei han do yuele; and sleep is rauyschid fro hem, no but thei han disseyued.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
Thei eten the breed of vnpite, and drinken the wyn of wickidnesse.
18 But the path of the righteous is like the dawning light that shines more and more until the perfect day.
But the path of iust men goith forth as liyt schynynge, and encreessith til to perfit dai.
19 The way of the wicked is like darkness. They don’t know what they stumble over.
The weie of wickid men is derk; thei witen not where thei schulen falle.
20 My son, attend to my words. Turn your ear to my sayings.
Mi sone, herkene thou my wordis; and bowe doun thin eeris to my spechis.
21 Let them not depart from your eyes. Keep them in the center of your heart.
Go not tho awei fro thyn iyen; kepe thou hem in the myddil of thin herte.
22 For they are life to those who find them, and health to their whole body.
For tho ben lijf to men fyndynge thoo, and heelthe `of al fleisch.
23 Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it is the wellspring of life.
With al keping kepe thin herte, for lijf cometh forth of it.
24 Put away from yourself a perverse mouth. Put corrupt lips far from you.
Remoue thou a schrewid mouth fro thee; and backbitynge lippis be fer fro thee.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead. Fix your gaze directly before you.
Thin iyen se riytful thingis; and thin iyeliddis go bifore thi steppis.
26 Make the path of your feet level. Let all of your ways be established.
Dresse thou pathis to thi feet, and alle thi weies schulen be stablischid.
27 Don’t turn to the right hand nor to the left. Remove your foot from evil.
Bowe thou not to the riytside, nether to the leftside; turne awei thi foot fro yuel. For the Lord knowith the weies that ben at the riytside; but the weies ben weiward, that ben at the leftside. Forsothe he schal make thi goyngis riytful; and thi weies schulen be brouyt forth in pees.
