Proverbs 2
1 My son, if thou dost accept my sayings, And my commands dost lay up with thee,
My son, if you will receive my words, and store up my commandments within you,
2 To cause thine ear to attend to wisdom, Thou inclinest thy heart to understanding,
so as to turn your ear to wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding;
3 For, if for intelligence thou callest, For understanding givest forth thy voice,
yes, if you call out for discernment, and lift up your voice for understanding;
4 If thou dost seek her as silver, And as hid treasures searchest for her,
if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures;
5 Then understandest thou fear of Jehovah, And knowledge of God thou findest.
then you will understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.
6 For Jehovah giveth wisdom, From His mouth knowledge and understanding.
For the LORD gives wisdom. Out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.
7 Even to lay up for the upright substance, A shield for those walking uprightly.
He lays up sound wisdom for the upright. He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 To keep the paths of judgment, And the way of His saints He preserveth.
that he may guard the paths of justice, and preserve the way of his saints.
9 Then understandest thou righteousness, And judgment, and uprightness — every good path.
Then you will understand righteousness and justice, equity and every good path.
10 For wisdom cometh into thy heart, And knowledge to thy soul is pleasant,
For wisdom will enter into your heart. Knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11 Thoughtfulness doth watch over thee, Understanding doth keep thee,
Discretion will watch over you. Understanding will keep you,
12 To deliver thee from an evil way, From any speaking froward things,
to deliver you from the way of evil, from the men who speak perverse things,
13 Who are forsaking paths of uprightness, To walk in ways of darkness,
who forsake the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness,
14 Who are rejoicing to do evil, They delight in frowardness of the wicked,
who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 Whose paths [are] crooked, Yea, they are perverted in their ways.
who are crooked in their ways, and wayward in their paths,
16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, From the stranger who hath made smooth her sayings,
to deliver you from the strange woman, even from the foreigner who flatters with her words,
17 Who is forsaking the guide of her youth, And the covenant of her God hath forgotten.
who forsakes the friend of her youth, and forgets the covenant of her God;
18 For her house hath inclined unto death, And unto Rephaim her paths.
for her house leads down to death, her paths to the departed spirits.
19 None going in unto her turn back, Nor do they reach the paths of life.
None who go to her return again, neither do they attain to the paths of life.
20 That thou dost go in the way of the good, And the paths of the righteous dost keep.
Therefore walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright do inhabit the earth, And the perfect are left in it,
For the upright will dwell in the land. The perfect will remain in it.
22 And the wicked from the earth are cut off, And treacherous dealers plucked out of it!
But the wicked will be cut off from the land. The treacherous will be rooted out of it.
