Proverbs 3
1 My son! my law forget not, And my commands let thy heart keep,
My son, forget not my teaching, And let thy heart observe my precepts!
2 For length of days and years, Life and peace they do add to thee.
For length of days, and years of life, And peace shall they multiply to thee.
3 Let not kindness and truth forsake thee, Bind them on thy neck, Write them on the tablet of thy heart,
Let not kindness and truth forsake thee; Bind them around thy neck, Write them upon the tablet of thy heart:
4 And find grace and good understanding In the eyes of God and man.
Then shalt thou find favor and good success In the sight of God and man.
5 Trust unto Jehovah with all thy heart, And unto thine own understanding lean not.
Trust in the LORD with all thy heart, And lean not on thine own understanding;
6 In all thy ways know thou Him, And He doth make straight thy paths.
In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he will make thy paths plain.
7 Be not wise in thine own eyes, Fear Jehovah, and turn aside from evil.
Be not wise in thine own eyes; Fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
8 Healing it is to thy navel, And moistening to thy bones.
It shall be health to thy muscles, And moisture to thy bones.
9 Honour Jehovah from thy substance, And from the beginning of all thine increase;
Honor the LORD with thy substance, And with the first-fruits of all thy increase;
10 And filled are thy barns [with] plenty, And [with] new wine thy presses break forth.
So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, And thy vats overflow with new wine.
11 Chastisement of Jehovah, my son, despise not, And be not vexed with His reproof,
My son, despise not the correction of the LORD, Nor be impatient under his chastisement!
12 For whom Jehovah loveth He reproveth, Even as a father the son He is pleased with.
For whom the LORD loveth he chasteneth, Even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.
13 O the happiness of a man [who] hath found wisdom, And of a man [who] bringeth forth understanding.
Happy the man who findeth wisdom; Yea, the man who getteth understanding!
14 For better [is] her merchandise Than the merchandise of silver, And than gold — her increase.
For the profit thereof is greater than that of silver, And the gain thereof than that of fine gold.
15 Precious she [is] above rubies, And all thy pleasures are not comparable to her.
More precious is she than pearls, And none of thy jewels is to be compared with her.
16 Length of days [is] in her right hand, In her left [are] wealth and honour.
Length of days is in her right hand; In her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways [are] ways of pleasantness, And all her paths [are] peace.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.
18 A tree of life she [is] to those laying hold on her, And whoso is retaining her [is] happy.
She is a tree of life to them that lay hold of her, And happy is every one who hath her in his grasp.
19 Jehovah by wisdom did found the earth, He prepared the heavens by understanding.
The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding he framed the heavens.
20 By His knowledge depths have been rent, And clouds do drop dew.
By his knowledge the deep waters were cleft, And the clouds drop down the dew.
21 My son! let them not turn from thine eyes, Keep thou wisdom and thoughtfulness,
My son, let them not depart from thine eyes; Keep sound wisdom and discretion!
22 And they are life to thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
For they shall be life to thy soul, And grace to thy neck.
23 Then thou goest thy way confidently, And thy foot doth not stumble.
Then shalt thou go on thy way securely, And thy foot shall not stumble;
24 If thou liest down, thou art not afraid, Yea, thou hast lain down, And sweet hath been thy sleep.
When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid, Yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.
25 Be not afraid of sudden fear, And of the desolation of the wicked when it cometh.
Be not thou afraid of sudden alarm, Nor of the storm that is for the wicked, when it cometh;
26 For Jehovah is at thy side, And He hath kept thy foot from capture.
For the LORD shall be thy confidence; Yea, he will keep thy foot from being taken.
27 Withhold not good from its owners, When thy hand [is] toward God to do [it].
Withhold not kindness from those who need it, When it is in the power of thy hand to do it.
28 Say not thou to thy friend, 'Go, and return, and to-morrow I give,' And substance with thee.
Say not to thy neighbor, “Go, and come again, And to-morrow I will give to thee,” when thou hast it by thee.
29 Devise not against thy neighbour evil, And he sitting confidently with thee.
Devise not evil against thy neighbor, While he dwelleth securely by thee.
30 Strive not with a man without cause, If he have not done thee evil.
Contend not with a man without cause, When he hath done thee no harm.
31 Be not envious of a man of violence, Nor fix thou on any of his ways.
Envy not the oppressor, And choose none of his ways.
32 For an abomination to Jehovah [is] the perverted, And with the upright [is] His secret counsel.
For the perverse man is the abomination of the LORD, But he is in friendship with the upright.
33 The curse of Jehovah [is] in the house of the wicked. And the habitation of the righteous He blesseth.
The curse of the LORD is upon the house of the wicked, But he blesseth the dwelling of the righteous.
34 If the scorners He doth scorn, Yet to the humble He doth give grace.
Surely the scorners he treadeth scornfully, But giveth favor to the lowly.
35 Honour do the wise inherit, And fools are bearing away shame!
The wise shall obtain honor, But fools shall bear off shame.
