< Proverbs 4 >

1 Hear, ye sons, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding.
Sones, here ye the teching of the fadir; and perseiue ye, that ye kunne prudence.
2 For good learning I have given to you, My law forsake not.
Y schal yyue to you a good yifte; forsake ye not my lawe.
3 For, a son I have been to my father — tender, And an only one before my mother.
For whi and Y was the sone of my fadir, a tendir sone, and oon `gendride bifore my modir.
4 And he directeth me, and he saith to me: 'Let thy heart retain my words, Keep my commands, 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, Do not forget, nor turn away From the sayings of my mouth.
Welde thou wisdom, welde thou prudence; foryete thou not, nethir bowe thou awey fro the wordis of my mouth.
6 Forsake her not, and she doth preserve thee, Love her, and she doth keep thee.
Forsake thou not it, and it schal kepe thee; loue thou it, and it schal kepe thee.
7 The first thing [is] wisdom — get wisdom, And with all thy getting get understanding.
The bigynnyng of wisdom, welde thou wisdom; and in al thi possessioun gete thou prudence.
8 Exalt her, and she doth lift thee up, She honoureth thee, when thou dost embrace her.
Take thou it, and it schal enhaunse thee; thou schalt be glorified of it, whanne thou hast biclippid it.
9 She giveth to thy head a wreath of grace, A crown of beauty she doth give thee freely.
It schal yyue encresyngis of graces to thin heed; and a noble coroun schal defende thee.
10 Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And years of life [are] multiplied to thee.
Mi sone, here thou, and take my wordis; that the yeris of lijf be multiplied to thee.
11 In a way of wisdom I have directed thee, I have caused thee to tread in paths of uprightness.
Y schal schewe to thee the weie of wisdom; and Y schal lede thee bi the pathis of equyte.
12 In thy walking thy step is not straitened, And if thou runnest, thou stumblest not.
In to whiche whanne thou hast entrid, thi goyngis schulen not be maad streit; and thou schalt rennen, and schalt not haue hirtyng.
13 Lay hold on instruction, do not desist, Keep her, for she [is] thy life.
Holde thou teching, and forsake it not; kepe thou it, for it is thi lijf.
14 Into the path of the wicked enter not, And be not happy in a way of evil doers.
Delite thou not in the pathis of wyckid men; and the weie of yuele men plese not thee.
15 Avoid it, pass not over into it, Turn aside from it, and pass on.
Fle thou fro it, and passe thou not therbi; bowe thou awei, and forsake it.
16 For they sleep not if they do not evil, And their sleep hath been taken violently away, If they cause not [some] to stumble.
For thei slepen not, `no but thei han do yuele; and sleep is rauyschid fro hem, no but thei han disseyued.
17 For they have eaten bread of wickedness, And wine of violence they drink.
Thei eten the breed of vnpite, and drinken the wyn of wickidnesse.
18 And the path of the righteous [is] as a shining light, Going and brightening till the day is established,
But the path of iust men goith forth as liyt schynynge, and encreessith til to perfit dai.
19 The way of the wicked [is] as darkness, They have not known at what they stumble.
The weie of wickid men is derk; thei witen not where thei schulen falle.
20 My son, to my words give attention, To my sayings incline thine ear,
Mi sone, herkene thou my wordis; and bowe doun thin eeris to my spechis.
21 Let them not turn aside from thine eyes, Preserve them in the midst of thy heart.
Go not tho awei fro thyn iyen; kepe thou hem in the myddil of thin herte.
22 For life they [are] to those finding them, And to all their flesh healing.
For tho ben lijf to men fyndynge thoo, and heelthe `of al fleisch.
23 Above every charge keep thy heart, For out of it [are] the outgoings of life.
With al keping kepe thin herte, for lijf cometh forth of it.
24 Turn aside from thee a froward mouth, And perverse lips put far from thee,
Remoue thou a schrewid mouth fro thee; and backbitynge lippis be fer fro thee.
25 Thine eyes do look straightforward, And thine eyelids look straight before thee.
Thin iyen se riytful thingis; and thin iyeliddis go bifore thi steppis.
26 Ponder thou the path of thy feet, And all thy ways [are] established.
Dresse thou pathis to thi feet, and alle thi weies schulen be stablischid.
27 Incline not [to] the right or to the left, Turn aside thy 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.

< Proverbs 4 >