The Blessings of Wisdom
1 jDoes not wisdom call?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
2 kOn the heights beside the way,
at the crossroads she takes her stand;
3 beside the gates in front of the town,
at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud:
4 “To you, O men, I call,
and my cry is to the children of man.
5 O lsimple ones, learn prudence;
O fools, mlearn sense.
6 Hear, for I will speak noble things,
and from my lips will come what is right,
7 for my mouth will utter truth;
wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 All the words of my mouth are righteous;
there is nothing twisted or ncrooked in them.
9 They are all straight to him who understands,
and right to those who find knowledge.
10 oTake my pinstruction instead of qsilver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold,
11 for wisdom is rbetter than jewels,
and sall that you may desire cannot compare with her.
12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
and I find knowledge and discretion.
13 tThe fear of the Lord is uhatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and vperverted speech I hate.
14 I have counsel and sound wisdom;
I have insight; I have strength.
15 By me kings reign,
and rulers decree what is just;
16 by me princes rule,
and nobles, all who govern justly.1
17 I love those who love me,
and those who wseek me diligently find me.
18 Riches and honor are with me,
enduring wealth and righteousness.
19 My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,
and my yield than xchoice silver.
20 I walk in the yway of righteousness,
in the paths of justice,
21 granting an inheritance to those who love me,
and filling their treasuries.
22 z“The Lord apossessed2 me bat the beginning of his work,3
the first of his acts of old.
23 Ages ago I was set up,
at the first, cbefore the beginning of the earth.
24 When there were no depths I was brought forth,
when there were no springs abounding with water.
25 dBefore the mountains had been shaped,
before the hills, I was brought forth,
26 before he had made the earth with its fields,
or ethe first of the dust of the world.
27 When he festablished the heavens, I was there;
when he gdrew a circle on the face of the deep,
28 hwhen he made firm the skies above,
when he established4 the ifountains of the deep,
29 jwhen he kassigned to the sea its limit,
so that the waters might not transgress his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
30 then I was lbeside him, like a master workman,
and I was daily his5 delight,
rejoicing before him always,
31 rejoicing in his inhabited world
and delighting in the children of man.
32 “And now, O sons, listen to me:
blessed are those who keep my ways.
33 Hear instruction and be wise,
and do not mneglect it.
34 nBlessed is the one who listens to me,
watching daily at my gates,
waiting beside my doors.
35 For whoever finds me finds olife
and obtains favor from the Lord,
36 but he who fails to find me injures himself;
all who hate me love death.”
The Way of Wisdom
1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has hewn her seven pillars.
2 She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her young women to pcall
from the highest places in the town,
4 q“Whoever is rsimple, let him turn in here!”
To him who lacks sense she says,
5 “Come, eat of my bread
and drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways,1 and live,
and walk in the way of sinsight.”
7 tWhoever corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse,
and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury.
8 Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you;
ureprove a wise man, and he will love you.
9 Give instruction2 to a wise man, and he will be still wiser;
teach a righteous man, and he will vincrease in learning.
10 wThe fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the xknowledge of the Holy One is yinsight.
11 For by me your days will be zmultiplied,
and years will be added to your life.
12 If you are wise, you are wise for yourself;
if you scoff, you alone will bear it.
The Way of Folly
13 The woman Folly is aloud;
she is seductive3 and knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of bher house;
she takes a seat con the highest places of the town,
15 calling to those who pass by,
who are going straight on their way,
16 d“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
And to him who lacks sense she says,
17 “Stolen ewater is sweet,
and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
18 fBut he does not know that the dead4 are there,
that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
The Proverbs of Solomon
1 The gproverbs of Solomon.
hA wise son makes a glad ifather,
but ja foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
2 kTreasures gained lby wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from death.
3 mThe Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
4 nA slack hand causes poverty,
obut the hand of the diligent makes rich.
5 He who gathers pin summer is a prudent son,
but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
qbut the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.1
7 rThe memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the name of the wicked will rot.
8 The wise of heart will receive commandments,
but sa babbling fool will come to ruin.
9 Whoever twalks in integrity uwalks securely,
but he who makes his ways vcrooked will be found out.
10 Whoever wwinks the eye causes trouble,
and a babbling fool will come to ruin.
11 The mouth of the righteous xis a fountain of life,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
12 Hatred stirs up ystrife,
but love zcovers all offenses.
13 On the lips of him who has understanding, wisdom is found,
but aa rod is for the back of him who lacks sense.
14 The wise lay up knowledge,
bbut the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.
15 cA rich man’s wealth is his strong city;
the poverty of the poor is their ruin.
16 dThe wage of the righteous leads to elife,
the gain of the wicked to sin.
17 Whoever heeds finstruction is on the path to life,
but he who rejects reproof leads others astray.
18 The one who gconceals hatred has hlying lips,
and whoever utters slander is a fool.
19 iWhen words are many, transgression is not lacking,
but jwhoever restrains his lips is prudent.
20 The tongue of the righteous is kchoice silver;
the heart of the wicked is of little worth.
21 The lips of the righteous feed many,
but fools die for lack of sense.
22 The blessing of the Lord makes rich,
and he adds no sorrow with it.2
23 Doing wrong is like a joke to a fool,
but wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.
24 What the wicked dreads will come upon him,
but lthe desire of the righteous will be granted.
25 mWhen the tempest passes, the wicked is no more,
but the righteous is established forever.
26 Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
27 The fear of the Lord nprolongs life,
but the years of the wicked will be short.
28 oThe hope of the righteous brings joy,
but pthe expectation of the wicked will perish.
29 The way of the Lord is a stronghold to the blameless,
qbut destruction to evildoers.
30 rThe righteous will never be removed,
but the wicked will not dwell in the land.
31 sThe mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,
but the tperverse tongue will be cut off.
32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,
but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.
