Proverbs 1:1–6

¹THE proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

⁹Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about: for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days.

⁵And of all my sons, (for the Lord hath given me many sons,) he hath chosen Solomon my son to sit upon the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel.

¹THE words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.

¹²¶ Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established greatly.

³¹For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all nations round about.

³²And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.

¹THESE are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.

²⁴¶ And David comforted Bath-sheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her: and she bare a son, and he called his name Solomon: and the Lord loved him.

²⁵And he sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet; and he called his name Jedidiah, because of the Lord.

⁹And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.

²⁸And he died in a good old age, full of days, riches, and honour: and Solomon his son reigned in his stead.

²⁵These things have I spoken unto you in proverbs: but the time cometh, when I shall no more speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall shew you plainly of the Father.

⁴Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:

⁵Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.

⁶Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

⁹Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people?

¹⁰And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.

¹¹And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern judgment;

¹²Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee.

¹⁵And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

¹⁶All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

¹⁷That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

¹⁶Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?

¹⁶How much better is it to get wisdom than gold! and to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver!

⁵Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

⁶Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.

⁷Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

⁵O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.

¹MY son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;

²So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;

³Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;

⁴If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;

⁵Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.

⁶For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

⁷He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

⁸He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.

⁹Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.

²²Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.

²⁸And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.

¹⁰Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.

¹¹For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.

⁵O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.

¹⁷I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.

⁹Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word.

¹²I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge of witty inventions.

³²Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they that keep my ways.

⁴Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,

⁵Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled.

⁶Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

¹³⁰The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.

²²Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

⁸And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.

²²How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

²³Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

¹⁰¶ When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul;

¹¹Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:

²¹¶ My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion:

⁷And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of understanding,

⁸Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,

⁹In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:

¹⁰And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.

¹¹(She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house:

¹²Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.)

¹³So she caught him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him,

¹⁴I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows.

¹⁵Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.

¹⁶I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine linen of Egypt.

¹⁷I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

¹⁸Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves.

¹⁹For the goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey:

²⁰He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.

²¹With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.

²²He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;

²³Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.

²⁴¶ Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth.

⁷The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.

¹¹Come, ye children, hearken unto me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

⁶Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.

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¹WHOSO loveth instruction loveth knowledge: but he that hateth reproof is brutish.

⁹Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.

¹⁵I speak as to wise men; judge ye what I say.

¹⁰Therefore hearken unto me, ye men of understanding: far be it from God, that he should do wickedness; and from the Almighty, that he should commit iniquity.

¹⁶If now thou hast understanding, hear this: hearken to the voice of my words.

⁹⁸Thou through thy commandments hast made me wiser than mine enemies: for they are ever with me.

⁹⁹I have more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation.

¹⁰⁰I understand more than the ancients, because I keep thy precepts.

³⁴Let men of understanding tell me, and let a wise man hearken unto me.

¹⁶And it came to pass, as he talked with him, that the king said unto him, Art thou made of the king’s counsel? forbear; why shouldest thou be smitten? Then the prophet forbare, and said, I know that God hath determined to destroy thee, because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened unto my counsel.

³²¶ And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:

³³And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand.

²I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:

¹¹And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:

⁴I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.

³⁰And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?

³¹And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.

¹⁴But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.

³⁴But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.

¹¹The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.

¹⁰And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?

¹¹He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

¹²For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

¹³Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

¹⁴And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

¹⁵For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

¹⁶But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

¹⁷For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

³⁴All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:

³⁵That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.

¹⁶As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

⁵¹Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.

⁵²Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old.

⁸With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold: wherefore then were ye not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?