Proverbs 1:3–5

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.