Proverbs 2:13–21

¹⁹And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

²⁰For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

¹⁹The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

¹⁹They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.

²⁰For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.

²¹For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

²²But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

¹⁶The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.

⁵Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

⁶Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

⁷For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.

¹⁰For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

²⁶When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.

¹²Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.

¹³When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.

⁴For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

⁵And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

⁶If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

⁶¶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.

³⁵Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.

⁹When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,

¹⁰And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.

¹¹This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

⁴³When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.

⁴⁴Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

⁴⁵Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

³They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

³The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: he hath left off to be wise, and to do good.

⁵They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.

⁶And them that are turned back from the Lord; and those that have not sought the Lord, nor inquired for him.

¹³They are of those that rebel against the light; they know not the ways thereof, nor abide in the paths thereof.

¹⁴The murderer rising with the light killeth the poor and needy, and in the night is as a thief.

¹⁵The eye also of the adulterer waiteth for the twilight, saying, No eye shall see me: and disguiseth his face.

¹⁶In the dark they dig through houses, which they had marked for themselves in the daytime: they know not the light.

²¹Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

²³It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.

³²Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

¹⁵What hath my beloved to do in mine house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many, and the holy flesh is passed from thee? when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.

⁶Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

⁴And he went his way, and communed with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray him unto them.

⁵And they were glad, and covenanted to give him money.

³They make the king glad with their wickedness, and the princes with their lies.

¹¹In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain.

¹⁵They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad.

⁵As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel.

⁸The way of man is froward and strange: but as for the pure, his work is right.

⁵They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.

¹⁵That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;

⁸The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

⁸¶ Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:

⁹That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord:

¹⁰Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:

¹¹Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.

¹²Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon:

¹³Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

²⁶And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.

¹⁴The mouth of strange women is a deep pit: he that is abhorred of the Lord shall fall therein.

²⁷For a whore is a deep ditch; and a strange woman is a narrow pit.

²⁴To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.

⁵That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.

⁶¶ For at the window of my house I looked through my casement,

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.

³And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.

⁴And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him: and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand.

⁵And it came to pass from the time that he had made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian’s house for Joseph’s sake; and the blessing of the Lord was upon all that he had in the house, and in the field.

⁶And he left all that he had in Joseph’s hand; and he knew not ought he had, save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person, and well favoured.

⁷¶ And it came to pass after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes upon Joseph; and she said, Lie with me.

⁸But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife, Behold, my master wotteth not what is with me in the house, and he hath committed all that he hath to my hand;

⁹There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?

¹⁰And it came to pass, as she spake to Joseph day by day, that he hearkened not unto her, to lie by her, or to be with her.

¹¹And it came to pass about this time, that Joseph went into the house to do his business; and there was none of the men of the house there within.

¹²And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.

²⁶Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin.

²⁷Shall we then hearken unto you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in marrying strange wives?

⁵A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet.

³¶ For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

⁴But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.

⁵Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

⁶Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

⁷Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹²And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;

¹³And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

¹⁴I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

¹⁵¶ Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running waters out of thine own well.

¹⁶Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.

¹⁷Let them be only thine own, and not strangers’ with thee.

¹⁸Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

¹⁹Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.

²⁰And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a stranger?

⁵⁹For thus saith the Lord God; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant.

⁶⁰¶ Nevertheless I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant.

⁸Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine.

⁴Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?

¹⁴¶ Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.

¹⁵And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

¹⁶For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.

¹⁸Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.

⁹Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,

¹⁰Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

¹¹And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

¹⁸But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell.

⁵For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

²⁰Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

²¹Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

⁴But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.

⁵Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

⁶Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

⁷Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

⁸Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

⁹Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

¹⁰Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

¹¹And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

¹²And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;

¹³And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

¹⁴I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.

⁸But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.

²⁶For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life.

²⁷Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?

²⁸Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?

²⁹So he that goeth in to his neighbour’s wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.

³⁰Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry;

³¹But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.

³²But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.

³³A wound and dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away.

³⁴For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

³⁵He will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

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.

²⁵Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths.

²⁶For she hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been slain by her.

²⁷Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.

¹⁵For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

²⁶And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.

¹²So I gave them up unto their own hearts’ lust: and they walked in their own counsels.

¹⁴I will not punish your daughters when they commit whoredom, nor your spouses when they commit adultery: for themselves are separated with whores, and they sacrifice with harlots: therefore the people that doth not understand shall fall.

²⁴And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

²⁵When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?

²⁶But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

¹⁸That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:

²³Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.

¹⁸But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

¹²That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

¹¹Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.

¹⁶Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.

²⁰He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

¹¹⁵Depart from me, ye evildoers: for I will keep the commandments of my God.

⁶³I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts.

⁷Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?

⁸¶ If thou know not, O thou fairest among women, go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds’ tents.

¹¹For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

²⁹The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.

⁹For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

³⁰The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth.

¹²So the Lord blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses.

¹¹But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

²²For such as be blessed of him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of him shall be cut off.

³Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

¹THERE was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.

⁴Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.

⁵A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.

⁶Surely he shall not be moved for ever: the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.