Proverbs 1:8-33; Proverbs 2; Proverbs 3; Proverbs 4; Proverbs 5; Proverbs 6; Proverbs 7; Proverbs 8; Proverbs 9

Proverbs 1:8-33

8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother;

9 for they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

11 If they say, "Come with us; let us lie in wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause;

12 let us swallow them up alive as the grave, and whole, as those that go down to the pit;

13 we shall find much precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil;

14 cast in thy lot among us, let us all have one purse""

15 my son, walk not thou in the way with them; restrain thy foot from their path;

16 for their feet run to evil and make haste to shed blood.

17 Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird!

18 And they lie in wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.

19 So are the ways of every one that is greedy for gain, which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

20 Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets.

21 She crieth in the chief places of concourse, in the openings of the gates; in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

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

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

24 "Because I have called and ye refused, I have stretched out my hand and no man heeded,

25 but ye have set at nought all my counsel and would have none of my reproof,

26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh,

27 when your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind, when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me,

29 because they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD.

30 They would have none of my counsel, and they despised all my reproof:

31 therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own ways, and be filled with their own devices.

32 For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them;

33 but whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall have quiet from fear of evil."

Proverbs 2

1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words and hide my commandments within thee,

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

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

4 if thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hidden treasure,

5 then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God.

6 For the LORD giveth wisdom; out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

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

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

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

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

11 discretion shall preserve thee, and understanding shall keep thee,

12 to deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from men that speaketh froward things,

13 who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness,

14 who rejoice to do evil and delight in the frowardness of the wicked,

15 whose ways are crooked and who are froward in their paths.

16 Wisdom will deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger, who flattereth with her words,

17 who forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God;

18 for her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead.

19 None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.

20 Thus thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep to the paths of the righteous.

21 For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it;

22 but the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.

Proverbs 3

1 My son, forget not my law, but let thine heart keep my commandments;

2 for length of days and long life and peace shall they add to thee.

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee; bind them about thy neck, write them upon the tablet of thine heart.

4 So shalt thou find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding;

6 in all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes; fear the LORD and depart from evil.

8 It shall be health to thy flesh and marrow to thy bones.

9 Honor the LORD with thy substance and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:

10 so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

11 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD, neither be weary of His correction;

12 for whom the LORD loveth, He correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.

13 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom and the man that getteth understanding;

14 for the merchandising of it is better than the merchandising of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold.

15 She is more precious than rubies, and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her.

16 Length of days is in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and honor.

17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.

18 She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her, and happy is everyone that retaineth her.

19 The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath He established the heavens;

20 by His knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.

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

22 so shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace around thy neck.

23 Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble;

24 when thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid; yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.

25 Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked when it cometh;

26 for the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being snared.

27 Withhold not good from them to whom it is due when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

28 Say not unto thy neighbor, "Go, and come again, and tomorrow I will give," when thou hast it with thee.

29 Devise not evil against thy neighbor, seeing he dwelleth securely beside thee.

30 Strive not with a man without cause if he has done thee no harm.

31 Envy thou not the oppressor, and choose none of his ways;

32 for the froward is an abomination to the LORD, but His secret is with the righteous.

33 The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesseth the habitation of the just.

34 Surely He scorneth the scorners, but He giveth grace unto the lowly.

35 The wise shall inherit glory, but shame shall be the promotion of fools.

Proverbs 4

1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and be attentive to know understanding.

2 For I give you good doctrine; forsake ye not my law.

3 For I was my father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

4 He taught me also and said unto me, "Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments and live.

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

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

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

8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee; she shall bring thee honor when thou dost embrace her.

9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace; a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee."

10 Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings, and the years of thy life shall be many.

11 I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

12 When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

13 Hold fast to instruction, let her not go; keep her, for she is thy life.

14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men;

15 avoid it, pass not by it; turn from it and pass away.

16 For they sleep not unless they have done mischief, and their sleep is taken away unless they cause some to fall.

17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

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

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

20 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.

21 Let them not depart from thine eyes, keep them in the midst of thine heart;

22 for they are life unto those that find them and health to all their flesh.

23 Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the outflowings of life.

24 Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

25 Let thine eyes look right ahead, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left; remove thy foot from evil.

Proverbs 5

1 My son, attend unto my wisdom and bow thine ear to my understanding,

2 that thou mayest have regard for discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

3 For the lips of a strange woman drip as a honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil;

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

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

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

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

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

9 lest thou give thine honor unto others, and thy years unto the cruel,

10 lest strangers be filled with thy wealth and thy labors be in the house of a stranger,

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

12 and thou sayest, "How have I hated instruction and my heart despised reproof;

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

14 I was almost in total 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.

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

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

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

19 Let 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.

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

21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and He pondereth all his doings.

22 His own iniquities shall entrap the wicked himself, and he shall be held by the cords of his sins.

23 He shall die without instruction, and in the greatness of his folly shall he go astray.

Proverbs 6

1 My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast struck thy hand with a stranger,

2 thou art snared with the words of thy mouth; thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

3 Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself when thou hast come into the hand of thy friend: Go, humble thyself, so that thou shalt prevail with thy friend.

4 Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.

5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

6 Look to the ant, thou sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise,

7 which, having no guide, overseer or ruler,

8 provideth her meat in the summer and gathereth her food in the harvest.

9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? When wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep"

11 so shall thy poverty come as a marauder, and thy want as an armed man.

12 A vile person, a wicked man walketh with a froward mouth;

13 he winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;

14 frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually, he soweth discord.

15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.

16 These six things doth the LORD hate, yea, seven are an abomination unto Him:

17 a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,

18 a heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,

19 a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

20 My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother.

21 Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck.

22 When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.

23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life

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

25 Lust not after her beauty in thine heart, neither let her take thee with her eyelids.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

33 A wound and dishonor shall he get, and his reproach shall not be wiped away.

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

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

Proverbs 7

1 My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee.

2 Keep my commandments and live, and my law as the apple of thine eye.

3 Bind them upon thy fingers; write them upon the tablet of thine heart.

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

5 that they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the harlot who flattereth with her words.

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

7 and I beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among the youth, a young man void of understanding,

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

9 in the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night.

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

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

12 now is she outside, now in the streets and lieth in wait at every corner.)

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

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

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

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

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

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

19 For the master is not at home; he is gone on a long journey.

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

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

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

23 until a dart strike through his liver, as a bird hasteneth 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.

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

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

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

Proverbs 8

1 Doth not wisdom cry out, and understanding put forth her voice?

2 She standeth at the top of high places, by the wayside where the paths meet.

3 She crieth at the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors:

4 "Unto you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of man.

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

6 Hear, for I will speak of excellent things, and the opening of my lips shall be of right things;

7 for my mouth shall speak truth, and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

8 All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or perverse in them.

9 They are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.

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

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

12 "I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and disclose knowledge of learned thoughts.

13 The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the froward mouth do I hate.

14 Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength.

15 By me kings reign, and princes decree justice.

16 By me princes rule and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.

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

18 Riches and honor are with me, yea, durable riches and righteousness.

19 My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold, and my revenue than choice silver.

20 I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment,

21 that I may cause those that love me to inherit substance, and I will fill their treasuries.

22 "The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, before His works of old.

23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.

24 When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no fountains abounding with water.

25 Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth,

26 while as yet He had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the first parts of dust of the world.

27 When He prepared the heavens, I was there; when He set a compass upon the face of the deep,

28 when He established the clouds above, when He strengthened the fountains of the deep,

29 when He gave to the sea His decree that the waters should not pass His commandment, when He appointed the foundations of the earth"

30 then I was by Him, as one brought up with Him, and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him,

31 rejoicing in the habitable part of His earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.

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

33 Hear instruction and be wise, and refuse it not.

34 Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors.

35 For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain the favor of the LORD.

36 But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul; all they that hate me love death."

Proverbs 9

1 Wisdom hath built her house; she hath hewn out her seven pillars.

2 She hath killed her beasts, she hath mingled her wine, she hath also furnished her table.

3 She hath sent forth her maidens, she crieth from the highest places of the city:

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

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

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

7 He that reproveth a scorner getteth for himself shame, and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a reproach.

8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee; rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.

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

10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

11 For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased.

12 If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself; but if thou be a scorner, thou alone shall bear it.

13 A foolish woman is clamorous; she is simple and knoweth nothing.

14 For she sitteth at the door of her house on a seat in the high places of the city,

15 to call passers by who go rightly on their ways:

16 "Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither." And as for him that lacketh understanding, she saith to him,

17 "Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant."

18 But he knoweth not that the dead are there, and that her guests are in the depths of hell. The proverbs of Solomon: