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The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:(A)

Prologue

For learning about wisdom and instruction,
    for understanding words of insight,
for gaining instruction in wise dealing,
    righteousness, justice, and equity;(B)
to teach shrewdness to the simple,
    knowledge and prudence to the young—(C)
let the wise, too, hear and gain in learning
    and the discerning acquire skill,(D)
to understand a proverb and a figure,
    the words of the wise and their riddles.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
    fools despise wisdom and instruction.(E)

Warnings against Evil Companions

Hear, my child, your father’s instruction,
    and do not reject your mother’s teaching,(F)
for they are a fair garland for your head
    and pendants for your neck.(G)
10 My child, if sinners entice you,
    do not consent.(H)
11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;
    let us wantonly ambush the innocent;(I)
12 like Sheol let us swallow them alive
    and whole, like those who go down to the Pit.(J)
13 We shall find all kinds of costly things;
    we shall fill our houses with spoil.
14 Throw in your lot among us;
    we will all have one purse”—
15 my child, do not walk in their way;
    keep your foot from their paths,(K)
16 for their feet run to evil,
    and they hurry to shed blood.(L)
17 For in vain is the net baited
    while the bird is looking on;
18 yet they lie in wait—to kill themselves!
    and set an ambush—for their own lives!
19 Such is the end[a] of all who are greedy for gain;
    it takes away the life of its possessors.(M)

The Call of Wisdom

20 Wisdom cries out in the street;
    in the squares she raises her voice.(N)
21 At the busiest corner she cries out;
    at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
22 “How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing
    and fools hate knowledge?(O)
23 Give heed to my reproof;
I will pour out my thoughts to you;
    I will make my words known to you.(P)
24 Because I have called and you refused,
    have stretched out my hand and no one heeded,(Q)
25 and because you have ignored all my counsel
    and would have none of my reproof,(R)
26 I also will laugh at your calamity;
    I will mock when panic strikes you,(S)
27 when panic strikes you like a storm
    and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
    when distress and anguish come upon you.
28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
    they will seek me diligently but will not find me.(T)
29 Because they hated knowledge
    and did not choose the fear of the Lord,
30 would have none of my counsel
    and despised all my reproof,(U)
31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way
    and be sated with their own devices.(V)
32 For waywardness kills the simple,
    and the complacency of fools destroys them;(W)
33 but those who listen to me will be secure
    and will live at ease without dread of disaster.”(X)

The Value of Wisdom

My child, if you accept my words
    and treasure up my commandments within you,(Y)
making your ear attentive to wisdom
    and inclining your heart to understanding,
if you indeed cry out for insight
    and raise your voice for understanding,
if you seek it like silver
    and search for it as for hidden treasures—(Z)
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
    and find the knowledge of God.(AA)
For the Lord gives wisdom;
    from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;(AB)
he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
    he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly,(AC)
guarding the paths of justice
    and preserving the way of his faithful ones.(AD)
Then you will understand righteousness and justice
    and equity, every good path,(AE)
10 for wisdom will come into your heart,
    and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 prudence will watch over you,
    and understanding will guard you.
12 It will save you from the way of evil,
    from those who speak perversely,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
    to walk in the ways of darkness,(AF)
14 who rejoice in doing evil
    and delight in the perverseness of evil,(AG)
15 those whose paths are crooked
    and who are devious in their ways.(AH)

16 You will be saved from the loose woman,[b]
    from the adulteress[c] with her smooth words,(AI)
17 who forsakes the partner of her youth
    and forgets her sacred covenant,
18 for her way[d] leads down to death
    and her paths to the shades;(AJ)
19 those who go to her never come back,
    nor do they regain the paths of life.

20 Therefore walk in the way of the good,
    and keep to the paths of the just.
21 For the upright will abide in the land,
    and the innocent will remain in it,(AK)
22 but the wicked will be cut off from the earth,
    and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.(AL)

Admonition to Trust and Honor God

My child, do not forget my teaching,
    but let your heart keep my commandments,(AM)
for length of days and years of life
    and abundant welfare they will give you.(AN)

Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you;
    bind them around your neck;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.(AO)
Then you will find favor and high regard
    in the sight of God and of people.(AP)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not rely on your own insight.(AQ)
In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.(AR)
Do not be wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord and turn away from evil.(AS)
It will be a healing for your flesh
    and a refreshment for your body.(AT)

Honor the Lord with your substance
    and with the first fruits of all your produce;(AU)
10 then your barns will be filled with plenty,
    and your vats will be bursting with wine.

11 My child, do not despise the Lord’s discipline
    or be weary of his reproof,(AV)
12 for the Lord reproves the one he loves,
    as a father the son in whom he delights.(AW)

The True Wealth

13 Happy are those who find wisdom
    and those who get understanding,
14 for her income is better than silver
    and her revenue better than gold.(AX)
15 She is more precious than jewels,
    and nothing you desire can compare with her.(AY)
16 Long life is in her right hand;
    in her left hand are riches and honor.(AZ)
17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
    and all her paths are peace.(BA)
18 She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;
    those who hold her fast are called happy.(BB)

God’s Wisdom in Creation

19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
    by understanding he established the heavens;(BC)
20 by his knowledge the deeps broke open,
    and the clouds drop down the dew.(BD)

The True Security

21 My child, do not let these escape from your sight:
    keep sound wisdom and prudence,
22 and they will be life for your soul
    and adornment for your neck.(BE)
23 Then you will walk on your way securely,
    and your foot will not stumble.(BF)
24 If you sit down,[e] you will not be afraid;
    when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25 Then you will not be afraid of sudden panic
    or of the storm that strikes the wicked,(BG)
26 for the Lord will be your confidence
    and will keep your foot from being caught.

27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,[f]
    when it is in your power to do it.(BH)
28 Do not say to your neighbor, “Go and come again;
    tomorrow I will give it,” when you have it with you.(BI)
29 Do not plan harm against your neighbor
    who lives trustingly beside you.(BJ)
30 Do not quarrel with anyone without cause,
    when no harm has been done to you.(BK)
31 Do not envy the violent,
    and do not choose any of their ways,(BL)
32 for the perverse are an abomination to the Lord,
    but the upright are in his confidence.(BM)
33 The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
    but he blesses the abode of the righteous.(BN)
34 Toward the scorners he is scornful,
    but to the humble he shows favor.(BO)
35 The wise will inherit honor,
    but stubborn fools, disgrace.

Footnotes

  1. 1.19 Gk: Heb are the ways
  2. 2.16 Heb strange woman
  3. 2.16 Heb alien woman
  4. 2.18 Cn: Heb house
  5. 3.24 Gk: Heb lie down
  6. 3.27 Heb from its owners

Practical Admonitions

My child, if you have given your pledge to your neighbor,
    if you have bound yourself to another,[a](A)
you are snared by the utterance of your lips,[b]
    caught by the words of your mouth.
So do this, my child, and save yourself,
    for you have come into your neighbor’s power:
    go, hurry,[c] and plead with your neighbor.
Give your eyes no sleep
    and your eyelids no slumber;(B)
save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter,[d]
    like a bird from the hand of the fowler.(C)

Go to the ant, you lazybones;
    consider its ways and be wise.(D)
Without having any chief
    or officer or ruler,
it prepares its food in summer
    and gathers its sustenance in harvest.(E)
How long will you lie there, O lazybones?
    When will you rise from your sleep?(F)
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
    a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
    and want, like an armed warrior.(G)

12 A scoundrel and a villain
    goes around with crooked speech,(H)
13 winking the eyes, shuffling the feet,
    pointing the fingers,(I)
14 with perverted mind devising evil,
    continually sowing discord;(J)
15 on such a one calamity will descend suddenly,
    in a moment, damage beyond repair.(K)

16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
    seven that are an abomination to him:
17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
    and hands that shed innocent blood,(L)
18 a heart that devises wicked plans,
    feet that hurry to run to evil,(M)
19 a lying witness who testifies falsely,
    and one who sows discord in a family.(N)

20 My child, keep your father’s commandment,
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(O)
21 Bind them upon your heart always;
    tie them around your neck.(P)
22 When you walk, they[e] will lead you;
    when you lie down, they[f] will watch over you;
    and when you awake, they[g] will talk with you.(Q)
23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
    and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,(R)
24 to preserve you from the wife of another,[h]
    from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.[i](S)
25 Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
    and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes,(T)
26 for a prostitute’s fee is only a loaf of bread,[j]
    but the wife of another stalks a man’s precious life.(U)
27 Can fire be carried in the bosom
    without burning one’s clothes?
28 Or can one walk on hot coals
    without scorching the feet?
29 So is he who sleeps with his neighbor’s wife;
    no one who touches her will go unpunished.(V)
30 Thieves are not despised who steal only
    to satisfy their appetite when they are hungry.
31 Yet if they are caught, they will pay sevenfold;
    they will forfeit all the goods of their house.(W)
32 But he who commits adultery has no sense;
    he who does it destroys himself.(X)
33 He will get wounds and dishonor,
    and his disgrace will not be wiped away.
34 For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury,
    and he will show no restraint when he takes revenge.(Y)
35 He will accept no compensation
    and will refuse a bribe no matter how great.

Footnotes

  1. 6.1 Or a stranger
  2. 6.2 Cn Compare Gk Syr: Heb the words of your mouth
  3. 6.3 Or humble yourself
  4. 6.5 Cn: Heb from the hand
  5. 6.22 Heb it
  6. 6.22 Heb it
  7. 6.22 Heb it
  8. 6.24 Gk: MT the evil woman
  9. 6.24 Heb alien woman
  10. 6.26 Cn Compare Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb for because of a harlot to a piece of bread

20 Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler,
    and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.(A)
The dread anger of a king is like the growling of a lion;
    anyone who provokes him to anger forfeits life itself.(B)
It is honorable to refrain from strife,
    but every fool is quick to quarrel.(C)
The lazy person does not plow in season;
    harvest comes, and there is nothing to be found.(D)
The purposes in the human mind are like deep water,
    but the intelligent will draw them out.(E)
Many proclaim themselves loyal,
    but who can find one worthy of trust?(F)
The righteous walk in integrity—
    happy are the children who follow them!(G)
A king who sits on the throne of judgment
    winnows all evil with his eyes.
Who can say, “I have made my heart clean;
    I am pure from my sin”?(H)
10 Diverse weights and diverse measures
    are both alike an abomination to the Lord.(I)
11 Even children make themselves known by their acts,
    by whether what they do is pure and right.(J)
12 The hearing ear and the seeing eye—
    the Lord has made them both.(K)
13 Do not love sleep, or else you will come to poverty;
    open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.(L)
14 “Bad, bad,” says the buyer,
    then goes away and boasts.
15 There is gold and abundance of costly stones,
    but the lips informed by knowledge are a precious jewel.
16 Take the garment of one who has given surety for a stranger;
    seize the pledge given as surety for foreigners.
17 Bread gained by deceit is sweet,
    but afterward the mouth will be full of gravel.(M)
18 Plans are established by taking advice;
    wage war by following wise guidance.(N)
19 A gossip reveals secrets;
    therefore do not associate with a babbler.(O)
20 If you curse father or mother,
    your lamp will go out in utter darkness.(P)
21 An estate quickly acquired in the beginning
    will not be blessed in the end.(Q)
22 Do not say, “I will repay evil”;
    wait for the Lord, and he will help you.(R)
23 Differing weights are an abomination to the Lord,
    and false scales are not good.
24 All our steps are ordered by the Lord;
    how then can we understand our own ways?(S)
25 It is a snare for one to say rashly, “It is holy,”
    and begin to reflect only after making a vow.(T)
26 A wise king winnows the wicked
    and drives the wheel over them.
27 The human spirit is the lamp of the Lord,
    searching every inmost part.(U)
28 Loyalty and faithfulness preserve the king,
    and his throne is upheld by righteousness.[a](V)
29 The glory of youths is their strength,
    but the beauty of the aged is their gray hair.(W)
30 Blows that wound cleanse away evil;
    beatings make clean the innermost parts.

21 The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;
    he turns it wherever he will.
All deeds are right in the sight of the doer,
    but the Lord weighs the heart.(X)
To do righteousness and justice
    is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.(Y)
Haughty eyes and a proud heart—
    the lamp of the wicked—are sin.(Z)
The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,
    but everyone who is hasty comes only to want.(AA)
The getting of treasures by a lying tongue
    is a fleeting vapor and a snare[b] of death.(AB)
The violence of the wicked will sweep them away
    because they refuse to do what is just.(AC)
The way of the guilty is crooked,
    but the conduct of the pure is right.
It is better to live in a corner of the housetop
    than in a house shared with a contentious wife.(AD)
10 The souls of the wicked desire evil;
    their neighbors find no mercy in their eyes.(AE)
11 When a scoffer is punished, the simple become wiser;
    when the wise are instructed, they increase in knowledge.(AF)
12 The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked;
    he casts the wicked down to ruin.(AG)
13 If you close your ear to the cry of the poor,
    you will cry out and not be heard.(AH)
14 A gift in secret averts anger,
    and a concealed bribe, strong wrath.(AI)
15 When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous
    but dismay to evildoers.
16 Whoever wanders from the way of understanding
    will rest in the assembly of the dead.(AJ)
17 Whoever loves pleasure will suffer want;
    whoever loves wine and oil will not be rich.
18 The wicked is a ransom for the righteous
    and the faithless for the upright.(AK)
19 It is better to live in a desert land
    than with a contentious and fretful wife.
20 Precious treasure remains[c] in the house of the wise,
    but the fool devours it.(AL)
21 Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness
    will find life[d] and honor.(AM)
22 One wise person went up against a city of warriors
    and brought down the stronghold in which they trusted.(AN)
23 To watch over mouth and tongue
    is to keep out of trouble.(AO)
24 The proud, haughty person, named Scoffer,
    acts with arrogant pride.(AP)
25 The craving of the lazy person is fatal,
    for lazy hands refuse to labor.(AQ)
26 All day long the wicked covet,[e]
    but the righteous give and do not hold back.(AR)
27 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
    how much more when brought with evil intent.(AS)
28 A false witness will perish,
    but a good listener will testify successfully.
29 The wicked put on a bold face,
    but the upright give thought to[f] their ways.(AT)
30 No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel
    can avail against the Lord.(AU)
31 The horse is made ready for the day of battle,
    but the victory belongs to the Lord.(AV)

Footnotes

  1. 20.28 Gk: Heb loyalty
  2. 21.6 Gk: Heb seekers
  3. 21.20 Gk: Heb and oil
  4. 21.21 Gk: Heb life and righteousness
  5. 21.26 Gk: Heb all day long one covets covetously
  6. 21.29 Or establish