Proverbs 1

New American Standard Bible

² To know ^(C)wisdom and instruction,
To discern the sayings of ^(D)understanding,
³ To ^(E)receive instruction in wise behavior,
^(F)Righteousness, justice, and integrity;
⁴ To give ^(G)prudence to the naive,
To the youth ^(H)knowledge and discretion,
⁵ A wise person will hear and ^(I)increase in learning,
And a ^(J)person of understanding will acquire wise counsel,
⁶ To understand a proverb and a saying,
The words of the wise and their ^(K)riddles.

^8 (M)Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction,
And ^(N)do not ignore your mother’s teaching;
⁹ For they are a ^(O)graceful wreath for your head
And ^(P)necklaces for your neck.
¹⁰ My son, if sinners ^(Q)entice you,
^(R)Do not consent.
¹¹ If they say, “Come with us,
Let’s ^(S)lie in wait for blood,
Let’s ^(T)ambush the innocent without cause;
¹² Let’s ^(U)swallow them alive like Sheol,
Even whole, like those who ^(V)go down to the pit;
¹³ We will find all kinds of precious wealth,
We will fill our houses with plunder;
¹⁴ Throw in your lot ^[a]with us;
We will all have one money bag,”
¹⁵ My son, ^(W)do not walk on the way with them.
^(X)Keep your feet from their path,
¹⁶ For ^(Y)their feet run to evil,
And they are quick to shed blood.
¹⁷ Indeed, it is ^[b]useless to spread the baited net
In the sight of any ^[c]bird;
¹⁸ But they ^(Z)lie in wait for their own blood;
They ambush their own lives.
¹⁹ Such are the ways of everyone who ^(AA)makes unjust gain;
It takes away the life of its possessors.

^20 (AB)Wisdom shouts in the street,
She ^[d]raises her voice in the public square;
²¹ At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she declares her sayings:
²² “How long, you ^(AC)naive ones, will you love simplistic thinking?
And how long will ^(AD)scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools ^(AE)hate knowledge?
²³ Turn to my rebuke,
Behold, I will ^(AF)pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
²⁴ Because ^(AG)I called and you ^(AH)refused,
I ^(AI)stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
²⁵ And you ^(AJ)neglected all my advice
And did not ^(AK)want my rebuke;
²⁶ I will also ^(AL)laugh at your ^(AM)disaster;
I will mock when your ^(AN)dread comes,
²⁷ When your dread comes like a storm
And your disaster comes like a ^(AO)whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
²⁸ Then they will ^(AP)call on me, but I will not answer;
They will ^(AQ)seek me diligently but will not find me,
²⁹ Because they ^(AR)hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
³⁰ They ^(AS)did not accept my advice,
They disdainfully rejected every rebuke from me.
³¹ So they shall ^(AT)eat of the fruit of their own way,
And be ^(AU)filled with their own schemes.
³² For the ^(AV)faithlessness of the naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
³³ But ^(AW)whoever listens to me will live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”