Proverbs 2:1-9
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 2
Wisdom Will Enter into Your Heart[a]
1 My son, if you take my words to heart
and look upon my instructions as a treasure,
2 attuning your ear to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding,
3 if you cry out for the gift of discernment[b]
and plead for understanding,
4 if you seek for it as for silver
and search for it as for buried treasure,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord[c]
and discover the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord himself is the one who bestows wisdom;
from his mouth come forth knowledge and understanding.
7 He reserves his wisdom for the upright
and is a shield to those who lead blameless lives,
8 for he guards the paths of justice
and keeps watch over the way of his faithful ones.
9 Then you will understand equity and justice
as well as righteousness—every good path.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:1 Coming from God, wisdom serves to enlighten our lives and is indeed the best of the inspirations that guide us. Her ideal far surpasses the human passions. For the ancients, there are two modes of life, two components, and two ways. On the one side are those whose conduct is marked by respect for God and uprightness and who are destined for the Promised Land, the covenant, i.e., true success. On the other side are people full of rebellion, thievery, and injustice. To which side do we belong, and what convictions mark our daily projects and attitude? This text remains capable of posing such a question to us. (Here we also find the theme of the adulterous woman on which the author will often dwell, notably in chs. 5–7.)
- Proverbs 2:3 Wisdom . . . understanding . . . discernment: these are names for the same gift.
- Proverbs 2:5 Fear of the Lord: see note on Prov 1:7.
