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

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

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Prologue: Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom

Warning Against the Invitation of Sinful Men

Listen, my son,(A) to your father’s(B) instruction
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(C)
They are a garland to grace your head
    and a chain to adorn your neck.(D)

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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

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Warning Against Adultery

20 My son,(A) keep your father’s command
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(B)
21 Bind them always on your heart;
    fasten them around your neck.(C)
22 When you walk, they will guide you;
    when you sleep, they will watch over you;
    when you awake, they will speak to you.
23 For this command is a lamp,
    this teaching is a light,(D)
and correction and instruction
    are the way to life,(E)

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10 A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

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Proverbs of Solomon

10 The proverbs(A) of Solomon:(B)

A wise son brings joy to his father,(C)
    but a foolish son brings grief to his mother.

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29 He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind, and the fool shall be servant to the wise of heart.

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29 Whoever brings ruin on their family will inherit only wind,
    and the fool will be servant to the wise.(A)

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13 A wise son heareth his father’s instruction, but a scorner heareth not rebuke.

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13 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction,
    but a mocker does not respond to rebukes.(A)

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A fool despiseth his father’s instruction, but he that heedeth reproof is prudent.

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A fool spurns a parent’s discipline,
    but whoever heeds correction shows prudence.(A)

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20 A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish man despiseth his mother.

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20 A wise son brings joy to his father,(A)
    but a foolish man despises his mother.

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Children’s children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children are their fathers.

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Children’s children(A) are a crown to the aged,
    and parents are the pride of their children.

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17 A friend is loving at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

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17 A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for a time of adversity.(A)

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21 He that begetteth a fool doeth so to his sorrow, and the father of a fool hath no joy.

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21 To have a fool for a child brings grief;
    there is no joy for the parent of a godless fool.(A)

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25 A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bore him.

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25 A foolish son brings grief to his father
    and bitterness to the mother who bore him.(A)

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19 An offended brother is harder to be won back than a stronghold city, and his contentions are like the bars of a castle.

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19 A brother wronged(A) is more unyielding than a fortified city;
    disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel.

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13 A foolish son is the calamity of his father, and the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping.

14 House and riches are the inheritance from fathers, and a prudent wife is from the Lord.

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13 A foolish child is a father’s ruin,(A)
    and a quarrelsome wife is like
    the constant dripping of a leaky roof.(B)

14 Houses and wealth are inherited from parents,(C)
    but a prudent wife is from the Lord.(D)

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