Proverbs 1:20-30

New Living Translation

Wisdom Shouts in the Streets

²⁰Wisdom shouts in the streets.
    She cries out in the public square.
²¹She calls to the crowds along the main street,
    to those gathered in front of the city gate:
²²“How long, you simpletons,
    will you insist on being simpleminded?
How long will you mockers relish your mocking?
    How long will you fools hate knowledge?
²³Come and listen to my counsel.
I’ll share my heart with you
    and make you wise.

²⁴“I called you so often, but you wouldn’t come.
    I reached out to you, but you paid no attention.
²⁵You ignored my advice
    and rejected the correction I offered.
²⁶So I will laugh when you are in trouble!
    I will mock you when disaster overtakes you—
²⁷when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
    when disaster engulfs you like a cyclone,
    and anguish and distress overwhelm you.

²⁸“When they cry for help, I will not answer.
    Though they anxiously search for me, they will not find me.
²⁹For they hated knowledge
    and chose not to fear the Lord.
³⁰They rejected my advice
    and paid no attention when I corrected them.