Proverbs 1:22-31

Amplified Bible

²² 
“How long, O naive ones [you who are easily misled], will you love being simple-minded and undiscerning?
How long will scoffers [who ridicule and deride] delight in scoffing,
How long will fools [who obstinately mock truth] hate knowledge?
²³ 
“If you will turn and pay attention to my rebuke,
Behold, I [Wisdom] will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.^(A)
24 
“Because I called and you refused [to answer],
I stretched out my hand and no one has paid attention [to my offer];^(B)
25 
And you treated all my counsel as nothing
And would not accept my reprimand,
²⁶ 
I also will laugh at your disaster;
I will mock when your dread and panic come,
²⁷ 
When your dread and panic come like a storm,
And your disaster comes like a whirlwind,
When anxiety and distress come upon you [as retribution].
²⁸ 
“Then they will call upon me (Wisdom), but I will not answer;
They will seek me eagerly but they will not find me,^(C)
29 
Because they hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord [that is, obeying Him with reverence and awe-filled respect],^(D)
30 
They would not accept my counsel,
And they spurned all my rebuke.
³¹ 
“Therefore they shall eat of the fruit of their own [wicked] way
And be satiated with [the penalty of] their own devices.