Proverbs 2:12-3:23
English Standard Version
12 delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
to (A)walk in the ways of darkness,
14 who (B)rejoice in doing evil
and (C)delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 men whose (D)paths are crooked,
(E)and who are (F)devious in their ways.
16 So (G)you will be delivered from the forbidden[a] woman,
from (H)the adulteress[b] with (I)her smooth words,
17 who forsakes (J)the companion of her youth
and forgets (K)the covenant of her God;
18 (L)for her house sinks down to death,
and her paths to the departed;[c]
19 none who go to her come back,
nor do they regain the paths of life.
20 So you will walk in the way of the good
and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright (M)will inhabit the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it,
22 but the wicked will be (N)cut off from the land,
and the treacherous will be (O)rooted out of it.
Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart
3 (P)My son, do not forget my teaching,
(Q)but let your heart keep my commandments,
2 for (R)length of days and years of life
and (S)peace they will add to you.
3 Let not (T)steadfast love and (U)faithfulness forsake you;
(V)bind them around your neck;
(W)write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will (X)find favor and (Y)good success[d]
in the sight of God and man.
5 (Z)Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and (AA)do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways (AB)acknowledge him,
and he (AC)will make straight your paths.
7 (AD)Be not wise in your own eyes;
(AE)fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
8 It will be (AF)healing to your flesh[e]
and (AG)refreshment[f] to your bones.
9 Honor the Lord with your wealth
and with (AH)the firstfruits of all your produce;
10 then your (AI)barns will be filled with plenty,
and your vats will be bursting with wine.
11 (AJ)My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline
or be weary of his reproof,
12 for the Lord reproves him whom he loves,
as (AK)a father the son in whom he delights.
Blessed Is the One Who Finds Wisdom
13 (AL)Blessed is the one who finds wisdom,
and the one who gets understanding,
14 (AM)for the gain from her is better than gain from silver
and her profit better than (AN)gold.
15 She is more precious than (AO)jewels,
and (AP)nothing you desire can compare with her.
16 (AQ)Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are (AR)riches and honor.
17 Her (AS)ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace.
18 She is (AT)a tree of life to those who (AU)lay hold of her;
those who hold her fast are called blessed.
19 (AV)The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
by understanding (AW)he established the heavens;
20 by his knowledge (AX)the deeps broke open,
and (AY)the clouds drop down the dew.
21 My son, (AZ)do not lose sight of these—
keep sound wisdom and discretion,
22 and they will be (BA)life for your soul
and (BB)adornment for your neck.
23 (BC)Then you will walk on your way securely,
(BD)and your foot will not stumble.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:16 Hebrew strange
- Proverbs 2:16 Hebrew foreign woman
- Proverbs 2:18 Hebrew to the Rephaim
- Proverbs 3:4 Or repute
- Proverbs 3:8 Hebrew navel
- Proverbs 3:8 Or medicine
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.