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Proverbs 2
The Voice
Proverbs 2
The Voice
2 My son, if you accept what I am telling you
and store my counsel and directives deep within you,
2 If you listen for Lady Wisdom, attune your ears to her,
and engage your mind to understand what she is telling you,
3 If you cry out to her for insight
and beg for understanding,
4 If you sift through the clamor of everything around you
to seek her like some precious prize,
to search for her like buried treasure;
5 Then you will grasp what it means to truly respect the Eternal,
and you will have discovered the knowledge of the one True God.
6 The Eternal is ready to share His wisdom with us,
for His words bring true knowledge and insight;
7 He has stored up the essentials of sound wisdom for those who do right;
He acts as a shield for those who value integrity.
8 God protects the paths of those who pursue justice,
watching over the lives of those who keep faith with Him.
9 With this wisdom you will be able to choose the right road,
seek justice, and decide what is good and fair
10 Because wisdom will penetrate deep within
and knowledge will become a good friend to your soul.
11 Sound judgment will stand guard over you,
and understanding will watch over you as the Lord promised.
12 Wisdom will keep you from following the way of evildoers,
of those who twist words to pervert the truth,
13 Of those who reject the right road
for a darker, more sinister way of life,
14 Of those who enjoy evil
and pursue perverse pleasures,
15 Of those who journey down a crooked path,
constantly figuring out new ways to trick and deceive others.
16 Wisdom will pluck you from the trap of a seductive woman,
from the enticing propositions of the adulteress
17 Who chose to leave the husband of her youth,
to forget her sacred promises to her God;
18 For her house is on the road that leads to death,
and her path goes down to the shadowy pit.
19 Those who go to her will never return;
they will never again find their way back to true life.
20 As for you, you should walk like those who are good
and keep to the paths of those who love justice,
21 For those who live right will remain in the land
and those with integrity will endure here.
22 But not the wicked; they will be forced out and banned from this promised land,
and those who deal in deceit will be plucked up like weeds.
Proverbs 2
World English Bible
Proverbs 2
World English Bible
2 My son, if you will receive my words,
and store up my commandments within you,
2 so as to turn your ear to wisdom,
and apply your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for discernment,
and lift up your voice for understanding;
4 if you seek her as silver,
and search for her as for hidden treasures;
5 then you will understand the fear of Yahweh,
and find the knowledge of God.[a]
6 For Yahweh gives wisdom.
Out of his mouth comes knowledge and understanding.
7 He lays up sound wisdom for the upright.
He is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 that he may guard the paths of justice,
and preserve the way of his saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice,
equity and every good path.
10 For wisdom will enter into your heart.
Knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11 Discretion will watch over you.
Understanding will keep you,
12 to deliver you from the way of evil,
from the men who speak perverse things,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness,
to walk in the ways of darkness,
14 who rejoice to do evil,
and delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 who are crooked in their ways,
and wayward in their paths,
16 to deliver you from the strange woman,
even from the foreigner who flatters with her words,
17 who forsakes the friend of her youth,
and forgets the covenant of her God;
18 for her house leads down to death,
her paths to the departed spirits.
19 None who go to her return again,
neither do they attain to the paths of life.
20 Therefore walk in the way of good men,
and keep the paths of the righteous.
21 For the upright will dwell in the land.
The perfect will remain in it.
22 But the wicked will be cut off from the land.
The treacherous will be rooted out of it.
Footnotes
- 2:5 The Hebrew word rendered “God” is “אֱלֹהִ֑ים” (Elohim).
Proverbs 2
New International Version
Proverbs 2
New International Version
Moral Benefits of Wisdom
2 My son,(A) if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
2 turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding(B)—
3 indeed, if you call out for insight(C)
and cry aloud for understanding,
4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,(D)
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.(E)
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;(F)
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.(G)
7 He holds success in store for the upright,
he is a shield(H) to those whose walk is blameless,(I)
8 for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.(J)
9 Then you will understand(K) what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
10 For wisdom will enter your heart,(L)
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11 Discretion will protect you,
and understanding will guard you.(M)
12 Wisdom will save(N) you from the ways of wicked men,
from men whose words are perverse,
13 who have left the straight paths
to walk in dark ways,(O)
14 who delight in doing wrong
and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,(P)
15 whose paths are crooked(Q)
and who are devious in their ways.(R)
16 Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman,(S)
from the wayward woman with her seductive words,
17 who has left the partner of her youth
and ignored the covenant she made before God.[a](T)
18 Surely her house leads down to death
and her paths to the spirits of the dead.(U)
19 None who go to her return
or attain the paths of life.(V)
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:17 Or covenant of her God
The Voice (VOICE)
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