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Proverbs 2
Wycliffe Bible
Proverbs 2
Wycliffe Bible
2 My son, if thou receivest my words, and hidest my behests with thee (and hidest my commands with thee);
2 (so) that thine ear hear wisdom, bow (down) thine heart to know prudence.
3 For if thou inwardly callest (to) wisdom, and bowest thine heart to(ward) prudence;
4 if thou seekest it as money, and diggest it out as treasures;
5 then thou shalt understand the dread of the Lord, and shalt find the knowing of God. (then thou shalt understand the fear of the Lord/then thou shalt understand reverence for the Lord, and shalt find the knowledge of God.)
6 For the Lord giveth wisdom; and prudence and knowing is of his mouth. (For the Lord giveth wisdom; and understanding and knowledge cometh from his mouth.)
7 He shall keep the health of rightful men, and he shall defend them that go simply. (He shall keep safe the salvation, or the deliverance, of the righteous, and he shall defend those who go with honesty, or with integrity.)
8 And he shall keep (safe) the paths of rightwiseness, and he shall keep (safe) the ways of holy men.
9 Then thou shalt understand rightfulness, and doom, and equity, and each good path. (Then thou shalt understand righteousness, and judgement, and fairness, and each good way.)
10 If wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowing pleaseth thy soul,
11 good counsel shall keep thee, and prudence shall keep thee; (good advice shall keep thee safe, and understanding shall keep thee safe;)
12 (so) that thou be delivered from an evil way, and from a man that speaketh wayward things (and from the person who speaketh wicked things).
13 Which forsake a rightful way (Yea, from those who abandon the right way), and go by dark ways;
14 which be glad, when they have done evil, and make full out joy in worst things; (who be glad, when they have done evil, and rejoice in the worst things;)
15 whose ways be wayward, and their goings be of evil fame. (whose ways be wicked, and whose deeds be shameful.)
16 That thou be delivered from an alien woman, and from a strange woman, that maketh soft her words; (And so that thou be rescued from a strange, or an unknown, woman, who maketh her words soft;)
17 and (who) forsaketh the duke, or (the) leader, of her time of marriage, and hath forgotten the covenant of her God.
18 For the house of her is bowed to death, and her paths to hell. (For her house is on the way to death, and her paths lead down to Sheol, or the land of the dead/and her paths lead down to hell.)
19 All that enter to her, shall not turn again, neither they shall catch the paths of life. (All who go to her, shall never return, nor shall they ever walk again on the paths of life.)
20 That thou go in a good way, and keep the paths of just men. (So see that thou go on a good way, and keep to the paths of the righteous.)
21 Forsooth they that be rightful, shall dwell in the land; and simple men shall perfectly dwell therein. (For they who be upright, shall live in the land; and those who be honest/and those with integrity shall live there.)
22 But unfaithful men shall be lost from the land; and they that do wickedly, shall be taken away from it. (But the unfaithful shall be destroyed from off the land; and those who do wickedly, shall be taken away from it.)
Proverbs 2
New King James Version
Proverbs 2
New King James Version
The Value of Wisdom
2 My son, if you receive my words,
And (A)treasure my commands within you,
2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom,
And apply your heart to understanding;
3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment,
And lift up your voice for understanding,
4 (B)If you seek her as silver,
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
5 (C)Then you will understand the fear of the Lord,
And find the knowledge of God.
6 (D)For the Lord gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
(E)He is a shield to those who walk uprightly;
8 He guards the paths of justice,
And (F)preserves the way of His saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice,
Equity and every good path.
10 When wisdom enters your heart,
And knowledge is pleasant to your soul,
11 Discretion will preserve you;
(G)Understanding will keep you,
12 To deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks perverse things,
13 From those who leave the paths of uprightness
To (H)walk in the ways of darkness;
14 (I)Who rejoice in doing evil,
And delight in the perversity of the wicked;
15 (J)Whose ways are crooked,
And who are devious in their paths;
16 To deliver you from (K)the immoral woman,
(L)From the seductress who flatters with her words,
17 Who forsakes the companion of her youth,
And forgets the covenant of her God.
18 For (M)her house [a]leads down to death,
And her paths to the dead;
19 None who go to her return,
Nor do they [b]regain the paths of life—
20 So you may walk in the way of goodness,
And keep to the paths of righteousness.
21 For the upright will dwell in the (N)land,
And the blameless will remain in it;
22 But the wicked will be [c]cut off from the [d]earth,
And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:18 sinks
- Proverbs 2:19 Lit. reach
- Proverbs 2:22 destroyed
- Proverbs 2:22 land
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
Proverbs 2
English Standard Version
Proverbs 2
English Standard Version
The Value of Wisdom
2 (A)My son, (B)if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice (C)for understanding,
4 if you seek it like (D)silver
and search for it as for (E)hidden treasures,
5 then (F)you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
6 For (G)the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is (H)a shield to those who (I)walk in integrity,
8 guarding the paths of justice
and (J)watching over the way of his (K)saints.
9 (L)Then you will understand (M)righteousness and justice
and equity, every good path;
10 for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 (N)discretion will (O)watch over you,
understanding will guard you,
12 delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
to (P)walk in the ways of darkness,
14 who (Q)rejoice in doing evil
and (R)delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 men whose (S)paths are crooked,
(T)and who are (U)devious in their ways.
16 So (V)you will be delivered from the forbidden[a] woman,
from (W)the adulteress[b] with (X)her smooth words,
17 who forsakes (Y)the companion of her youth
and forgets (Z)the covenant of her God;
18 (AA)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 (AB)will inhabit the land,
and those with integrity will remain in it,
22 but the wicked will be (AC)cut off from the land,
and the treacherous will be (AD)rooted out of it.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:16 Hebrew strange
- Proverbs 2:16 Hebrew foreign woman
- Proverbs 2:18 Hebrew to the Rephaim
Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
2001 by Terence P. Noble
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.