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Yahweh Gives Wisdom

My son, if you will (A)receive my words
And (B)treasure my commandments within you,
(C)To make your ear pay attention to wisdom,
Incline your heart to discernment;
For if you call out for understanding,
Give your voice for discernment;
If you seek her as (D)silver
And search for her as for (E)hidden treasures;
Then you will understand the (F)fear of Yahweh
And find the knowledge of God.
For (G)Yahweh gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and discernment.
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright,
A (H)shield to those who walk in integrity,
To guard the paths of justice,
And He (I)keeps the way of His holy ones.
Then you will understand (J)righteousness and justice
And equity—every (K)good track.
10 For (L)wisdom will enter your heart
And (M)knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 Discretion will (N)keep you,
Discernment will guard you,
12 To (O)deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks (P)perverse things;
13 From those who (Q)forsake the paths of uprightness
To walk in the (R)ways of darkness;
14 Who are (S)glad to do evil
And they rejoice in the perversity of evil;
15 Whose paths are (T)crooked,
And who are devious in their tracks;
16 To deliver you from the [a](U)strange woman,
From the [b](V)foreign woman who flatters with her words;
17 Who forsakes the close (W)companion of her youth
And forgets the (X)covenant of her God;
18 For (Y)her house [c]sinks down to death
And her tracks descend to the [d]dead;
19 All (Z)who go to her will not return,
And they will not reach the (AA)paths of life.
20 So that you will (AB)walk in the way of good men
And keep to the (AC)paths of the righteous.
21 For (AD)the upright will dwell in the land
And (AE)the blameless will remain in it;
22 But (AF)the wicked will be cut off from the land
And (AG)the treacherous will be (AH)torn away from it.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 2:16 A forbidden woman, outside of the marriage covenant; an adulteress; parallel with foreign woman; so in Prov
  2. Proverbs 2:16 An unfamiliar woman, alien to the marriage covenant; parallel with strange woman
  3. Proverbs 2:18 Lit bows down
  4. Proverbs 2:18 Lit departed spirits

The Pursuit of Wisdom Brings Security

My son, if you will (A)receive my words
And (B)treasure my commandments within you,
(C)Make your ear attentive to wisdom,
Incline your heart to understanding;
For if you cry for discernment,
[a]Lift your voice for understanding;
If you seek her as (D)silver
And search for her as for (E)hidden treasures;
Then you will discern the (F)fear of the Lord
And discover the knowledge of God.
For (G)the Lord gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.
He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a (H)shield to those who walk in integrity,
Guarding the paths of justice,
And He (I)preserves the way of His godly ones.
Then you will discern (J)righteousness and justice
And equity and every (K)good course.
10 For (L)wisdom will enter your heart
And (M)knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 Discretion will (N)guard you,
Understanding will watch over you,
12 To (O)deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks (P)perverse things;
13 From those who (Q)leave the paths of uprightness
To walk in the (R)ways of darkness;
14 Who (S)delight in doing evil
And rejoice in the perversity of evil;
15 Whose paths are (T)crooked,
And who are devious in their ways;
16 To (U)deliver you from the strange woman,
From the [b](V)adulteress who flatters with her words;
17 That leaves the (W)companion of her youth
And forgets the (X)covenant of her God;
18 For (Y)her house [c]sinks down to death
And her tracks lead to the [d]dead;
19 None (Z)who go to her return again,
Nor do they reach the (AA)paths of life.
20 So you will (AB)walk in the way of good men
And keep to the (AC)paths of the righteous.
21 For (AD)the upright will [e]live in the land
And (AE)the blameless will remain in it;
22 But (AF)the wicked will be cut off from the land
And (AG)the treacherous will be (AH)uprooted from it.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 2:3 Lit Give
  2. Proverbs 2:16 Lit strange woman
  3. Proverbs 2:18 Lit bows down
  4. Proverbs 2:18 Lit departed spirits
  5. Proverbs 2:21 Or dwell

13 (A)How blessed is the man who finds wisdom
And the man who obtains discernment.
14 For her (B)profit is better than the profit of silver
And her produce better than fine gold.
15 She is (C)more precious than [a]pearls;
And nothing you desire compares with her.
16 (D)Length of days is in her right hand;
In her left hand are (E)riches and glory.
17 Her (F)ways are pleasant ways
And all her pathways are (G)peace.
18 She is a (H)tree of life to those who seize her,
And all those who hold her fast are blessed.
19 Yahweh (I)by wisdom founded the earth,
By discernment He (J)established the heavens.
20 By His knowledge the (K)deeps were split up
And the (L)skies drip with dew.
21 My son, (M)let them not deviate from your eyes;
Guard sound wisdom and discretion,
22 So they will be (N)life for your soul
And (O)grace for your neck.
23 Then you will (P)walk in your way securely
And your foot will not (Q)stumble.
24 When you (R)lie down, you will not be in dread;
You will lie down, and your sleep will be pleasant.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 3:15 Or corals

13 (A)How blessed is the man who finds wisdom
And the man who gains understanding.
14 For her (B)profit is better than the profit of silver
And her gain better than fine gold.
15 She is (C)more precious than [a]jewels;
And nothing you desire compares with her.
16 [b](D)Long life is in her right hand;
In her left hand are (E)riches and honor.
17 Her (F)ways are pleasant ways
And all her paths are (G)peace.
18 She is a (H)tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who hold her fast.
19 The Lord (I)by wisdom founded the earth,
By understanding He (J)established the heavens.
20 By His knowledge the (K)deeps were broken up
And the (L)skies drip with dew.
21 My son, (M)let them not [c]vanish from your sight;
Keep sound wisdom and discretion,
22 So they will be (N)life to your soul
And (O)adornment to your neck.
23 Then you will (P)walk in your way securely
And your foot will not (Q)stumble.
24 When you (R)lie down, you will not be afraid;
When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 3:15 Lit corals
  2. Proverbs 3:16 Lit Length of days
  3. Proverbs 3:21 Lit depart