ב BETH

How can a young man cleanse his way?
By taking heed according to Your word.

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22 (A)Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

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Doers—Not Hearers Only

21 Therefore (A)lay aside all filthiness and [a]overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, (B)which is able to save your souls.

22 But (C)be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For (D)if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But (E)he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, (F)this one will be blessed in what he does.

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Footnotes

  1. James 1:21 abundance

15 and that from childhood you have known (A)the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

16 (B)All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, (C)and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for [a]instruction in righteousness, 17 (D)that the man of God may be complete, (E)thoroughly equipped for every good work.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Timothy 3:16 training, discipline

Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law (A)which Moses My servant commanded you; (B)do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may [a]prosper wherever you go.

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Footnotes

  1. Joshua 1:7 have success or act wisely

Do not remember (A)the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions;
(B)According to Your mercy remember me,
For Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.

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11 (A)Your word I have hidden in my heart,
That I might not sin against You.

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that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, (A)homemakers, good, (B)obedient to their own husbands, (C)that the word of God may not be blasphemed.

Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded,

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BOOK ONE

Psalms 1–41

The Way of the Righteous and the End of the Ungodly

Blessed (A)is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the [a]ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
(B)Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
But (C)his delight is in the law of the Lord,
(D)And in His law he [b]meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
(E)Planted by the [c]rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,
Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall (F)prosper.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 1:1 wicked
  2. Psalm 1:2 ponders by talking to himself
  3. Psalm 1:3 channels

11 Come, you children, listen to me;
(A)I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

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מ MEM

97 Oh, how I love Your law!
(A)It is my meditation all the day.
98 You, through Your commandments, make me (B)wiser than my enemies;
For they are ever with me.
99 I have more understanding than all my teachers,
(C)For Your testimonies are my meditation.
100 (D)I understand more than the [a]ancients,
Because I keep Your precepts.
101 I have restrained my feet from every evil way,
That I may keep Your word.
102 I have not departed from Your judgments,
For You Yourself have taught me.
103 (E)How sweet are Your words to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
104 Through Your precepts I get understanding;
Therefore I hate every false way.

נ NUN

105 (F)Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 119:100 aged

(A)The law of the Lord is perfect, [a]converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making (B)wise the simple;
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than (C)gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the [b]honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 19:7 restoring
  2. Psalm 19:10 honey in the combs

Beware of Adultery

20 (A)My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
21 (B)Bind them continually upon your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
22 (C)When you roam, [a]they will lead you;
When you sleep, (D)they will keep you;
And when you awake, they will speak with you.
23 (E)For the commandment is a lamp,
And the law a light;
Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,
24 (F)To keep you from the evil woman,
From the flattering tongue of a seductress.
25 (G)Do not lust after her beauty in your heart,
Nor let her allure you with her eyelids.
26 For (H)by means of a harlot
A man is reduced to a crust of bread;
(I)And [b]an adulteress will (J)prey upon his precious life.
27 Can a man take fire to his bosom,
And his clothes not be burned?
28 Can one walk on hot coals,
And his feet not be seared?
29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her shall not be innocent.

30 People do not despise a thief
If he steals to satisfy himself when he is starving.
31 Yet when he is found, (K)he must restore sevenfold;
He may have to give up all the substance of his house.
32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman (L)lacks understanding;
He who does so destroys his own soul.
33 Wounds and dishonor he will get,
And his reproach will not be wiped away.
34 For (M)jealousy is a husband’s fury;
Therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35 He will [c]accept no recompense,
Nor will he be appeased though you give many gifts.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 6:22 Lit. it
  2. Proverbs 6:26 Wife of another, lit. a man’s wife
  3. Proverbs 6:35 Lit. lift up the face of any

10 Hear, my son, and receive my sayings,
(A)And the years of your life will be many.
11 I have (B)taught you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in right paths.
12 When you walk, (C)your steps will not be hindered,
(D)And when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go;
Keep her, for she is your life.

14 (E)Do not enter the path of the wicked,
And do not walk in the way of evil.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
Turn away from it and pass on.
16 (F)For they do not sleep unless they have done evil;
And their sleep is [a]taken away unless they make someone fall.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness,
And drink the wine of violence.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 4:16 Lit. robbed

“And (A)these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. (B)You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. (C)You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. (D)You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

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(A)You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.

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Security in Wisdom

Hear, (A)my children, the instruction of a father,
And give attention to know understanding;

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Seek God in Early Life

Rejoice, O young man, in your youth,
And let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth;
(A)Walk in the [a]ways of your heart,
And [b]in the sight of your eyes;
But know that for all these
(B)God will bring you into judgment.
10 Therefore remove [c]sorrow from your heart,
And (C)put away evil from your flesh,
(D)For childhood and [d]youth are vanity.

Seek God in Early Life

12 Remember(E) now your Creator in the days of your youth,
Before the [e]difficult days come,
And the years draw near (F)when you say,
“I have no pleasure in them”:

Footnotes

  1. Ecclesiastes 11:9 Impulses
  2. Ecclesiastes 11:9 As you see to be best
  3. Ecclesiastes 11:10 vexation
  4. Ecclesiastes 11:10 Prime of life
  5. Ecclesiastes 12:1 Lit. evil

Therefore hear me now, my children,
And do not depart from the words of my mouth.
Remove your way far from her,
And do not go near the door of her house,
Lest you give your [a]honor to others,
And your years to the cruel one;
10 Lest aliens be filled with your [b]wealth,
And your labors go to the house of a foreigner;
11 And you mourn at last,
When your flesh and your body are consumed,
12 And say:
“How I have hated instruction,
And my heart despised correction!
13 I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,
Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me!
14 I was on the verge of total ruin,
In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”

15 Drink water from your own cistern,
And running water from your own well.
16 Should your fountains be dispersed abroad,
[c]Streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be only your own,
And not for strangers with you.
18 Let your fountain be blessed,
And rejoice with (A)the wife of your youth.
19 (B)As a loving deer and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
And always be [d]enraptured with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be enraptured by (C)an immoral woman,
And be embraced in the arms of a seductress?

21 (D)For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord,
And He [e]ponders all his paths.
22 (E)His own iniquities entrap the wicked man,
And he is caught in the cords of his sin.
23 (F)He shall die for lack of instruction,
And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 5:9 vigor
  2. Proverbs 5:10 Lit. strength
  3. Proverbs 5:16 Channels
  4. Proverbs 5:19 Lit. intoxicated
  5. Proverbs 5:21 observes, lit. weighs

To give prudence to the (A)simple,
To the young man knowledge and discretion—

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(A)We will not hide them from their children,
(B)Telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,
And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.

For (C)He established a testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers,
That (D)they should make them known to their children;
(E)That the generation to come might know them,
The children who would be born,
That they may arise and declare them to their children,
That they may set their hope in God,
And not forget the works of God,
But keep His commandments;
And (F)may not be like their fathers,
(G)A stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation (H)that did not [a]set its heart aright,
And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 78:8 Lit. prepare its heart

13 And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with [a]prodigal living.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 15:13 wasteful

26 For You write bitter things against me,
And (A)make me inherit the iniquities of my youth.

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So it was, when the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would send and [a]sanctify them, and he would rise early in the morning (A)and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my sons have sinned and (B)cursed[b] God in their hearts.” Thus Job did regularly.

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Footnotes

  1. Job 1:5 consecrate
  2. Job 1:5 Lit. blessed, but in an evil sense; cf. Job 1:11; 2:5, 9

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