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Purpose and Theme

The proverbs(A) of Solomon(B) son of David, king of Israel:(C)

for gaining wisdom and instruction;
    for understanding words of insight;
for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
    doing what is right and just and fair;
for giving prudence to those who are simple,[a](D)
    knowledge and discretion(E) to the young—
let the wise listen and add to their learning,(F)
    and let the discerning get guidance—
for understanding proverbs and parables,(G)
    the sayings and riddles(H) of the wise.[b](I)

The fear of the Lord(J) is the beginning of knowledge,
    but fools[c] despise wisdom(K) and instruction.(L)

Prologue: Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom

Warning Against the Invitation of Sinful Men

Listen, my son,(M) to your father’s(N) instruction
    and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(O)
They are a garland to grace your head
    and a chain to adorn your neck.(P)

10 My son, if sinful men entice(Q) you,
    do not give in(R) to them.(S)
11 If they say, “Come along with us;
    let’s lie in wait(T) for innocent blood,
    let’s ambush some harmless soul;
12 let’s swallow(U) them alive, like the grave,
    and whole, like those who go down to the pit;(V)
13 we will get all sorts of valuable things
    and fill our houses with plunder;
14 cast lots with us;
    we will all share the loot(W)”—
15 my son, do not go along with them,
    do not set foot(X) on their paths;(Y)
16 for their feet rush into evil,(Z)
    they are swift to shed blood.(AA)
17 How useless to spread a net
    where every bird can see it!
18 These men lie in wait(AB) for their own blood;
    they ambush only themselves!(AC)
19 Such are the paths of all who go after ill-gotten gain;
    it takes away the life of those who get it.(AD)

Wisdom’s Rebuke

20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,(AE)
    she raises her voice in the public square;
21 on top of the wall[d] she cries out,
    at the city gate she makes her speech:

22 “How long will you who are simple(AF) love your simple ways?
    How long will mockers delight in mockery
    and fools hate(AG) knowledge?
23 Repent at my rebuke!
    Then I will pour out my thoughts to you,
    I will make known to you my teachings.
24 But since you refuse(AH) to listen when I call(AI)
    and no one pays attention(AJ) when I stretch out my hand,
25 since you disregard all my advice
    and do not accept my rebuke,
26 I in turn will laugh(AK) when disaster(AL) strikes you;
    I will mock(AM) when calamity overtakes you(AN)
27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
    when disaster(AO) sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
    when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer;(AP)
    they will look for me but will not find me,(AQ)
29 since they hated knowledge
    and did not choose to fear the Lord.(AR)
30 Since they would not accept my advice
    and spurned my rebuke,(AS)
31 they will eat the fruit of their ways
    and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.(AT)
32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them,
    and the complacency of fools will destroy them;(AU)
33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety(AV)
    and be at ease, without fear of harm.”(AW)

Notas al pie

  1. Proverbs 1:4 The Hebrew word rendered simple in Proverbs denotes a person who is gullible, without moral direction and inclined to evil.
  2. Proverbs 1:6 Or understanding a proverb, namely, a parable, / and the sayings of the wise, their riddles
  3. Proverbs 1:7 The Hebrew words rendered fool in Proverbs, and often elsewhere in the Old Testament, denote a person who is morally deficient.
  4. Proverbs 1:21 Septuagint; Hebrew / at noisy street corners

Wise Sayings of Solomon

A Manual for Living

1-6 These are the wise sayings of Solomon,
    David’s son, Israel’s king—
Written down so we’ll know how to live well and right,
    to understand what life means and where it’s going;
A manual for living,
    for learning what’s right and just and fair;
To teach the inexperienced the ropes
    and give our young people a grasp on reality.
There’s something here also for seasoned men and women,
    still a thing or two for the experienced to learn—
Fresh wisdom to probe and penetrate,
    the rhymes and reasons of wise men and women.

Start with God

Start with God—the first step in learning is bowing down to God;
    only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning.

8-19 Pay close attention, friend, to what your father tells you;
    never forget what you learned at your mother’s knee.
Wear their counsel like a winning crown,
    like rings on your fingers.
Dear friend, if bad companions tempt you,
    don’t go along with them.
If they say—“Let’s go out and raise some hell.
    Let’s beat up some old man, mug some old woman.
Let’s pick them clean
    and get them ready for their funerals.
We’ll load up on top-quality loot.
    We’ll haul it home by the truckload.
Join us for the time of your life!
    With us, it’s share and share alike!”—
Oh, friend, don’t give them a second look;
    don’t listen to them for a minute.
They’re racing to a very bad end,
    hurrying to ruin everything they lay hands on.
Nobody robs a bank
    with everyone watching,
Yet that’s what these people are doing—
    they’re doing themselves in.
When you grab all you can get, that’s what happens:
    the more you get, the less you are.

Lady Wisdom

20-21 Lady Wisdom goes out in the street and shouts.
    At the town center she makes her speech.
In the middle of the traffic she takes her stand.
    At the busiest corner she calls out:

22-24 “Simpletons! How long will you wallow in ignorance?
    Cynics! How long will you feed your cynicism?
Idiots! How long will you refuse to learn?
    About face! I can revise your life.
Look, I’m ready to pour out my spirit on you;
    I’m ready to tell you all I know.
As it is, I’ve called, but you’ve turned a deaf ear;
    I’ve reached out to you, but you’ve ignored me.

25-28 “Since you laugh at my counsel
    and make a joke of my advice,
How can I take you seriously?
    I’ll turn the tables and joke about your troubles!
What if the roof falls in,
    and your whole life goes to pieces?
What if catastrophe strikes and there’s nothing
    to show for your life but rubble and ashes?
You’ll need me then. You’ll call for me, but don’t expect an answer.
    No matter how hard you look, you won’t find me.

29-33 “Because you hated Knowledge
    and had nothing to do with the Fear-of-God,
Because you wouldn’t take my advice
    and brushed aside all my offers to train you,
Well, you’ve made your bed—now lie in it;
    you wanted your own way—now, how do you like it?
Don’t you see what happens, you simpletons, you idiots?
    Carelessness kills; complacency is murder.
First pay attention to me, and then relax.
    Now you can take it easy—you’re in good hands.”

The proverbs (truths obscurely expressed, maxims, and parables) of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

[a]That people may know skillful and godly [b]Wisdom and instruction, discern and comprehend the words of understanding and insight,

Receive instruction in wise dealing and the discipline of wise thoughtfulness, righteousness, justice, and integrity,

That prudence may be given to the simple, and knowledge, discretion, and discernment to the youth—

The wise also will hear and increase in learning, and the person of understanding will acquire skill and attain to sound counsel [so that he may be able to steer his course rightly]—(A)

That people may understand a proverb and a figure of speech or an enigma with its interpretation, and the words of the wise and their dark sayings or riddles.

The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning and the principal and choice part of knowledge [its starting point and its essence]; but fools despise skillful and godly Wisdom, instruction, and discipline.(B)

My son, hear the instruction of your father; reject not nor forsake the teaching of your mother.

For they are a [victor’s] chaplet (garland) of grace upon your head and chains and pendants [of gold worn by kings] for your neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.(C)

11 If they say, Come with us; let us lie in wait [to shed] blood, let us ambush the innocent without cause [and show that his piety is in vain];

12 Let us swallow them up alive as does Sheol (the place of the dead), and whole, as those who go down into the pit [of the dead];

13 We shall find and take all kinds of precious goods [when our victims are put out of the way], we shall fill our houses with plunder;

14 Throw in your lot with us [they insist] and be a sworn brother and comrade; let us all have one purse in common—

15 My son, do not walk in the way with them; restrain your foot from their path;

16 For their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

17 For in vain is the net spread in the sight of any bird!

18 But [when these men set a trap for others] they are lying in wait for their own blood; they set an ambush for their own lives.

19 So are the ways of everyone who is greedy of gain; such [greed for plunder] takes away the lives of its possessors.(D)

20 [c]Wisdom cries aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the markets;

21 She cries at the head of the noisy intersections [in the chief gathering places]; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

22 How long, O simple ones [open to evil], will you love being simple? And the scoffers delight in scoffing and [self-confident] fools hate knowledge?

23 If you will turn (repent) and give heed to my reproof, behold, I [[d]Wisdom] will pour out my spirit upon you, I will make my words known to you.(E)

24 Because I have called and you have refused [to answer], have stretched out my hand and no man has heeded it,(F)

25 And you treated as nothing all my counsel and would accept none of my reproof,

26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when the thing comes that shall cause you terror and panic—

27 When your panic comes as a storm and desolation and your calamity comes on as a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.

28 Then will they call upon me [Wisdom] but I will not answer; they will seek me early and diligently but they will not find me.(G)

29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord,(H)

30 Would accept none of my counsel, and despised all my reproof,

31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way and be satiated with their own devices.

32 For the backsliding of the simple shall slay them, and the careless ease of [self-confident] fools shall destroy them.(I)

33 But whoso hearkens to me [Wisdom] shall dwell securely and in confident trust and shall be quiet, without fear or dread of evil.

Notas al pie

  1. Proverbs 1:2 Over the doors of the school of Plato these words were written in Greek, “Let no one enter who is not a geometrician.” But Solomon opens wide the doors of his proverbs with a special message of welcome to the unlearned, the simple, the foolish, the young, and even to the wise—that all “will hear and increase in learning” (Prov. 1:5).
  2. Proverbs 1:2 A key term in the book of Proverbs, “Wisdom” is capitalized throughout, as God’s design for living and as a reminder of Christ, Whom the apostle Paul calls “the wisdom of God... in Whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (I Cor. 1:24; Col. 2:3 kjv).
  3. Proverbs 1:20 Wisdom here is personified. Read “the Wisdom of God” instead of “Wisdom” and see the wonderful power of this book.
  4. Proverbs 1:23 See footnotes on Prov. 1:2 and 1:20.

The Reasons for Proverbs

The proverbs of Solomon, David’s son who was king of Israel, given

to grasp wisdom and discipline,
    to understand deep thoughts,
to acquire the discipline of wise behavior—
    righteousness and justice and fairness—
to give insight to gullible people,
    to give knowledge and foresight to the young—
        a wise person will listen and continue to learn,
            and an understanding person will gain direction—
to understand a proverb and a clever saying,
    the words of wise people and their riddles.

The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge.
    Stubborn fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Listen to Wisdom

My son,
    listen to your father’s discipline,
        and do not neglect your mother’s teachings,
            because discipline and teachings
                are a graceful garland on your head
                    and a golden chain around your neck.

10 My son,
    if sinners lure you, do not go along.
11 If they say,
    “Come with us.
        Let’s set an ambush to kill someone.
            Let’s hide to ambush innocent people for fun.
12 We’ll swallow them alive like the grave,
    like those in good health who go into the pit.
13 We’ll find all kinds of valuable possessions.
    We’ll fill our homes with stolen goods.
14 Join us.
    We’ll split the loot equally.”

15 My son,
    do not follow them in their way.
    Do not even set foot on their path,
16 because they rush to do evil
    and hurry to shed blood.
17 It does no good to spread a net
    within the sight of any bird.
18 But these people set an ambush for their own murder.
    They go into hiding only to lose their lives.
19 This is what happens to everyone
    who is greedy for unjust gain.
        Greed takes away his life.

20 Wisdom sings her song in the streets.
    In the public squares she raises her voice.
21 At the corners of noisy streets she calls out.
    At the entrances to the city she speaks her words,
22 “How long will you gullible people love being so gullible?
    How long will you mockers find joy in your mocking?
        How long will you fools hate knowledge?

23 “Turn to me when I warn you.
    I will generously pour out my spirit for you.
        I will make my words known to you.

24 “I called, and you refused to listen.
    I stretched out my hands to you, and no one paid attention.
25 You ignored all my advice.
    You did not want me to warn you.
26 I will laugh at your calamity.
    I will make fun of you
        when panic strikes you,
27 when panic strikes you like a violent storm,
    when calamity strikes you like a wind storm,
        when trouble and anguish come to you.

28 “They will call to me at that time, but I will not answer.
    They will look for me, but they will not find me,
29 because they hated knowledge
    and did not choose the fear of Yahweh.
30 They refused my advice.
    They despised my every warning.
31 They will eat the fruit of their lifestyle.
    They will be stuffed with their own schemes.

32 “Gullible people kill themselves because of their turning away.
    Fools destroy themselves because of their indifference.
33 But whoever listens to me will live without worry
    and will be free from the dread of disaster.”

How Proverbs Can Be Used

(A) These are the proverbs
of King Solomon of Israel,
    the son of David.
Proverbs will teach you
    wisdom and self-control
and how to understand
    sayings with deep meanings.
You will learn what is right
    and honest and fair.
From these, an ordinary person
    can learn to be smart,
and young people can gain
    knowledge and good sense.

If you are already wise,
    you will become even wiser.
And if you are smart,
you will learn to understand
    proverbs and sayings,
as well as words of wisdom,
    and all kinds of riddles.
(B) Respect and obey the Lord!
This is the beginning
    of knowledge.[a]
Only a fool rejects wisdom
    and good advice.

Warnings against Bad Friends

My child, obey the teachings
    of your parents,
and wear their teachings
as you would a pretty hat
    or a lovely necklace.
10 Don't be tempted by sinners
or listen 11     when they say,
“Come on! Let's gang up
and kill somebody,
    just for the fun of it!
12 They're well and healthy now,
but we'll finish them off
    once and for all.
13 We'll take their valuables
and fill our homes
    with stolen goods.
14 If you join our gang,
    you'll get your share.”

15 Don't follow anyone like that
    or do what they do.
16 They are in a big hurry
to commit some crime,
    perhaps even murder.
17 They are like a bird
that sees the bait,
    but ignores the trap.[b]
18 They gang up to murder someone,
    but they are the victims.
19 The wealth you get from crime
    robs you of your life.

Wisdom Speaks

20 (C) Wisdom[c] shouts in the streets
    wherever crowds gather.
21 She shouts in the marketplaces
and near the city gates
    as she says to the people,
22 “How much longer
will you enjoy
    being stupid fools?
Won't you ever stop sneering
    and laughing at knowledge?
23 Listen as I correct you
    and tell you what I think.
24 You completely ignored me
    and refused to listen;
25 you rejected my advice
and paid no attention
    when I warned you.

26 “So when you are struck
    by some terrible disaster,
27 or when trouble and distress
surround you like a whirlwind,
    I will laugh and make fun.
28 You will ask for my help,
    but I won't listen;
you will search,
    but you won't find me.
29 No, you would not learn,
and you refused
    to respect the Lord.
30 You rejected my advice
and paid no attention
    when I warned you.

31 “Now you will eat the fruit
    of what you have done,
until you are stuffed full
    with your own schemes.
32 Sin and self-satisfaction
bring destruction and death
    to stupid fools.
33 But if you listen to me,
you will be safe and secure
    without fear of disaster.”

Notas al pie

  1. 1.7 the beginning of knowledge: Or “what knowledge is all about.”
  2. 1.17 They are … trap: Or “Be like a bird that won't go for the bait, if it sees the trap.”
  3. 1.20 Wisdom: In the book of Proverbs the word “wisdom” is sometimes used as though wisdom were a supernatural being who was with God at the time of creation.