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Fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge;
    wisdom and instruction, fools despise.

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(A)The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
    fools despise wisdom and instruction.

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22 How long,[a] O simple ones, will you love simplicity?
    And how long will scoffers delight in their scoffing,
    and fools hate knowledge?

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 1:22 Literally “Until when”

22 “How long, O (A)simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will (B)scoffers delight in their scoffing
    and fools (C)hate knowledge?

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32 for the waywardness of the simple ones will kill them,
    and the complacency of fools will destroy them.

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32 For the simple are killed by (A)their turning away,
    and (B)the complacency of fools destroys them;

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Learn prudence, O simple ones;
    fools, learn intelligence.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 8:5 Literally “heart”

O (A)simple ones, learn (B)prudence;
    O (C)fools, learn sense.

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13 A woman of foolishness is loud,
    simple, and does not know it.[a]
14 She sits at the door of her house,
    upon a throne at the high places of town,
15 in order to call to those who pass by the road,
    those who go straight on their way:
16 “Whoever is simple, may he turn here!”
    As for he who lacks sense,[b] she says to him,
17 “Stolen waters are sweet,
    and bread of secrecy is pleasant.”
18 But he does not know that the dead[c] are there,
    in the depths of Sheol[d] are her guests.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 9:13 Literally “what”
  2. Proverbs 9:16 Literally “heart”
  3. Proverbs 9:18 Or “Rephaim”
  4. Proverbs 9:18 A term for the place where the dead reside, i.e., the Underworld

The Way of Folly

13 (A)The woman Folly is (B)loud;
    she is seductive[a] and (C)knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of her house;
    she takes a seat on (D)the highest places of the town,
15 calling to those who pass by,
    who are (E)going straight on their way,
16 (F)“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”
    And to him who lacks sense she says,
17 (G)“Stolen water is sweet,
    and (H)bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
18 But he does not know (I)that the dead[b] are there,
    that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 9:13 Or full of simpleness
  2. Proverbs 9:18 Hebrew Rephaim

A heart of wisdom will heed commandments,
    but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

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(A)The wise of heart will receive commandments,
    but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

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18 He who conceals hatred has lips of deceit,
    and he who utters slander—he is a fool.

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18 The one who conceals hatred has lying lips,
    and whoever utters slander is a fool.

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23 It is like a sport for a fool to do wrong,
    wisdom for a person of understanding.

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23 Doing wrong is (A)like a joke to a fool,
    but (B)wisdom is pleasure to a man of understanding.

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29 He who brings trouble to his household, he will inherit wind,[a]
    and a fool will serve the wise of heart.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 11:29 Or “breath, spirit”

29 Whoever (A)troubles his own household will (B)inherit the wind,
    and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.

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15 The way of a fool is upright in his own eyes,
    but he who listens to advice is wise.
16 As for a fool, on that very day[a] he makes his anger known,
    but he who ignores an insult is prudent.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:16 Literally “on the day”

15 (A)The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
    but a wise man listens to advice.
16 (B)The vexation of a fool is known at once,
    but the prudent ignores an insult.

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23 A clever person conceals knowledge,
    but the heart[a] of a fool[b] announces folly.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 12:23 Or “mind”
  2. Proverbs 12:23 Hebrew “fools”

23 (A)A prudent man conceals knowledge,
    (B)but the heart of fools proclaims folly.

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16 Anyone who is clever will act with intelligence,
    but the fool will display folly.

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16 (A)Every prudent man acts with knowledge,
    (B)but a fool flaunts his folly.

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