Beginning
7 My son, live according to what I am telling you;
guard my instructions as you would a treasure deep within you.
2 Stay true to my directives, and they will serve you well;
make my teachings the lens through which you see life.
3 Bind cords around your fingers to remind you of them;
meditate on them, and you’ll engrave them upon your heart.
4 Say to Lady Wisdom, “My sister”;
recognize that understanding is your best friend,
5 And they will keep you from the arms of another woman—
protect you from the enchantress who entices men into her bed.
People are forgetful, so we must be reminded constantly of Wisdom and her ways. We don’t always need to hear something new; often we just need to be reminded of what is true. In these proverbs wisdom is found when one not only knows what is right, but acts on that knowledge. Foolishness, on the other hand, means a lack of understanding and wrongdoing.
6 One day I was at the window of my house,
looking out through my lattice shutters,
7 And there among the usual crowd of the gullible people
I spotted a naive young man.
8 He was going down the street near the corner where she lived—that mysterious and evil woman—
taking the road that led directly to her house.
9 At the end of the day, as night approached
and darkness crept in,
10 I saw her! A woman came out to meet him.
She was dressed for temptation and devious with her affections.
11 Here’s what I know about her: she is loud and obnoxious, a rebel against what is proper and decent.
She’s always on the move—anxious to get out of the house and
12 Down the street; at times in the open,
at others lurking around every corner.
13 As I am watching them, she grabs him and kisses him,
then shamelessly tells him:
14 The Immoral Woman: It was my turn to offer a peace offering,
and today I paid my vows,
15 So now I come to see you.
I really want to be with you, and what luck! I have found you!
16 You’ll be impressed. I have decorated my couch,
laid colorful Egyptian linens over where we will be together,
17 And perfumed the bed with exotic oils and herbs:
myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come in, and we will feast on love until sunrise;
we will delight ourselves in our affections.
19 You don’t need to worry; my husband is long gone by now,
away from home on a distant journey.
20 He took a bag of money with him,
so I don’t expect him home until next month.
21 It worked! She enticed him with seductive words,
seduced him with her smooth talk.
22 Right away he followed her home.
He followed her like a bull being led to the slaughter,
Like a fool[a] caught in a trap
23 (that is, until an arrow punctures his liver),
Like a bird flying straight into a net.
He had no clue his life was at stake; everything was about to change.
24 This is why it is so important that you listen to me, my sons,
and pay attention to all I am telling you.
25 Do not let your mind wonder about her ways;
do not lose yourself and drift down her path,
26 For she’s claimed one life after another,
victim after victim, too many to count.
27 Her house is the gateway to the grave;
every step toward her is a step toward death’s dark chamber.
8 Isn’t Lady Wisdom calling?
Listen; don’t you hear the voice of understanding crying out?
2 She’s taken her stand at the highest place in the city,
at the crossroads where everyone can see her.
3 There, and at the gates, at the entrance to the city,
right in front of the city doors she cries out:
4 Lady Wisdom: O people! I am calling to you;
I have a message for all humanity.
5 You gullible people, acquire insight.
You naive ones, cultivate a heart that truly understands.
6 Listen, for I am about to tell you of unparalleled excellence and beauty;
what I am about to say will set things right.
7 I will only speak the truth;
I despise evil, so it will not pass through my lips.
8 Everything I say promotes justice;
not one word is crooked, and nothing is distorted.
9 Each and every word is straight talk to perceptive people,
upright and honest to knowledge-seekers.
10 Accept my correction as being more valuable than your prized possession,
authentic knowledge more valuable than pure gold.
11 You see, no gem is more precious than Lady Wisdom—
your most extravagant desire doesn’t come close to her.
12 Lady Wisdom: I make my home with prudence;
I obtain knowledge and sound judgment.
13 If you respect the Eternal, you will grow to despise evil.
I despise wretched, vile talk
and ways of pride and arrogance.
14 Good counsel is mine, and also true wisdom.
I am understanding, and strength belongs to me.
15 It’s because of me that kings wield power
and authorities decree what is right.
16 It’s because of me that leaders and their agents govern
and all judge according to what is right.
17 I love those who love me;
those who search hard for me will find me.
18 Riches and honor are the benefit of following me;
so are lasting wealth and justice.
19 My reward is better than gold, even the purest gold;
and my profit is greater than the highest quality silver.
20 I follow the way of right living.
Follow me along the path to find justice;
21 I’m ready to meet those who love me, bestow true riches upon them,
and fill up their lives until their treasuries overflow.
22 The Eternal created me; it happened when His work was beginning,
one of His first acts long ago.
23 Before time He established me,
before the earth saw its first sunrise.
24 I was born before the deep existed,
before any springs poured out their water,
25 Before the mountains were placed on their foundations,
before the hills rolled across the land—
yes, before all this, I was brought forth.
26 When the earth was yet unformed and the fields were not yet nestled beneath the wind—
even before the first dust of the earth—
27 When He created the heavens, I was there.
When He drew a circle in the deep, dividing the oceans and the sky, I was there.
28 I was there when He established the sky.
I was there when the springs in the deep were fortified;
29 I witnessed Him lay down the shore as a boundary
and put limits on the water
And determine the foundations of the earth.
30 All this time I was close beside Him, a master craftsman.
Every day I was His delightful companion,
celebrating every minute in His presence,
31 Elated by the world He was making and all its fine creatures;
I was especially pleased with humanity.
32 So now listen to me, my children:
those who live by my ways will find true happiness.
33 Pay attention to my guidance, dare to be wise,
and don’t disregard my teachings.
34 The one who listens to me,
who carefully seeks me in everyday things
and delays action until my way is apparent, that one will find true happiness.
35 For when he recognizes and follows me, he finds a peaceful and satisfying life
and receives favor from the Eternal.
36 But heed my warning: the one who goes against me will only hurt himself,
for all who despise me are playing with fire and courting death.
9 Lady Wisdom has built her house;
she has supported it with seven pillars.
2 She’s prepared a feast:
She’s slaughtered her animals, poured a spiced wine,
and set her table.
3 She has sent out her servants with the invitation to come to the party;
she, too, calls out from the highest point of the city:
4 Lady Wisdom: Whoever is young and gullible, turn in here.
You are welcome in this place!
Then, turning to those who are naive, she says:
5 Lady Wisdom: Come in. Come, eat my bread,
and drink my spiced wine.
6 Give up your gullible ways, your naive thoughts, for true life.
Set your course for understanding.
7 Whoever tries to discipline a scoffer should expect a hail of insults in return.
Whoever tries to correct an evildoer is likely to get hurt in the process.
8 So do not correct a scoffer unless you are ready to be hated,
but correct the wise and you will be loved.
9 Give instruction to the wise, and they will become wiser.
Teach upstanding people, and they will learn even more.
10 Reverence for the Eternal, the one True God, is the beginning of wisdom;
true knowledge of the Holy One is the start of understanding.
11 Lady Wisdom: Through me your days will be lengthened,
and years will be added to your life.
12 If you are wise, wisdom is its own reward.
If you mock what you don’t understand, you alone will suffer the consequences.
13 Compared to Wisdom, the Lady Folly is rowdy and loud,
naive and ignorant.
14 She sits by the door of her house,
on a bench at the highest place in the city,
Lady Wisdom has built a house, prepared a feast, and now invites the young, the simple, and the naive to come to her party. She wants her house full of guests and spilling over with life, yet hers is not the only invitation. There is competition in the streets. Another woman vies for the attention of the young and impressionable. She, too, wants her house full, but of deceit and seduction; and when it is, death and misery join the revelry.
Wisdom addresses a broad audience. First, there are the wise who already know and worship the one True God, who do what is right in God’s eyes, and who experience the resulting benefits. They need only to be reminded about God’s ways. Second, there are the mockers and fools who reject God’s teaching and consistently do what is wrong in spite of its consequences. They need to be confronted and called to change their ways. Finally, there are the naive who straddle the fence, one day going this way, another day going that way. Wisdom extends herself to reach them, to point clearly toward the decision they have to make.
15 Crooning to passersby
who hurry straight on to their destinations:
16 Lady Folly: Whoever is young and gullible, turn in here.
You are welcome in this place!
Then, she turns to the naive.
17 Lady Folly: Stolen water tastes so much sweeter!
Bread secreted away is much more satisfying to eat!
18 But those who pause to listen to Lady Folly do not know death is the next stop,
that her guests are walking cadavers.
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.