Old/New Testament
The Usefulness of Proverbs
1 The (A)proverbs of Solomon (B)the son of David, king of Israel:
2 To know (C)wisdom and instruction,
To discern the sayings of (D)understanding,
3 To (E)receive instruction in wise behavior,
(F)Righteousness, justice and equity;
4 To give (G)prudence to the [a]naive,
To the youth (H)knowledge and discretion,
5 A wise man will hear and (I)increase in learning,
And a (J)man of understanding will acquire wise counsel,
6 To understand a proverb and a figure,
The words of the wise and their (K)riddles.
7 (L)The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
The Enticement of Sinners
8 (M)Hear, my son, your father’s instruction
And (N)do not forsake your mother’s teaching;
9 Indeed, they are a (O)graceful wreath to your head
And [b](P)ornaments about your neck.
10 My son, if sinners (Q)entice you,
(R)Do not consent.
11 If they say, “Come with us,
Let us (S)lie in wait for blood,
Let us (T)ambush the innocent without cause;
12 Let us (U)swallow them alive like Sheol,
Even whole, as those who (V)go down to the pit;
13 We will find all kinds of precious wealth,
We will fill our houses with spoil;
14 Throw in your lot [c]with us,
We shall all have one purse,”
15 My son, (W)do not walk in the way with them.
(X)Keep your feet from their path,
16 For (Y)their feet run to evil
And they hasten to shed blood.
17 Indeed, it is [d]useless to spread the baited net
In the sight of any [e]bird;
18 But they (Z)lie in wait for their own blood;
They ambush their own lives.
19 So are the ways of everyone who (AA)gains by violence;
It takes away the life of its possessors.
Wisdom Warns
20 (AB)Wisdom shouts in the street,
She [f]lifts her voice in the square;
21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings:
22 “How long, O [g](AC)naive ones, will you love [h]being simple-minded?
And (AD)scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools (AE)hate knowledge?
23 “Turn to my reproof,
Behold, I will (AF)pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.
24 “Because (AG)I called and you (AH)refused,
I (AI)stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
25 And you (AJ)neglected all my counsel
And did not (AK)want my reproof;
26 I will also (AL)laugh at your (AM)calamity;
I will mock when your (AN)dread comes,
27 When your dread comes like a storm
And your calamity comes like a (AO)whirlwind,
When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will (AP)call on me, but I will not answer;
They will (AQ)seek me diligently but they will not find me,
29 Because they (AR)hated knowledge
And did not choose the fear of the Lord.
30 “They (AS)would not accept my counsel,
They spurned all my reproof.
31 “So they shall (AT)eat of the fruit of their own way
And be (AU)satiated with their own devices.
32 “For the (AV)waywardness of the [i]naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 “But (AW)he who listens to me shall [j]live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”
The Pursuit of Wisdom Brings Security
2 My son, if you will (AX)receive my words
And (AY)treasure my commandments within you,
2 (AZ)Make your ear attentive to wisdom,
Incline your heart to understanding;
3 For if you cry for discernment,
[k]Lift your voice for understanding;
4 If you seek her as (BA)silver
And search for her as for (BB)hidden treasures;
5 Then you will discern the (BC)fear of the Lord
And discover the knowledge of God.
6 For (BD)the Lord gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a (BE)shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 Guarding the paths of justice,
And He (BF)preserves the way of His godly ones.
9 Then you will discern (BG)righteousness and justice
And equity and every (BH)good course.
10 For (BI)wisdom will enter your heart
And (BJ)knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 Discretion will (BK)guard you,
Understanding will watch over you,
12 To (BL)deliver you from the way of evil,
From the man who speaks (BM)perverse things;
13 From those who (BN)leave the paths of uprightness
To walk in the (BO)ways of darkness;
14 Who (BP)delight in doing evil
And rejoice in the perversity of evil;
15 Whose paths are (BQ)crooked,
And who are devious in their ways;
16 To (BR)deliver you from the strange woman,
From the [l](BS)adulteress who flatters with her words;
17 That leaves the (BT)companion of her youth
And forgets the (BU)covenant of her God;
18 For (BV)her house [m]sinks down to death
And her tracks lead to the [n]dead;
19 None (BW)who go to her return again,
Nor do they reach the (BX)paths of life.
20 So you will (BY)walk in the way of good men
And keep to the (BZ)paths of the righteous.
21 For (CA)the upright will [o]live in the land
And (CB)the blameless will remain in it;
22 But (CC)the wicked will be cut off from the land
And (CD)the treacherous will be (CE)uprooted from it.
Instructions and Greetings
16 Now concerning (A)the collection for (B)the saints, as (C)I directed the churches of (D)Galatia, so do you also. 2 On (E)the first day of every week each one of you is to [a]put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that (F)no collections be made when I come. 3 When I arrive, (G)whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; 4 and if it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.
5 But I (H)will come to you after I go through (I)Macedonia, for I (J)am going through Macedonia; 6 and perhaps I will stay with you, or even spend the winter, so that you may (K)send me on my way wherever I may go. 7 For I do not wish to see you now (L)just in passing; for I hope to remain with you for some time, (M)if the Lord permits. 8 But I will remain in (N)Ephesus until (O)Pentecost; 9 for a (P)wide door [b]for effective service has opened to me, and (Q)there are many adversaries.
10 Now if (R)Timothy comes, see that he is with you without [c]cause to be afraid, for he is doing (S)the Lord’s work, as I also am. 11 (T)So let no one despise him. But (U)send him on his way (V)in peace, so that he may come to me; for I expect him with the brethren.
12 But concerning (W)Apollos our brother, I encouraged him greatly to come to you with the brethren; and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has opportunity.
13 (X)Be on the alert, (Y)stand firm in the faith, (Z)act like men, (AA)be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done (AB)in love.
15 Now I urge you, brethren (you know the (AC)household of Stephanas, that [d]they were the (AD)first fruits of (AE)Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for (AF)ministry to (AG)the saints), 16 that (AH)you also be in subjection to such men and to everyone who helps in the work and labors. 17 I rejoice over the [e](AI)coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have [f]supplied (AJ)what was lacking on your part. 18 For they (AK)have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore (AL)acknowledge such men.
19 The churches of (AM)Asia greet you. (AN)Aquila and Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with (AO)the church that is in their house. 20 All the brethren greet you. (AP)Greet one another with a holy kiss.
21 The greeting is in (AQ)my own hand—[g]Paul. 22 If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be [h](AR)accursed. [i](AS)Maranatha. 23 (AT)The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. 24 My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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