THE PROVERBS

PROVERBS I

My son, if sinners entice thee,

Consent thou not.

If they say, Come with us,

We shall find all precious substance;
We shall fill our houses with spoil;

Cast in thy lot among us;

We will all have one purse

My son, walk not thou in the way with them;

Refrain thy foot from their path:

Avoid it, pass not by it;

Turn from it, and pass on.

For their feet run to evil,

And they make haste to shed blood.
In vain is the net spread

In the sight of any bird:

And these lay wait for their own blood;
They lurk privily for their own lives.
Can a man take fire in his bosom,
And his clothes not be burned?
Or can one walk upon hot coals,
And his feet not be scorched?

So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain;

It taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

PROVERBS I, II

My son, if thou wilt receive my words,
And lay up my commandments with thee;
So as to incline thine ear unto wisdom,
And apply thy heart to understanding;
Yea, if thou cry after discernment,
And lift up thy voice for understanding;
If thou seek her as silver,

And search for her as for hid treasures:
Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord,
And find the knowledge of God.

For the Lord giveth wisdom;

Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding:

He layeth up sound wisdom for the upright;
He is a shield to them that walk in integrity,
That they may keep the paths of justice,
Yea, he preserveth the way of his saints.
Then shalt thou understand righteousness and
justice,

Equity, yea, every good path.

For wisdom shall enter into thy heart,

And knowledge shall be pleasant unto thy soul; Discretion shall watch over thee;

Understanding shall keep thee:

To deliver thee from the way of evil,

From the men that speak perverse things;
That thou mayest walk in the ways of good

men,

And keep the paths of the righteous.

PROVERBS I, VI, VII

Wisdom crieth aloud in the street;

She uttereth her voice in the broad places;
She crieth at the head of the noisy streets;
At the entrance of the gates,

In the city, she uttereth her words, saying:
Whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell securely,
And shall be quiet without fear of evil.

If thou say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; And call understanding thy familiar friend: Then shalt thou walk in the way of good men, And keep the paths of the righteous.

When thou walkest, it shall lead thee;

When thou sleepest, it shall watch over thee; And when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light;

And reproofs of instruction are the way of life.

PROVERBS III

My son, forget not my law;

But let thy heart keep my commandments:
For length of days, and years of life,
And peace, will they add to thee.

Let not kindness and truth forsake thee:

Bind them about thy neck;

Write them upon the tablet of thy heart:
So shalt thou find favour and good repute
In the sight of God and man.

Trust in the Lord with all thy heart,

And lean not upon thine own understanding: In all thy ways acknowledge him,

And he will direct thy paths.

Be not wise in thine own eyes;
Fear the Lord, and depart from evil:
It shall be health to thy flesh,

And strength to all thy bones.
Ponder the path of thy feet,

And let all thy ways be ordered aright.
So shall the Lord make straight thy paths,
And thy goings will he conduct in peace.

PROVERBS III, IV

Hear, my sons, the instruction of a father,
And attend to know understanding:
For I give you good doctrine;

Forsake ye not my law.

Get wisdom, get understanding;

Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth;

Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee;

Love her, and she will keep thee.

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom;

Yea, with all thy getting get understanding.
Exalt her, and she will promote thee;

She will bring thee to honour, when thou dost choose her.

She will give to thy head a chaplet of grace;
And will deliver to thee a crown of glory.

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,
And the man that getteth understanding.
For the gaining of it is better than the gaining
of silver,

And the profit thereof than fine gold.

She is more precious than rubies:

And none of the things thou canst desire are to

be compared unto her.

Length of days is in her right hand;

In her left hand are riches and honour.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,

And all her paths are peace.

PROVERBS IV, V, VI

My son, attend to my words;
Incline thine ear unto these sayings.
Let them not depart from thine eyes;
Keep them in the midst of thine heart.
For they are life unto those that find them,
And health to all their flesh.

Keep thine heart with all diligence;

For out of it are the issues of life.
Put away from thee a wayward mouth,
And perverse lips put far from thee.

Let thine eyes look right on,

And let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

Ponder the path of thy feet,

And let all thy ways be ordered aright.

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left:

Remove thy foot from evil.

For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord;

And he weigheth carefully all his paths.

His own iniquities shall take the wicked,

And he shall be holden with the cords of his own sin.

He shall die for lack of instruction;

And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.