8:1 Does not wisdom call out?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
8:2 At the top of the elevated places along the way,
at the intersection of the paths she takes her stand;
8:3 beside the gates opening into the city,
at the entrance of the doorways she cries out:
8:4 “To you, O people, I call out,
and my voice calls to all mankind.
8:5 You who are naive, discern wisdom!
And you fools, understand discernment!
8:6 Listen, for I will speak excellent things,
and my lips will utter what is right.
8:7 For my mouth speaks truth,
and my lips hate wickedness.
8:8 All the words of my mouth are righteous;
there is nothing in them twisted or crooked.
8:9 All of them are clear to the discerning
and upright to those who find knowledge.
8:10 Receive my instruction rather than silver,
and knowledge rather than choice gold.
8:11 For wisdom is better than rubies,
and desirable things cannot be compared to her.
8:12 “I, wisdom, live with prudence,
and I find knowledge and discretion.
8:13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
I hate arrogant pride and the evil way
and perverse utterances.
8:14 Counsel and sound wisdom belong to me;
I possess understanding and might.
8:15 Kings reign by means of me,
and potentates decree righteousness;
8:16 by me princes rule,
as well as nobles and all righteous judges.
8:17 I love those who love me,
and those who seek me find me.
8:18 Riches and honor are with me,
long-lasting wealth and righteousness.
8:19 My fruit is better than the purest gold,
and what I produce is better than choice silver.
8:20 I walk in the path of righteousness,
in the pathway of justice,
8:21 that I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth,
and that I may fill their treasuries.
8:22 The Lord created me as the beginning of his works,
before his deeds of long ago.
8:23 From eternity I was appointed,
from the beginning, from before the world existed.
8:24 When there were no deep oceans I was born,
when there were no springs overflowing with water;
8:25 before the mountains were set in place –
before the hills – I was born,
8:26 before he made the earth and its fields,
or the beginning of the dust of the world.
8:27 When he established the heavens, I was there;
when he marked out the horizon over the face of the deep,
8:28 when he established the clouds above,
when the fountains of the deep grew strong,
8:29 when he gave the sea his decree
that the waters should not pass over his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
8:30 then I was beside him as a master craftsman,
and I was his delight day by day,
rejoicing before him at all times,
8:31 rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth,
and delighting in its people.
8:32 “So now, children, listen to me;
blessed are those who keep my ways.
8:33 Listen to my instruction so that you may be wise,
and do not neglect it.
8:34 Blessed is the one who listens to me,
watching at my doors day by day,
waiting beside my doorway.
8:35 For the one who finds me finds life
and receives favor from the Lord.
8:36 But the one who does not find me brings harm to himself;
all who hate me love death.”
9:1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has carved out its seven pillars.
9:2 She has prepared her meat, she has mixed her wine;
she also has arranged her table.
9:3 She has sent out her female servants;
she calls out on the highest places of the city.
9:4 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,”
she says to those who lack understanding.
9:5 “Come, eat some of my food,
and drink some of the wine I have mixed.
9:6 Abandon your foolish ways so that you may live,
and proceed in the way of understanding.”
9:7 Whoever corrects a mocker is asking for insult;
whoever reproves a wicked person receives abuse.
9:8 Do not reprove a mocker or he will hate you;
reprove a wise person and he will love you.
9:9 Give instruction to a wise person, and he will become wiser still;
teach a righteous person and he will add to his learning.
9:10 The beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord,
and acknowledging the Holy One is understanding.
9:11 For because of me your days will be many,
and years will be added to your life.
9:12 If you are wise, you are wise to your own advantage,
but if you are a mocker, you alone must bear it.
9:13 The woman called Folly is brash,
she is naive and does not know anything.
9:14 So she sits at the door of her house,
on a seat at the highest point of the city,
9:15 calling out to those who are passing by her in the way,
who go straight on their way.
9:16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here,”
she says to those who lack understanding.
9:17 “Stolen waters are sweet,
and food obtained in secret is pleasant!”
9:18 But they do not realize that the dead are there,
that her guests are in the depths of the grave.
10:1 The Proverbs of Solomon:
A wise child makes a father rejoice,
but a foolish child is a grief to his mother.
10:2 Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from mortal danger.
10:3 The Lord satisfies the appetite of the righteous,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
10:4 The one who is lazy becomes poor,
but the one who works diligently becomes wealthy.
10:5 The one who gathers crops in the summer is a wise son,
but the one who sleeps during the harvest
is a son who brings shame to himself.
10:6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
but the speech of the wicked conceals violence.
10:7 The memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the reputation of the wicked will rot.
10:8 The wise person accepts instructions,
but the one who speaks foolishness will come to ruin.
10:9 The one who conducts himself in integrity will live securely,
but the one who behaves perversely will be found out.
10:10 The one who winks his eye causes trouble,
and the one who speaks foolishness will come to ruin.
10:11 The teaching of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but the speech of the wicked conceals violence.
10:12 Hatred stirs up dissension,
but love covers all transgressions.
10:13 Wisdom is found in the words of the discerning person,
but the one who lacks wisdom will be disciplined.
10:14 Those who are wise store up knowledge,
but foolish speech leads to imminent destruction.
10:15 The wealth of a rich person is like a fortified city,
but the poor are brought to ruin by their poverty.
10:16 The reward which the righteous receive is life;
the recompense which the wicked receive is judgment.
10:17 The one who heeds instruction is on the way to life,
but the one who rejects rebuke goes astray.
10:18 The one who conceals hatred utters lies,
and the one who spreads slander is certainly a fool.
10:19 When words abound, transgression is inevitable,
but the one who restrains his words is wise.
10:20 What the righteous say is like the best silver,
but what the wicked think is of little value.
10:21 The teaching of the righteous feeds many,
but fools die for lack of wisdom.
10:22 The blessing from the Lord makes a person rich,
and he adds no sorrow to it.
10:23 Carrying out a wicked scheme is enjoyable to a fool,
and so is wisdom for the one who has discernment.
10:24 What the wicked fears will come on him;
what the righteous desire will be granted.
10:25 When the storm passes through, the wicked are swept away,
but the righteous are an everlasting foundation.
10:26 Like vinegar to the teeth and like smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
10:27 Fearing the Lord prolongs life,
but the life span of the wicked will be shortened.
10:28 The hope of the righteous is joy,
but the expectation of the wicked will remain unfulfilled.
10:29 The way of the Lord is like a stronghold for the upright,
but it is destruction to evildoers.
10:30 The righteous will never be moved,
but the wicked will not inhabit the land.
10:31 The speech of the righteous bears the fruit of wisdom,
but the one who speaks perversion will be destroyed.
10:32 The lips of the righteous know what is pleasing,
but the speech of the wicked is perverse.
11:1 The Lord abhors dishonest scales,
but an accurate weight is his delight.
11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace,
but with humility comes wisdom.
11:3 The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the crookedness of the unfaithful destroys them.
11:4 Wealth does not profit in the day of wrath,
but righteousness delivers from mortal danger.
11:5 The righteousness of the blameless will make straight their way,
but the wicked person will fall by his own wickedness.
11:6 The righteousness of the upright will deliver them,
but the faithless will be captured by their own desires.
11:7 When a wicked person dies, his expectation perishes,
and the hope of his strength perishes.
11:8 The righteous person is delivered out of trouble,
and the wicked turns up in his stead.
11:9 With his speech the godless person destroys his neighbor,
but by knowledge the righteous will be delivered.
11:10 When the righteous do well, the city rejoices;
when the wicked perish, there is joy.
11:11 A city is exalted by the blessing provided from the upright,
but it is destroyed by the counsel of the wicked.
11:12 The one who denounces his neighbor lacks wisdom,
but the one who has discernment keeps silent.
11:13 The one who goes about slandering others reveals secrets,
but the one who is trustworthy conceals a matter.
11:14 When there is no guidance a nation falls,
but there is success in the abundance of counselors.
11:15 The one who puts up security for a stranger will surely have trouble,
but whoever avoids shaking hands will be secure.
11:16 A generous woman gains honor,
and ruthless men seize wealth.
11:17 A kind person benefits himself,
but a cruel person brings himself trouble.
11:18 The wicked person earns deceitful wages,
but the one who sows righteousness reaps a genuine reward.
11:19 True righteousness leads to life,
but the one who pursues evil pursues it to his own death.
11:20 The Lord abhors those who are perverse in heart,
but those who are blameless in their ways are his delight.
11:21 Be assured that the evil person will certainly be punished,
but the descendants of the righteous will not suffer unjust judgment.
11:22 Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout
is a beautiful woman who rejects discretion.
11:23 What the righteous desire leads only to good,
but what the wicked hope for leads to wrath.
11:24 One person is generous and yet grows more wealthy,
but another withholds more than he should and comes to poverty.
11:25 A generous person will be enriched,
and the one who provides water for others will himself be satisfied.
11:26 People will curse the one who withholds grain,
but they will praise the one who sells it.
11:27 The one who diligently seeks good seeks favor,
but the one who searches for evil – it will come to him.
11:28 The one who trusts in his riches will fall,
but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
11:29 The one who troubles his family will inherit nothing,
and the fool will be a servant to the wise person.
11:30 The fruit of the righteous is like a tree producing life,
and the one who wins souls is wise.
11:31 If the righteous are recompensed on earth,
how much more the wicked sinner!