A wise man will hear and increase in learning,
And a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel,

Let us swallow them alive like Sheol,
Even whole, as those who go down to the pit;

We will find all kinds of precious wealth,
We will fill our houses with spoil;

Throw in your lot with us,
We shall all have one purse,”

“How long, O naive ones, will you love being simple-minded?
And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing
And fools hate knowledge?

“Turn to my reproof,
Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you;
I will make my words known to you.

And you neglected all my counsel
And did not want my reproof;

I will also laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when your dread comes,

“Then they will call on me, but I will not answer;
They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,

“They would not accept my counsel,
They spurned all my reproof.

“For the waywardness of the naive will kill them,
And the complacency of fools will destroy them.

“But he who listens to me shall live securely
And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

My son, if you will receive my words
And treasure my commandments within you,

Then you will discern the fear of the Lord
And discover the knowledge of God.

Then you will discern righteousness and justice
And equity and every good course.

For wisdom will enter your heart
And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

Discretion will guard you,
Understanding will watch over you,

So you will walk in the way of good men
And keep to the paths of the righteous.

For the upright will live in the land
And the blameless will remain in it;

But the wicked will be cut off from the land
And the treacherous will be uprooted from it.

For length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you.

So you will find favor and good repute
In the sight of God and man.

Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.

It will be healing to your body
And refreshment to your bones.

Honor the Lord from your wealth
And from the first of all your produce;

So your barns will be filled with plenty
And your vats will overflow with new wine.

Her ways are pleasant ways
And all her paths are peace.

She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who hold her fast.

So they will be life to your soul
And adornment to your neck.

Then you will walk in your way securely
And your foot will not stumble.

When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

For the Lord will be your confidence
And will keep your foot from being caught.

Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back,
And tomorrow I will give it,”
When you have it with you.

Do not devise harm against your neighbor,
While he lives securely beside you.

The wise will inherit honor,
But fools display dishonor.

“Do not forsake her, and she will guard you;
Love her, and she will watch over you.

“The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom;
And with all your acquiring, get understanding.

“Prize her, and she will exalt you;
She will honor you if you embrace her.

“She will place on your head a garland of grace;
She will present you with a crown of beauty.”

Hear, my son, and accept my sayings
And the years of your life will be many.

When you walk, your steps will not be impeded;
And if you run, you will not stumble.

For they are life to those who find them
And health to all their body.

Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life.

Watch the path of your feet
And all your ways will be established.

For the lips of an adulteress drip honey
And smoother than oil is her speech;

Or you will give your vigor to others
And your years to the cruel one;

And strangers will be filled with your strength
And your hard-earned goods will go to the house of an alien;

Drink water from your own cistern
And fresh water from your own well.

As a loving hind and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be exhilarated always with her love.

For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the Lord,
And He watches all his paths.

His own iniquities will capture the wicked,
And he will be held with the cords of his sin.

He will die for lack of instruction,
And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray.

How long will you lie down, O sluggard?
When will you arise from your sleep?

Your poverty will come in like a vagabond
And your need like an armed man.

Therefore his calamity will come suddenly;
Instantly he will be broken and there will be no healing.

When you walk about, they will guide you;
When you sleep, they will watch over you;
And when you awake, they will talk to you.

So is the one who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her will not go unpunished.

But when he is found, he must repay sevenfold;
He must give all the substance of his house.

Wounds and disgrace he will find,
And his reproach will not be blotted out.

For jealousy enrages a man,
And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

He will not accept any ransom,
Nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts.

He has taken a bag of money with him,
At the full moon he will come home.”

Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a bird hastens to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.

For many are the victims she has cast down,
And numerous are all her slain.

“Listen, for I will speak noble things;
And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.

“For my mouth will utter truth;
And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

“All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness;
There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

“They are all straightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who find knowledge.

“For wisdom is better than jewels;
And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

“By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.

“I love those who love me;
And those who diligently seek me will find me.

While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.

“But he who sins against me injures himself;
All those who hate me love death.”

Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you,
Reprove a wise man and he will love you.

Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser,
Teach a righteous man and he will increase his learning.

For by me your days will be multiplied,
And years of life will be added to you.

If you are wise, you are wise for yourself,
And if you scoff, you alone will bear it.

Ill-gotten gains do not profit,
But righteousness delivers from death.

The Lord will not allow the righteous to hunger,
But He will reject the craving of the wicked.

The memory of the righteous is blessed,
But the name of the wicked will rot.

The wise of heart will receive commands,
But a babbling fool will be ruined.

He who walks in integrity walks securely,
But he who perverts his ways will be found out.

He who winks the eye causes trouble,
And a babbling fool will be ruined.

Hatred stirs up strife,
But love covers all transgressions.

What the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The fear of the Lord prolongs life,
But the years of the wicked will be shortened.

The righteous will never be shaken,
But the wicked will not dwell in the land.

The mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom,
But the perverted tongue will be cut out.

The integrity of the upright will guide them,
But the crookedness of the treacherous will destroy them.

The righteousness of the blameless will smooth his way,
But the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.

The righteousness of the upright will deliver them,
But the treacherous will be caught by their own greed.

When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish,
And the hope of strong men perishes.

With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbor,
But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.

When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices,
And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting.

He who is guarantor for a stranger will surely suffer for it,
But he who hates being a guarantor is secure.

He who is steadfast in righteousness will attain to life,
And he who pursues evil will bring about his own death.

Assuredly, the evil man will not go unpunished,
But the descendants of the righteous will be delivered.

There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more,
And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want.

The generous man will be prosperous,
And he who waters will himself be watered.