Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.

O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.

Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.

Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties.

{A Psalm of David.} Hear my prayer, O LORD, give ear to my supplications: in thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.

For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; he hath smitten my life down to the ground; he hath made me to dwell in darkness, as those that have been long dead.

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.

Deliver me, O LORD, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.

Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.

{A Psalm of David.} Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight:

Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away.

That our oxen may be strong to labour; that there be no breaking in, nor going out; that there be no complaining in our streets.

Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.

Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable.

One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.

The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.

To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.

The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season.

The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.

His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish.

Which executeth judgment for the oppressed: which giveth food to the hungry. The LORD looseth the prisoners:

Praise ye the LORD: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely.

The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.

Who covereth the heaven with clouds, who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to grow upon the mountains.

He giveth to the beast his food, and to the young ravens which cry.

He sendeth out his word, and melteth them: he causeth his wind to blow, and the waters flow.

To execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people;

To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron;

To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints. Praise ye the LORD.

Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.

To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;

He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;

Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;

Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked;

To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;

For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.

It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.

She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.

She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.

By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.

So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.

Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.

For the froward is abomination to the LORD: but his secret is with the righteous.

Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.

For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.

My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding:

Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend.

Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.

Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,

Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck.

To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.

For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life.

So he that goeth in to his neighbour's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.

Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry;

For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,

I have peace offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows.

Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.

He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.

With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.

He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks;

Till a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that it is for his life.

Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth.

Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths.

Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.

Unto you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man.

For my mouth shall speak truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

They are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.

For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it.

The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.

That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.

When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:

Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,

He that reproveth a scorner getteth to himself shame: and he that rebuketh a wicked man getteth himself a blot.

Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.

To call passengers who go right on their ways:

Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,

The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.

The labour of the righteous tendeth to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin.

The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.

It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.