King James Version
1 ¶ The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of
Israel;
2 To know wisdom
and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;
3 To receive the
instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;
4 To give
subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.
5 A wise man will
hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding
shall attain unto wise counsels:
6 To understand a
proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.
7 ¶ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge:
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
8 My son, hear
the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
9 For they shall
be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.
10 ¶ My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.
11 If they say,
Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent
without cause:
12 Let us swallow
them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit:
13 We shall find
all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil:
14 Cast in thy
lot among us; let us all have one purse:
15 My son, walk
not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their
path:
16 For their feet
run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.
17 Surely in vain
the net is spread in the sight of any bird.
18 And they lay
wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.
19 So are the
ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the
owners thereof.
20 ¶ Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the
streets:
21 She crieth in
the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she
uttereth her words, saying,
22 How long, ye
simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their
scorning, and fools hate knowledge?
23 Turn you at my
reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words
unto you.
24 Because I have
called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
25 But ye have
set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:
26 I also will
laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
27 When your fear
cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress
and anguish cometh upon you.
28 Then shall
they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they
shall not find me:
29 For that they
hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:
30 They would
none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.
31 Therefore
shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own
devices.
32 For the turning
away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools
shall destroy them.
33 But whoso
hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.
1 ¶ My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and
hide my commandments with thee;
2 So that thou
incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;
3 Yea, if thou
criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;
4 If thou seekest
her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;
5 Then shalt thou
understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of
God.
6 For the LORD
giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
7 He layeth up sound
wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.
8 He keepeth the
paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.
9 Then shalt thou
understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.
10 ¶ When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge
is pleasant unto thy soul;
11 Discretion
shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:
12 To deliver
thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;
13 Who leave the
paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;
14 Who rejoice to
do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked;
15 Whose ways are
crooked, and they froward in their paths:
16 To deliver
thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her
words;
17 Which
forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.
18 For her house
inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead.
19 None that go
unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.
20 That thou
mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous.
21 For the
upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.
22 But the wicked
shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall
be rooted out of it.
1 ¶ My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep
my commandments:
2 For length of
days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
3 Let not mercy
and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them
upon the table of thine heart:
4 So shalt thou
find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the
LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
6 In all thy ways
acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
7 ¶ Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and
depart from evil.
8 It shall be
health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
9 Honour the LORD
with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
10 So shall thy
barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out
with new wine.
11 My son,
despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction:
12 For whom the
LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.
13 ¶ Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man
that getteth understanding.
14 For the
merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof
than fine gold.
15 She is more
precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are
not to be compared unto her.
16 Length of days
is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour.
17 Her ways are
ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree
of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth
her.
19 The LORD by
wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the
heavens.
20 By his knowledge
the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.
21 ¶ My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep
sound wisdom and discretion:
22 So shall they
be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
23 Then shalt
thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
24 When thou
liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep
shall be sweet.
25 Be not afraid
of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when
it cometh.
26 For the LORD
shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.
27 ¶ Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when
it is in the power of thine hand to do it.
28 Say not unto
thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give;
when thou hast it by thee.
29 Devise not
evil against thy neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee.
30 Strive not
with a man without cause, if he have done thee no harm.
31 Envy thou not
the oppressor, and choose none of his ways.
32 For the
froward is abomination to the LORD: but his secret is with the
righteous.
33 The curse of
the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the
just.
34 Surely he
scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.
35 The wise shall
inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion of fools.
1 ¶ Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and
attend to know understanding.
2 For I give you
good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.
3 For I was my
father's son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.
4 He taught me
also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep
my commandments, and live.
5 Get wisdom, get
understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.
6 Forsake her
not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.
7 Wisdom is the
principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy
getting get understanding.
8 Exalt her, and she
shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.
9 She shall give
to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.
10 Hear, O my
son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.
11 I have taught
thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.
12 When thou
goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not
stumble.
13 Take fast hold
of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.
14 ¶ Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in
the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, pass
not by it, turn from it, and pass away.
16 For they sleep
not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they
cause some to fall.
17 For they eat
the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
18 But the path
of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the
perfect day.
19 The way of the
wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.
20 ¶ My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto
my sayings.
21 Let them not
depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.
22 For they are
life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.
23 Keep thy heart
with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
24 Put away from
thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.
25 Let thine eyes
look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.
26 Ponder the
path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.
27 Turn not to
the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
1 ¶ My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to
my understanding:
2 That thou
mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.
3 For the lips of
a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is
smoother than oil:
4 But her end is
bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword.
5 Her feet go down
to death; her steps take hold on hell.
6 Lest thou
shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not
know them.
7 Hear me now
therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.
8 Remove thy way
far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:
9 Lest thou give
thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:
10 Lest strangers
be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of
a stranger;
11 And thou mourn
at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,
12 And say, How
have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof;
13 And have not
obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed
me!
14 I was almost
in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.
15 ¶ Drink waters out of thine own cistern, and running
waters out of thine own well.
16 Let thy
fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.
17 Let them be
only thine own, and not strangers' with thee.
18 Let thy
fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth.
19 Let her be as
the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times;
and be thou ravished always with her love.
20 And why wilt
thou, my son, be ravished with a strange woman, and embrace the bosom of a
stranger?
21 For the ways
of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings.
22 His own
iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords
of his sins.
23 He shall die
without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he
shall go astray.
1 ¶ My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou
hast stricken thy hand with a stranger,
2 Thou art snared
with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of
thy mouth.
3 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.
4 Give not sleep
to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.
5 Deliver thyself
as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the
hand of the fowler.
6 ¶ Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and
be wise:
7 Which having no
guide, overseer, or ruler,
8 Provideth her
meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.
9 How long wilt
thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?
10 Yet a little
sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
11 So shall thy
poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.
12 ¶ A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a
froward mouth.
13 He winketh
with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;
14 Frowardness is
in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth
discord.
15 Therefore
shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.
16 These six
things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
17 A proud look,
a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
18 An heart that
deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to
mischief,
19 A false
witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
20 ¶ My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake
not the law of thy mother:
21 Bind them
continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck.
22 When thou
goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when
thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.
23 For the
commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are
the way of life:
24 To keep thee
from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a
strange woman.
25 Lust not after
her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids.
26 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.
27 Can a man take
fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?
28 Can one go
upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?
29 So he that
goeth in to his neighbour's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.
30 Men do not
despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is
hungry;
31 But if he be found,
he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.
32 But whoso
committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it
destroyeth his own soul.
33 A wound and
dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped
away.
34 For jealousy
is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35 He will not
regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.
1 ¶ My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments
with thee.
2 Keep my
commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye.
3 Bind them upon
thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart.
4 Say unto
wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:
5 That they may
keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which
flattereth with her words.
6 ¶ For at the window of my house I looked through my
casement,
7 And beheld
among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of
understanding,
8 Passing through
the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,
9 In the
twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night:
10 And, behold,
there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart.
11 (She is loud
and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house:
12 Now is she
without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every
corner.)
13 So she caught
him, and kissed him, and with an impudent face said unto him,
14 I have peace
offerings with me; this day have I payed my vows.
15 Therefore came
I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.
16 I have decked
my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with
fine linen of Egypt.
17 I have
perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
18 Come, let us
take our fill of love until the morning: let us solace ourselves with loves.
19 For the
goodman is not at home, he is gone a long journey:
20 He hath taken a
bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.
21 With her much
fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced
him.
22 He goeth after
her straightway, as an ox goeth to the slaughter, or as a fool
to the correction of the stocks;
23 Till a dart
strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth not that
it is for his life.
24 ¶ Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and
attend to the words of my mouth.
25 Let not thine
heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths.
26 For she hath
cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been slain by her.
27 Her house is
the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death.
1 ¶ Doth not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her
voice?
2 She standeth in
the top of high places, by the way in the places of the paths.
3 She crieth at
the gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the doors.
4 Unto you, O
men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man.
5 O ye simple,
understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding
heart.
6 Hear; for I
will speak of excellent things; and the opening of my lips shall be right
things.
7 For my mouth
shall speak truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 All the words
of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or perverse in them.
9 They are all
plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.
10 Receive my
instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.
11 For wisdom is
better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be
compared to it.
12 ¶ I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge
of witty inventions.
13 The fear of
the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the
froward mouth, do I hate.
14 Counsel is
mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.
15 By me kings
reign, and princes decree justice.
16 By me princes
rule, and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.
17 I love them
that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me.
18 Riches and
honour are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness.
19 My fruit is
better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver.
20 I lead in the
way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment:
21 That I may
cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.
22 ¶ The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way,
before his works of old.
23 I was set up
from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.
24 When there
were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding
with water.
25 Before the mountains
were settled, before the hills was I brought forth:
26 While as yet
he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of
the world.
27 When he
prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the
depth:
28 When he
established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:
29 When he gave
to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his
commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:
30 Then I was by
him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always
before him;
31 Rejoicing in
the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.
32 ¶ Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for
blessed are they that keep my ways.
33 Hear
instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.
34 Blessed is the
man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my
doors.
35 For whoso
findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD.
36 But he that
sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love
death.