Proverbs 1, side by side

¹These are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel,

¹The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

²for gaining wisdom and discipline, for comprehending words of insight,

²To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

³and for receiving instruction in wise living and in righteousness, justice, and equity.

³To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

⁴To impart prudence to the simple and knowledge and discretion to the young,

⁴To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

⁵let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel

⁵A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

⁶by understanding the proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.

⁶To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

⁷The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

⁷The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

⁸Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction, and do not forsake the teaching of your mother.

⁸My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

⁹For they are a garland of grace on your head and a pendant around your neck.

⁹For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

¹⁰My son, if sinners entice you, do not yield to them.

¹⁰My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

¹¹If they say, “Come along, let us lie in wait for blood, let us ambush the innocent without cause,

¹¹If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause:

¹²let us swallow them alive like Sheol, and whole like those descending into the Pit.

¹²Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit:

¹³We will find all manner of precious goods; we will fill our houses with plunder.

¹³We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil:

¹⁴Throw in your lot with us; let us all share one purse”—

¹⁴Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

¹⁵my son, do not walk the road with them or set foot upon their path.

¹⁵My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path:

¹⁶For their feet run to evil, and they are swift to shed blood.

¹⁶For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷How futile it is to spread the net where any bird can see it!

¹⁷Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.

¹⁸But they lie in wait for their own blood; they ambush their own lives.

¹⁸And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.

¹⁹Such is the fate of all who are greedy, whose unjust gain takes the lives of its possessors.

¹⁹So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰Wisdom calls out in the street, she lifts her voice in the square;

²⁰Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

²¹in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates she makes her speech:

²¹She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

²²“How long, O simple ones, will you love your simple ways? How long will scoffers delight in their scorn and fools hate knowledge?

²²How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

²³If you had repented at my rebuke, then surely I would have poured out my spirit on you; I would have made my words known to you.

²³Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

²⁴Because you refused my call, and no one took my outstretched hand,

²⁴Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;

²⁵because you neglected all my counsel, and wanted none of my correction,

²⁵But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:

²⁶in turn I will mock your calamity; I will sneer when terror strikes you,

²⁶I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;

²⁷when your dread comes like a storm, and your destruction like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish overwhelm you.

²⁷When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

²⁸Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will earnestly seek me, but will not find me.

²⁸Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

²⁹For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the LORD.

²⁹For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD:

³⁰They accepted none of my counsel; they despised all my reproof.

³⁰They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

³¹So they will eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

³¹Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

³²For the waywardness of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them.

³²For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

³³But whoever listens to me will dwell in safety, secure from the fear of evil.”

³³But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.