Proverbs 8
New American Standard Bible 1995
The Commendation of Wisdom
8 Does not (A)wisdom call,
And understanding [a]lift up her voice?
2 On top of (B)the heights beside the way,
Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
3 Beside the (C)gates, at the opening to the city,
At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:
4 “To you, O men, I call,
And my voice is to the sons of men.
5 “O [b](D)naive ones, understand prudence;
And, O (E)fools, understand [c]wisdom.
6 “Listen, for I will speak (F)noble things;
And the opening of my lips will reveal (G)right things.
7 “For my (H)mouth will utter truth;
And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 “All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness;
There is nothing (I)crooked or perverted in them.
9 “They are all (J)straightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who (K)find knowledge.
10 “Take my (L)instruction and not silver,
And knowledge rather than choicest gold.
11 “For wisdom is (M)better than [d]jewels;
And (N)all desirable things cannot compare with her.
12 “I, wisdom, (O)dwell with prudence,
And I find (P)knowledge and discretion.
13 “The (Q)fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
(R)Pride and arrogance and (S)the evil way
And the (T)perverted mouth, I hate.
14 “(U)Counsel is mine and (V)sound wisdom;
I am understanding, (W)power is mine.
15 “By me (X)kings reign,
And rulers decree justice.
16 “By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.
17 “I (Y)love those who love me;
And (Z)those who diligently seek me will find me.
18 “(AA)Riches and honor are with me,
Enduring (AB)wealth and righteousness.
19 “My fruit is (AC)better than gold, even pure gold,
And my yield better than (AD)choicest silver.
20 “I walk in the way of righteousness,
In the midst of the paths of justice,
21 To endow those who love me with wealth,
That I may (AE)fill their treasuries.
22 “The Lord possessed me (AF)at the beginning of His way,
Before His works [e]of old.
23 “From everlasting I was [f](AG)established,
From the beginning, (AH)from the earliest times of the earth.
24 “When there were no (AI)depths I was [g]brought forth,
When there were no springs abounding with water.
25 “(AJ)Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills I was [h]brought forth;
26 While He had not yet made the earth and the [i]fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.
27 “When He (AK)established the heavens, I was there,
When (AL)He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
28 When He made firm the skies above,
When the springs of the deep became [j]fixed,
29 When (AM)He set for the sea its boundary
So that the water would not transgress His [k]command,
When He marked out (AN)the foundations of the earth;
30 Then (AO)I was beside Him, as a master workman;
And I was daily His delight,
[l]Rejoicing always before Him,
31 [m]Rejoicing in the world, His earth,
And having (AP)my delight in the sons of men.
32 “Now therefore, O sons, (AQ)listen to me,
For (AR)blessed are they who keep my ways.
33 “(AS)Heed instruction and be wise,
And do not neglect it.
34 “(AT)Blessed is the man who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at my doorposts.
35 “For (AU)he who finds me finds life
And (AV)obtains favor from the Lord.
36 “But he who [n]sins against me (AW)injures himself;
All those who (AX)hate me (AY)love death.”
Footnotes
- Proverbs 8:1 Lit give
- Proverbs 8:5 Lit simple
- Proverbs 8:5 Lit heart
- Proverbs 8:11 Lit corals
- Proverbs 8:22 Lit from then
- Proverbs 8:23 Or consecrated
- Proverbs 8:24 Or born
- Proverbs 8:25 Or born
- Proverbs 8:26 Lit outside places
- Proverbs 8:28 Lit strong
- Proverbs 8:29 Lit mouth
- Proverbs 8:30 Or Playing
- Proverbs 8:31 Or Playing
- Proverbs 8:36 Or misses me
Proverbs 9
New American Standard Bible 1995
Wisdom’s Invitation
9 Wisdom has (A)built her house,
She has hewn out her seven pillars;
2 She has [a](B)prepared her food, she has (C)mixed her wine;
She has also (D)set her table;
3 She has (E)sent out her maidens, she (F)calls
From the (G)tops of the heights of the city:
4 “(H)Whoever is [b]naive, let him turn in here!”
To him who (I)lacks [c]understanding she says,
5 “Come, (J)eat of my food
And drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 “[d]Forsake your folly and (K)live,
And (L)proceed in the way of understanding.”
7 He who (M)corrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself,
And he who reproves a wicked man gets [e]insults for himself.
8 (N)Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you,
(O)Reprove a wise man and he will love you.
9 Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser,
Teach a righteous man and he will (P)increase his learning.
10 The (Q)fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11 For (R)by me your days will be multiplied,
And years of life will be added to you.
12 If you are wise, you are wise (S)for yourself,
And if you (T)scoff, you alone will bear it.
13 The [f]woman of folly is (U)boisterous,
She is [g]naive and (V)knows nothing.
14 She sits at the doorway of her house,
On a seat by (W)the high places of the city,
15 Calling to those who pass by,
Who are making their paths straight:
16 “(X)Whoever is [h]naive, let him turn in here,”
And to him who lacks [i]understanding she says,
17 “Stolen water is sweet;
And (Y)bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
18 But he does not know that the [j]dead are there,
That her guests are in the (Z)depths of Sheol.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 9:2 Lit slaughtered her slaughter
- Proverbs 9:4 Lit simple
- Proverbs 9:4 Lit heart
- Proverbs 9:6 Or Forsake the simple ones
- Proverbs 9:7 Lit a blemish
- Proverbs 9:13 Or foolish woman
- Proverbs 9:13 Lit simple
- Proverbs 9:16 Lit simple
- Proverbs 9:16 Lit heart
- Proverbs 9:18 Lit departed spirits
Proverbs 10
New American Standard Bible 1995
Contrast of the Righteous and the Wicked
10 The (A)proverbs of Solomon.
(B)A wise son makes a father glad,
But (C)a foolish son is a grief to his mother.
2 [a](D)Ill-gotten gains do not profit,
But righteousness delivers from death.
3 The Lord (E)will not allow the [b]righteous to hunger,
But He (F)will [c]reject the craving of the wicked.
4 Poor is he who works with a negligent hand,
But the (G)hand of the diligent makes rich.
5 He who gathers in summer is a son who acts wisely,
But he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully.
6 (H)Blessings are on the head of the righteous,
But (I)the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
7 The (J)memory of the righteous is blessed,
But (K)the name of the wicked will rot.
8 The (L)wise of heart will receive commands,
But [d]a babbling fool will be [e]ruined.
9 He (M)who walks in integrity walks securely,
But (N)he who perverts his ways will be found out.
10 He (O)who winks the eye causes trouble,
And [f](P)a babbling fool will be [g]ruined.
11 The (Q)mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,
But (R)the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
12 Hatred stirs up strife,
But (S)love covers all transgressions.
13 On (T)the lips of the discerning, wisdom is found,
But (U)a rod is for the back of him who lacks [h]understanding.
14 Wise men (V)store up knowledge,
But with (W)the mouth of the foolish, ruin is at hand.
15 The (X)rich man’s wealth is his [i]fortress,
The (Y)ruin of the poor is their poverty.
16 The [j](Z)wages of the righteous is life,
The income of the wicked, punishment.
17 He (AA)is on the path of life who heeds instruction,
But he who ignores reproof goes astray.
18 He (AB)who conceals hatred has lying lips,
And he who spreads slander is a fool.
19 When there are (AC)many words, transgression is unavoidable,
But (AD)he who restrains his lips is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is as (AE)choice silver,
The heart of the wicked is worth little.
21 The (AF)lips of the righteous feed many,
But fools (AG)die for lack of [k]understanding.
22 It is the (AH)blessing of the Lord that makes rich,
And He adds no sorrow to it.
23 Doing wickedness is like (AI)sport to a fool,
And so is wisdom to a man of understanding.
24 What (AJ)the wicked fears will come upon him,
But the (AK)desire of the righteous will be granted.
25 When the (AL)whirlwind passes, the wicked is no more,
But the (AM)righteous has an everlasting foundation.
26 Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,
So is the (AN)lazy one to those who send him.
27 The (AO)fear of the Lord prolongs [l]life,
But the (AP)years of the wicked will be shortened.
28 The (AQ)hope of the righteous is gladness,
But the (AR)expectation of the wicked perishes.
29 The (AS)way of the Lord is a stronghold to the upright,
But (AT)ruin to the workers of iniquity.
30 The (AU)righteous will never be shaken,
But (AV)the wicked will not dwell in the land.
31 The (AW)mouth of the righteous flows with wisdom,
But the (AX)perverted tongue will be cut out.
32 The lips of the righteous bring forth (AY)what is acceptable,
But the (AZ)mouth of the wicked what is perverted.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 10:2 Lit Treasures of wickedness
- Proverbs 10:3 Lit soul of the righteous
- Proverbs 10:3 Lit thrust away
- Proverbs 10:8 Lit the foolish of lips
- Proverbs 10:8 Lit thrust down
- Proverbs 10:10 Lit the foolish of lips
- Proverbs 10:10 Lit thrust down
- Proverbs 10:13 Lit heart
- Proverbs 10:15 Lit strong city
- Proverbs 10:16 Or work
- Proverbs 10:21 Lit heart
- Proverbs 10:27 Lit days
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
