And these lay wait for their own blood,

They lurk privily for their own lives.

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

Wisdom crieth aloud in the street;

She uttereth her voice in the broad places;

She crieth in the chief place of concourse;

At the entering in of the gates,

In the city, she uttereth her words:

How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity?

And scorners delight them in scorning,

And fools hate knowledge?

Turn you at my reproof:

Behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you,

I will make known my words unto you.

Because I have called, and ye refused;

I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;
But ye have set at nought all my counsel,

And would none of my reproof:

I also will laugh in the day of your calamity;

I will mock when your fear cometh;

When your fear cometh as a storm,

And your calamity cometh on as a whirlwind;
When distress and anguish come upon you.

Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer;

They shall seek me diligently, but they shall not find me:

For that they hated knowledge,

And did not choose the fear of the Lord:

They would none of my counsel;

They despised all my reproof:

Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way,

And be filled with their own devices.

For the backsliding of the simple shall slay them,

And the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.
But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell securely,
And shall be quiet without fear of evil.

XXXVIII. THE LORD GIVETH WISDOM.

PROVERBS 2:1-22.

My son, if thou wilt receive my words,
And lay up my commandments with thee;
So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom,
And apply thine heart to understanding;
Yea, if thou cry after discernment,
And lift up thy voice for understanding;
If thou seek her as silver,

And search for her as for hid treasures;

Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord,

And find the knowledge of God.

For the Lord giveth wisdom;

Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding:
He layeth up sound wisdom for the upright,
He is a shield to them that walk in integrity;

That he may guard the paths of judgement,

And preserve the way of his saints.

Then shalt thou understand righteousness and judgement, And equity, yea, every good path.

For wisdom shall enter into thine heart,

And knowledge shall be pleasant unto thy soul;

Discretion shall watch over thee,

Understanding shall keep thee:

To deliver thee from the way of evil,

From the men that speak froward things;
Who forsake the paths of uprightness,
To walk in the ways of darkness;
Who rejoice to do evil,

And delight in the frowardness of evil;
Who are crooked in their ways,

And perverse in their paths:

To deliver thee from the strange woman,

Even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;

Which forsaketh the friend of her youth,

And forgetteth the covenant of her God:

For her house inclineth unto death,

And her paths unto the dead:

None that go unto her return again,

Neither do they attain unto the paths of life:
That thou mayest walk in the way of good men,
And keep the paths of the righteous.

For the upright shall dwell in the land,

And the perfect shall remain in it.

But the wicked shall be cut off from the land,

And they that deal treacherously shall be rooted out of it.

XXXIX. SOUND WISDOM AND DISCRETION.

PROVERBS 3:1-27.

My son, forget not my law;

But let thine heart keep my commandments:

For length of days, and years of life,

And peace, shall they add to thee.

Let not mercy and truth forsake thee:

Bind them about thy neck;

Write them upon the table of thine heart:

So shalt thou find favour and good understanding

In the sight of God and man.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart,
And lean not upon thine own understanding:

In all thy ways acknowledge him,

And he shall direct thy paths.

Be not wise in thine own eyes;

Fear the Lord, and depart from evil:
It shall be health to thy navel,

And marrow to thy bones.

Honour the Lord with thy substance,

And with the firstfruits of all thine increase:

So shall thy barns be filled with plenty,

And thy fats shall overflow with new wine.

My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord;
Neither be weary of his reproof:

For whom the Lord loveth he reproveth;

Even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,

And the man that getteth understanding.

For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, And the gain thereof than fine gold.

She is more precious than rubies:

And none of the things thou canst desire are to be compared unto

her.

Length of days is in her right hand;

In her left hand are riches and honour.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,

And all her paths are peace.

She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her:

And happy is every one that retaineth her.

The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
By understanding he established the heavens.
By his knowledge the depths were broken up,
And the skies drop down the dew.

My son, let not them depart from thine eyes;
Keep sound wisdom and discretion;

So shall they be life unto thy soul,

And grace to thy neck.

Then shalt thou walk in thy way securely,

And thy foot shall not stumble.

When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid:

Yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.

Be not afraid of sudden fear,

Neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh:

For the Lord shall be thy confidence,

And shall keep thy foot from being taken.

Withhold not good from them to whom it is due,

When it is in the power of thine hand to do it.

XL. WISDOM'S FATHERLY ADVICE.

PROVERBS 4:3-27.

For I was a son unto my father,

Tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

And he taught me, and said unto me,
Let thine heart retain my words;
Keep my commandments, and live:

Get wisdom, get understanding;

Forget it not, neither decline from the words of my mouth: Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee;

Love her, and she shall keep thee.

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom:

Yea, with all thou hast gotten get 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 a chaplet of grace:

A crown of beauty shall she deliver to thee.

Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings;
And the years of thy life shall be many.
I have taught thee in the way of wisdom;

I have led thee in paths of uprightness.

When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened;

And if thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go:

Keep her; for she is thy life.

Enter not into the path of the wicked,

And walk not in the way of evil men.

Avoid it, pass not by it;

Turn from it, and pass on.

For they sleep not, except they have done mischief;

And their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness,

And drink the wine of violence.

But the path of the righteous is as the shining light,

That shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

The way of the wicked is as darkness:
They know not at what they stumble.

My son, attend to my words;
Incline thine ear unto my sayings.
Let them not depart from thine eyes;