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The riches of wisdom.

CHAP. III, IV.

Her power and benefits.

15 Whose ways are crooked, and they hold upon her: and happy is every one froward in their paths: that retaineth her.

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

17 Which försaketh 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. CHAP. III.

Y son, not my law; but let

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 T 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,

Mine foreputy commandments; and shall keep thy foot from being taken.

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 T 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 T 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 first-fruits of all thine in

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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 T 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.

34Surely 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. CHAP. IV.

HEARher, and attend to know under

ye children, the instruction of

12 For whom the LORD loveth he cor- standing. recteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.

13 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth 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, 14 For the merchandize of it is better Let thine heart retain my words: keep than the merchandize of silver, and the my commandments, and live. gain thereof than fine gold.

5 Get wisdom, get understanding: for15 She is more precious than rubies: get it not; neither decline from the words and all the things thou canst desire are not of my mouth.

to be compared unto her.

6 Forsake her not, and she shall pre

16 Length of days is in her right hand; serve thee: love her, and she shall keep and in her left hand riches and honour. thee.

17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, 7 Wisdom is the principal thing; thereand all her paths are peace, fore get wisdom: and with all thy getting

18 She is a tree of life to them that lay get understanding.

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8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee:! 9 Lest thou give thine honour unto she shall bring thee to honour, when thou others, and thy years unto the cruel: dost embrace ber. 10 Lest strangers be filled with thy 9 She shall give to thine head an orna-wealth; and thy labours be in the house of ment of grace: a crown of glory shall she a stranger; 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.

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. 13 Take fast hold of instruction; let 15 Drink waters out of thine own her not go keep her; for she is thy life. cistern, and running waters out of thine 14 Enter not into the path of the wick-own well. ed, 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.

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 ra19 The way of the wicked is as dark-vished with a strange woman, and embrace ness: they know not at what they stumble. the bosom of a stranger? 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 eye-lids 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. CHAP. V.

Y

My son, attend unto my wisdom, and

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. CHAP. VI.

Y

My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast stricken thy hand with stranger,

a

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 thy

self, when thou art come into the band of bow thine ear to my understanding: thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make 2 That thou mayest regard discretion, sure thy friend. and that thy lips may keep knowledge. 3 For the lips of a strange woman drop as a honey-comb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

4 But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged 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:

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:

The mischiefs of whoredom.

CHAP. VII.

トー Description of a harlot.

11 So shall thy poverty come as one therefore he will not spare in the day of that travelleth, and thy want as an armed vengeance.

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

19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and him that soweth discord among brethren.

20 T 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 seven-fold; 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.

35 He will not regard any ransom: neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

CHAP. VII.

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 a harlot, and subtile o 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 paid 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 good-man 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 tool 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 T Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of

34 For jealousy is the rage of a man: my mouth.

The excellencies of wisdom.

PROVERBS.

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DOTH

CHAP. VIII.

OTH 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.

50 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.

Its discipline and doctrine.

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.

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35 For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD. 36 But he that sinneth against me 11 For wisdom is better than rubies; wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate and all the things that may be desired are me love death. 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.

WIS

CHAP. IX.

ISDOM hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars: 2 She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table.

3 She hath sent forth her maidens: she crieth upon the highest places of the city,

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

5 Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled.

6 Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.

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

8 Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate 20 I lead in the way of righteousness, thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love in the midst of the paths of judgment: thee.

21 That I may cause those that love me! 9 Give instruction to a wise man, and to inherit substance; and I will fill their he will be yet wiser: teach a just man, treasures. and he will increase in learning. 22 The LORD possessed me in the be- 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginginning of his way, before his works of old. ning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the 23 I was set up from everlasting, from Holy is understanding.

the beginning, or ever the earth was.

11 For by me thy days shall be multi24 When there were no depths, I was plied, and the years of thy life shall be in brought forth; when there were no foun- creased. tains abounding with water.

12 If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise

Of sundry moral virtues,

CHẤP. X, XI.

and their contrary vices.

for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone eth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips shalt bear it.

13 TA foolish woman is clamorous: she is simple, and knoweth nothing. 14 Forshe sitteth at the door of her house, on a seat in the high places of the city, 15 To call passengers who go right on their ways:

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

17 Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.

18 But he knoweth not that the dead are there; and that her guests are in the depths of hell..

CHAP. X.

THE proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.

2 Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death. 3 The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.

4 He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.

5 He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.

6 Blessings are upon the head of the just: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.

is wise.

20 The tongue of the just is as chaice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.

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

22 The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

23 It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom. 24 The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.

25 As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.

26 As vinegar to the teeth, and as' smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to them that send him.

27 The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.

28 The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.

29 The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.

30 The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth. 31 The mouth of the just bringeth forth wisdom: but the froward tongue shall be cut out.

7 The memory of the just is blessed : 32 The lips of the righteous know what but the name of the wicked shall rot. is acceptable: but the mouth of the wicked 8 The wise in heart will receive com-speaketh frowardness. mandments: but a prating fool shall fall.

9 He that walketh uprightly walketh surely but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.

10 He that winketh with the eye causeth sorrow: but a prating fool shall fall.

11 The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.

12 Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.

CHAP. XI.

LORD: but a just weight is his delight.

FALSE balance is abomination to the

2 When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.

3 The integrity of the upright shall guide them: but the perverseness of transgressors shall destroy them.

4 Riches profit not in the day of wrath: but righteousness delivereth from death. 5 The righteousness of the perfect shall 13 In the lips of him that hath under-direct his way: but the wicked shall fall standing wisdom is found: but a rod is for by his own wickedness.

the back of him that is void of understand- 6 The righteousness of the upright shall ing. deliver them: but transgressors shall be 14 Wise men lay up knowledge: but the taken in their own naughtiness. mouth of the foolish is near destruction. 7 When a wicked man dieth, his ex15 The rich man's wealth is his strong pectation shall perish: and the hope of city: the destruction of the poor is their unjust men perisheth.

poverty. 8 The righteous is delivered out of trou16 The labour of the righteous tendeth ble, and the wicked cometh in his stead. to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin. 9 A hypocrite with his mouth destroy17 He is in the way of life that keepeth eth his neighbour: but through knowledge instruction: but he that refuseth reproof shall the just be delivered. erreth.

18 He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool. 19 In the multitude of words there want

10 When it goeth well with the righteous the city rejoiceth: and when the wicked perish, there is shouting.

11 By the blessing of the upright the

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