A Father’s Wise Instruction
1 Hear, O sons, a father’s rinstruction,
and be attentive, that you may gain1 insight,
2 for I give you good precepts;
sdo not forsake my teaching.
3 When I was a son with my father,
tender, the only one in the sight of my mother,
4 he taught me and said to me,
“Let your theart hold fast my words;
ukeep my commandments, vand live.
5 wGet wisdom; get insight;
xdo not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will yguard you.
7 The zbeginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
8 Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will place on your head a agraceful garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”
10 Hear, my son, and baccept my words,
that the years of your life may be cmany.
11 I have taught you the way of wisdom;
I have led you in the dpaths of uprightness.
12 When you walk, your step will not be hampered,
and if you run, you will not stumble.
13 eKeep hold of finstruction; do not let go;
guard her, for she is your glife.
14 Do not enter the hpath of the wicked,
and do not walk in the way of the evil.
15 Avoid it; do not go on it;
turn away from it and pass on.
16 For ithey cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;
they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.
18 But the path of the righteous is jlike the light of dawn,
which shines brighter and brighter until kfull day.
19 The way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know over what they stumble.
20 My son, be lattentive to my words;
incline your ear to my sayings.
21 mLet them not escape from your sight;
keep them within your heart.
22 For they are life to those who find them,
and nhealing to all their2 flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all vigilance,
ofor from it flow the springs of life.
24 Put away from you pcrooked speech,
and put devious talk far from you.
25 qLet your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
26 rPonder3 the path of your feet;
then all your ways will be sure.
27 Do not swerve sto the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.
1 rBetter is a dry morsel with quiet
than a house full of feasting1 with strife.
2 A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully
and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
3 sThe crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
and the Lord tests hearts.
4 An evildoer listens to wicked lips,
and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.
5 tWhoever mocks the poor insults his Maker;
uhe who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
6 Grandchildren are vthe crown of the aged,
and the glory of children is their fathers.
7 Fine speech is wnot becoming to a fool;
still less is false speech to a prince.
8 xA bribe is like a magic2 stone in the eyes of the one who gives it;
wherever he turns he prospers.
9 Whoever ycovers an offense seeks love,
but zhe who repeats a matter separates close friends.
10 aA rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding
than a hundred blows into a fool.
11 An evil man seeks only rebellion,
and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
12 Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs
rather than a fool in his folly.
13 If anyone breturns evil for good,
evil will not depart from his house.
14 cThe beginning of strife is like letting out water,
so quit before the quarrel breaks out.
15 He who justifies the wicked and he who dcondemns the righteous
are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
16 Why should a fool have money in his hand to ebuy wisdom
when he has no sense?
17 fA friend loves at all times,
and a brother is born for adversity.
18 One who lacks sense ggives a pledge
and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor.
19 Whoever loves transgression loves strife;
he who makes his door high seeks destruction.
20 A man of hcrooked heart does not discover good,
and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity.
21 iHe who sires a fool gets himself sorrow,
and the father of a fool has no joy.
22 jA joyful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
23 The wicked kaccepts a bribe in secret3
lto pervert the ways of justice.
24 The discerning sets his face toward wisdom,
but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
25 A foolish son is a grief to his father
and bitterness to her who bore him.
26 To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good,
nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
27 mWhoever nrestrains his words has knowledge,
and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;
when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.
1 Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire;
he breaks out against all sound judgment.
2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only in expressing his opinion.
3 When wickedness comes, contempt comes also,
and with dishonor comes disgrace.
4 The words of a man’s mouth are odeep waters;
the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.
5 It is not good to be partial to1 the pwicked
or to deprive the righteous of justice.
6 A fool’s lips walk into a fight,
and his mouth invites a beating.
7 qA fool’s mouth is his ruin,
and his lips are a rsnare to his soul.
8 sThe words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.
9 Whoever is slack in his work
is a brother to him who destroys.
10 The tname of the Lord is a ustrong tower;
the righteous man runs into it and is safe.
11 vA rich man’s wealth is his strong city,
and like a high wall in his imagination.
12 wBefore destruction a man’s heart is haughty,
but xhumility comes before honor.
13 If one gives an answer before he hears,
it is his folly and shame.
14 A man’s spirit will endure sickness,
but a crushed spirit who can bear?
15 An intelligent heart acquires knowledge,
and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
16 yA man’s gift makes room for him
and brings him before the great.
17 The one who states his case first seems right,
until the other comes and examines him.
18 zThe lot puts an end to quarrels
and decides between powerful contenders.
19 A brother offended is more unyielding than a strong city,
and quarreling is like the bars of a castle.
20 aFrom the fruit of a man’s mouth his stomach is satisfied;
he is satisfied by the yield of his lips.
21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruits.
22 He who bfinds a wife finds a good thing
and obtains favor from the Lord.
23 The poor use entreaties,
but the rich answer roughly.
24 A man of many companions may come to ruin,
cbut there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
