| King James Bible | Berean Study Bible |
| 1My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; | 1My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you, |
| 2So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; | 2if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding, |
| 3Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; | 3if you truly call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, |
| 4If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; | 4if you seek it like silver and search it out like hidden treasure, |
| 5Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. | 5then you will discern the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God. |
| 6For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. | 6For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. |
| 7He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. | 7He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk with integrity, |
| 8He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. | 8to guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His saints. |
| 9Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. | 9Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity—every good path. |
| 10When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; | 10For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will delight your soul. |
| 11Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: | 11Discretion will watch over you, and understanding will guard you, |
| 12To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things; | 12to deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perversity, |
| 13Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; | 13from those who leave the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness, |
| 14Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked; | 14from those who enjoy doing evil and rejoice in the twistedness of evil, |
| 15Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths: | 15whose paths are crooked and whose ways are devious. |
| 16To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; | 16It will rescue you from the forbidden woman, from the stranger with seductive words |
| 17Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. | 17who abandons the partner of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God. |
| 18For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead. | 18For her house sinks down to death, and her tracks to the departed spirits. |
| 19None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life. | 19None who go to her return or negotiate the paths of life. |
| 20That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous. | 20So you will follow in the ways of the good, and keep to the paths of the righteous. |
| 21For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it. | 21For the upright will inhabit the land, and the blameless will remain in it; |
| 22But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it. | 22but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be uprooted. |
|
    |