| King James Bible | New International Version |
| 1The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; | 1The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: |
| 2To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; | 2for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight; |
| 3To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; | 3for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair; |
| 4To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. | 4for giving prudence to those who are simple, knowledge and discretion to the young-- |
| 5A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: | 5let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance-- |
| 6To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. | 6for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise. |
| 7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. | 7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. |
| 8My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: | 8Listen, my son, to your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching. |
| 9For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck. | 9They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck. |
| 10My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. | 10My son, if sinful men entice you, do not give in to them. |
| 11If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: | 11If they say, "Come along with us; let's lie in wait for innocent blood, let's ambush some harmless soul; |
| 12Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: | 12let's swallow them alive, like the grave, and whole, like those who go down to the pit; |
| 13We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: | 13we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder; |
| 14Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: | 14cast lots with us; we will all share the loot"-- |
| 15My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: | 15my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths; |
| 16For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. | 16for their feet rush into evil, they are swift to shed blood. |
| 17Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. | 17How useless to spread a net where every bird can see it! |
| 18And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. | 18These men lie in wait for their own blood; they ambush only themselves! |
| 19So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. | 19Such are the paths of all who go after ill-gotten gain; it takes away the life of those who get it. |
| 20Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: | 20Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square; |
| 21She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, | 21on top of the wall she cries out, at the city gate she makes her speech: |
| 22How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? | 22"How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge? |
| 23Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. | 23Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings. |
| 24Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; | 24But since you refuse to listen when I call and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand, |
| 25But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: | 25since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke, |
| 26I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; | 26I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you-- |
| 27When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. | 27when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you. |
| 28Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: | 28"Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me, |
| 29For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: | 29since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD. |
| 30They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. | 30Since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke, |
| 31Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. | 31they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes. |
| 32For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. | 32For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; |
| 33But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil. | 33but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm." |
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