New American Standard Bible 1995

Holman Christian Standard Bible

1Does not wisdom call, And understanding lift up her voice?

1Doesn't Wisdom call out? Doesn't Understanding make her voice heard?

2On top of the heights beside the way, Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;

2At the heights overlooking the road, at the crossroads, she takes her stand.

3Beside the gates, at the opening to the city, At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:

3Beside the gates at the entry to the city, at the main entrance, she cries out:"

4"To you, O men, I call, And my voice is to the sons of men.

4People, I call out to you; my cry is to mankind.

5"O naive ones, understand prudence; And, O fools, understand wisdom.

5Learn to be shrewd, you who are inexperienced; develop common sense, you who are foolish.

6"Listen, for I will speak noble things; And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.

6Listen, for I speak of noble things, and what my lips say is right.

7"For my mouth will utter truth; And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

7For my mouth tells the truth, and wickedness is detestable to my lips.

8"All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

8All the words of my mouth are righteous; none of them are deceptive or perverse.

9"They are all straightforward to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge.

9All of them are clear to the perceptive, and right to those who discover knowledge.

10"Take my instruction and not silver, And knowledge rather than choicest gold.

10Accept my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than pure gold.

11"For wisdom is better than jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

11For wisdom is better than jewels, and nothing desirable can compare with it.

12"I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And I find knowledge and discretion.

12I, Wisdom, share a home with shrewdness and have knowledge and discretion.

13"The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.

13To fear the LORD is to hate evil. I hate arrogant pride, evil conduct, and perverse speech.

14"Counsel is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine.

14I possess good advice and competence; I have understanding and strength.

15"By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice.

15It is by me that kings reign and rulers enact just law;

16"By me princes rule, and nobles, All who judge rightly.

16by me, princes lead, as do nobles and all righteous judges.

17"I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me.

17I love those who love me, and those who search for me find me.

18"Riches and honor are with me, Enduring wealth and righteousness.

18With me are riches and honor, lasting wealth and righteousness.

19"My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold, And my yield better than choicest silver.

19My fruit is better than solid gold, and my harvest than pure silver.

20"I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice,

20I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,

21To endow those who love me with wealth, That I may fill their treasuries.

21giving wealth as an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries."

22"The LORD possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old.

22The LORD made me at the beginning of His creation, before His works of long ago.

23"From everlasting I was established, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

23I was formed before ancient times, from the beginning, before the earth began.

24"When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs abounding with water.

24I was born when there were no watery depths and no springs filled with water.

25"Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills I was brought forth;

25I was delivered before the mountains and hills were established,

26While He had not yet made the earth and the fields, Nor the first dust of the world.

26before He made the land, the fields, or the first soil on earth.

27"When He established the heavens, I was there, When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

27I was there when He established the heavens, when He laid out the horizon on the surface of the ocean,

28When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became fixed,

28when He placed the skies above, when the fountains of the ocean gushed out,

29When He set for the sea its boundary So that the water would not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

29when He set a limit for the sea so that the waters would not violate His command, when He laid out the foundations of the earth.

30Then I was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was daily His delight, Rejoicing always before Him,

30I was a skilled craftsman beside Him. I was His delight every day, always rejoicing before Him.

31Rejoicing in the world, His earth, And having my delight in the sons of men.

31I was rejoicing in His inhabited world, delighting in the human race."

32"Now therefore, O sons, listen to me, For blessed are they who keep my ways.

32And now, my sons, listen to me; those who keep my ways are happy.

33"Heed instruction and be wise, And do not neglect it.

33Listen to instruction and be wise; don't ignore it.

34"Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my doorposts.

34Anyone who listens to me is happy, watching at my doors every day, waiting by the posts of my doorway.

35"For he who finds me finds life And obtains favor from the LORD.

35For the one who finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD,

36"But he who sins against me injures himself; All those who hate me love death."

36but the one who misses me harms himself; all who hate me love death."

New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org

Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.