| New King James Version | King James Bible |
| 1My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within you, | 1My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; |
| 2So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to understanding; | 2So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; |
| 3Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for understanding, | 3Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; |
| 4If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasures; | 4If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; |
| 5Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, And find the knowledge of God. | 5Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. |
| 6For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding; | 6For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. |
| 7He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk uprightly; | 7He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. |
| 8He guards the paths of justice, And preserves the way of His saints. | 8He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. |
| 9Then you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every good path. | 9Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. |
| 10When wisdom enters your heart, And knowledge is pleasant to your soul, | 10When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; |
| 11Discretion will preserve you; Understanding will keep you, | 11Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: |
| 12To deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks perverse things, | 12To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things; |
| 13From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways of darkness; | 13Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness; |
| 14Who rejoice in doing evil, And delight in the perversity of the wicked; | 14Who rejoice to do evil, and delight in the frowardness of the wicked; |
| 15Whose ways are crooked, And who are devious in their paths; | 15Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths: |
| 16To deliver you from the immoral woman, From the seductress who flatters with her words, | 16To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; |
| 17Who forsakes the companion of her youth, And forgets the covenant of her God. | 17Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. |
| 18For her house leads down to death, And her paths to the dead; | 18For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead. |
| 19None who go to her return, Nor do they regain the paths of life— | 19None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life. |
| 20So you may walk in the way of goodness, And keep to the paths of righteousness. | 20That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, and keep the paths of the righteous. |
| 21For the upright will dwell in the land, And the blameless will remain in it; | 21For the upright shall dwell in the land, and the perfect shall remain in it. |
| 22But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, And the unfaithful will be uprooted from it. | 22But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be rooted out of it. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. |
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