Proverbs 4

1 Listen, sons, to the discipline of a father, and pay attention, so that you may know prudence.

Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

2 I will bestow upon you a good gift. Do not relinquish my law.

For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

3 For I, too, was the son of my father, tender and an only son in the sight of my mother.

For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

4 And he taught me, and he also said: “Let your heart accept my words. Keep my precepts, and you shall live.

He taught me also, and said to me, Let thy heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.

5 Obtain wisdom, obtain prudence. May you neither forget, nor turn away from, the words of my mouth.

Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

6 Do not send her away, and she will guard you. Love her, and she will preserve you.

Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.

7 The beginning of wisdom is to obtain wisdom, and, with all that you possess, to acquire prudence.

Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

8 Grasp her, and she will exalt you. You will be glorified by her, when you have embraced her.

Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

9 She will bestow upon your head an increase in graces, and she will protect you with a noble crown.

She shall give to thy head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

10 Listen, my son, and accept my words, so that years of life may be multiplied for you.

Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.

11 I will demonstrate to you the way of wisdom. I will lead you along the paths of equity.

I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

12 When you have entered by these, your steps will not be constrained, and when running, you will have no obstacle.

When thou goest, thy steps shall not be hindered; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

13 Take hold of discipline. Do not dismiss it. Guard it, for it is your life.

Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.

14 Do not delight in the paths of the impious, nor permit the way of evil-doers to please you.

Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.

15 Take flight from it. Do not pass close to it. Turn away and abandon it.

Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.

16 For they do not sleep, unless they have done evil. And their sleep is quickly taken away from them, unless they have overthrown.

For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.

17 They eat the bread of impiety, and they drink the wine of iniquity.

For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

18 But the path of the just is like a shining light: it advances and increases, even to the day of completion.

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more to the perfect day.

19 The way of the impious is darkened. They do not know where they may fall.

The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

20 My son, pay attention to my sermons, and incline your ear to my eloquent words.

My son, attend to my words; incline thy ear to my sayings.

21 Let them not recede from your eyes. Keep them in the midst of your heart.

Let them not depart from thy eyes; keep them in the midst of thy heart.

22 For they are life to those who find them and health to all that is flesh.

For they are life to those that find them, and health to all their flesh.

23 Preserve your heart with all watchfulness, for life proceeds from this.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

24 Remove from yourself a corrupt mouth, and let detracting lips be far from you.

Put away from thee a perverse mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

25 Let your eyes look straight ahead, and let your eyelids precede your steps.

Let thy eyes look right on, and let thy eyelids look straight before thee.

26 Direct the path of your feet, and all your ways shall be secure.

Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

27 Turn aside, neither to the right, nor to the left; yet turn your foot away from evil. For the Lord knows the ways that are on the right, and truly, those that are on the left are perverse. But he himself will make your courses straight. Then your journey will advance in peace.

Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.