Proverbs 8

The Commendation of Wisdom

1 Does not ^awisdom call,
And understanding ▼

▼Lit give

raise her voice?
2 On top of ^cthe heights beside the way,
Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
3 Beside the ^dgates, at the opening to the city,
At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:
4 “To you, people, I call,
And my voice is to ▼

▼Lit sons of mankind

mankind.
5 “You ^fnaive ones, understand prudence;
And, you ^gfools, understand ▼

▼Lit heart

wisdom!
6 “Listen, for I will speak ⁱnoble things;
And the opening of my lips will reveal ^jright things.
7 “For my ^kmouth will proclaim truth;
And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
8 “All the words of my mouth are in righteousness;
There is nothing ^lcrooked or perverted in them.
9 “They are all ^mstraightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who ⁿfind knowledge.
10 “Accept my ^oinstruction and not silver,
And knowledge rather than choice gold.
11 “For wisdom is ^pbetter than ▼

▼Lit corals

jewels;
And ^rall desirable things cannot compare with her.

12 “I, wisdom, ^sdwell with prudence,
And I find ^tknowledge and discretion.
13 “The ^ufear of the Lord is to hate evil;
^vPride, arrogance, ^wthe evil way,
And the ^xperverted mouth, I hate.
14 “ ^yAdvice is mine and ^zsound wisdom;
I am understanding, ^aapower is mine.
15 “By me ^abkings reign,
And rulers decree justice.
16 “By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.
17 “I ^aclove those who love me;
And ^adthose who diligently seek me will find me.
18 “ ^aeRiches and honor are with me,
Enduring ^afwealth and righteousness.
19 “My fruit is ^agbetter than gold, even pure gold;
And my yield better than ^ahchoice silver.
20 “I walk in the way of righteousness,
In the midst of the paths of justice,
21 To endow those who love me with wealth,
That I may ^aifill their treasuries.

22 “The Lord ▼

▼Or possessed

created me ^akat the beginning of His way,
Before His works ▼

▼Lit from then

of old.
23 “From eternity I was ▼

▼Or consecrated

, ^anestablished,
From the beginning, ^aofrom the earliest times of the earth.
24 “When there were no ^apocean depths, I was born,
When there were no springs abounding with water.
25 “ ^aqBefore the mountains were settled,
Before the hills, I was born;
26 While He had not yet made the earth and the ▼

▼Lit outside places

fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.
27 “When He ^asestablished the heavens, I was there;
When ^atHe inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
28 When He made firm the skies above,
When the springs of the deep became ▼

▼Lit strong

fixed,
29 When ^avHe set a boundary for the sea
So that the water would not violate His ▼

▼Lit mouth

command,
When He marked out ^axthe foundations of the earth;
30 Then ^ayI was beside Him, as a master workman;
And I was His delight daily,
▼

▼Or Playing

Rejoicing always before Him,
31 ▼

▼Or Playing

Rejoicing in the world, His earth,
And having ^bbmy delight in the sons of mankind.

32 “Now then, sons, ^bclisten to me,
For ^bdblessed are those who keep my ways.
33 “ ^beListen to instruction and be wise,
And do not neglect it.
34 “ ^bfBlessed is the person who listens to me,
Watching daily at my gates,
Waiting at my doorposts.
35 “For ^bgone who finds me finds life,
And ^bhobtains favor from the Lord.
36 “But one who ▼

▼Or misses me

sins against me ^bjinjures himself;
All those who ^bkhate me ^bllove death.”