Proverbs 3-6
New King James Version
Guidance for the Young
3 My son, do not forget my law,
(A)But let your heart keep my commands;
2 For length of days and long life
And (B)peace they will add to you.
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
(C)Bind them around your neck,
(D)Write them on the tablet of your heart,
4 (E)And so find favor and [a]high esteem
In the sight of God and man.
5 (F)Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
(G)And lean not on your own understanding;
6 (H)In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall [b]direct your paths.
7 Do not be wise in your own (I)eyes;
Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your [c]flesh,
And (J)strength[d] to your bones.
9 (K)Honor the Lord with your possessions,
And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
10 (L)So your barns will be filled with plenty,
And your vats will overflow with new wine.
11 (M)My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor detest His correction;
12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects,
(N)Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
13 (O)Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
And the man who gains understanding;
14 (P)For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver,
And her gain than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies,
And (Q)all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
16 (R)Length of days is in her right hand,
In her left hand riches and honor.
17 (S)Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
And all her paths are peace.
18 She is (T)a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who [e]retain her.
19 (U)The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
By understanding He established the heavens;
20 By His knowledge the depths were (V)broken up,
And clouds drop down the dew.
21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes—
Keep sound wisdom and discretion;
22 So they will be life to your soul
And grace to your neck.
23 (W)Then you will walk safely in your way,
And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
25 (X)Do not be afraid of sudden terror,
Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
26 For the Lord will be your confidence,
And will keep your foot from being caught.
27 (Y)Do not withhold good from [f]those to whom it is due,
When it is in the power of your hand to do so.
28 (Z)Do not say to your neighbor,
“Go, and come back,
And tomorrow I will give it,”
When you have it with you.
29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor,
For he dwells by you for safety’s sake.
30 (AA)Do not strive with a man without cause,
If he has done you no harm.
31 (AB)Do not envy the oppressor,
And choose none of his ways;
32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord,
(AC)But His secret counsel is with the upright.
33 (AD)The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked,
But (AE)He blesses the home of the just.
34 (AF)Surely He scorns the scornful,
But gives grace to the humble.
35 The wise shall inherit glory,
But shame shall be the legacy of fools.
Security in Wisdom
4 Hear, (AG)my children, the instruction of a father,
And give attention to know understanding;
2 For I give you good doctrine:
Do not forsake my law.
3 When I was my father’s son,
(AH)Tender and the only one in the sight of my mother,
4 (AI)He also taught me, and said to me:
“Let your heart retain my words;
(AJ)Keep my commands, and live.
5 (AK)Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you;
(AL)Love her, and she will keep you.
7 (AM)Wisdom is the principal thing;
Therefore get wisdom.
And in all your getting, get understanding.
8 (AN)Exalt her, and she will promote you;
She will bring you honor, when you embrace her.
9 She will place on your head (AO)an ornament of grace;
A crown of glory she will deliver to you.”
10 Hear, my son, and receive my sayings,
(AP)And the years of your life will be many.
11 I have (AQ)taught you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in right paths.
12 When you walk, (AR)your steps will not be hindered,
(AS)And when you run, you will not stumble.
13 Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go;
Keep her, for she is your life.
14 (AT)Do not enter the path of the wicked,
And do not walk in the way of evil.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
Turn away from it and pass on.
16 (AU)For they do not sleep unless they have done evil;
And their sleep is [g]taken away unless they make someone fall.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness,
And drink the wine of violence.
18 (AV)But the path of the just (AW)is like the shining [h]sun,
That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day.
19 (AX)The way of the wicked is like darkness;
They do not know what makes them stumble.
20 My son, give attention to my words;
Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your eyes;
Keep them in the midst of your heart;
22 For they are life to those who find them,
And health to all their flesh.
23 Keep your heart with all diligence,
For out of it spring the issues of (AY)life.
24 Put away from you a [i]deceitful mouth,
And put perverse lips far from you.
25 Let your eyes look straight ahead,
And your eyelids look right before you.
26 Ponder the path of your (AZ)feet,
And let all your ways be established.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;
Remove your foot from evil.
The Peril of Adultery
5 My son, pay attention to my wisdom;
[j]Lend your ear to my understanding,
2 That you may [k]preserve discretion,
And your lips (BA)may keep knowledge.
3 (BB)For the lips of [l]an immoral woman drip honey,
And her mouth is (BC)smoother than oil;
4 But in the end she is bitter as wormwood,
Sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death,
(BD)Her steps lay hold of [m]hell.
6 Lest you ponder her path of life—
Her ways are unstable;
You do not know them.
7 Therefore hear me now, my children,
And do not depart from the words of my mouth.
8 Remove your way far from her,
And do not go near the door of her house,
9 Lest you give your [n]honor to others,
And your years to the cruel one;
10 Lest aliens be filled with your [o]wealth,
And your labors go to the house of a foreigner;
11 And you mourn at last,
When your flesh and your body are consumed,
12 And say:
“How I have hated instruction,
And my heart despised correction!
13 I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,
Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me!
14 I was on the verge of total ruin,
In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern,
And running water from your own well.
16 Should your fountains be dispersed abroad,
[p]Streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be only your own,
And not for strangers with you.
18 Let your fountain be blessed,
And rejoice with (BE)the wife of your youth.
19 (BF)As a loving deer and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
And always be [q]enraptured with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be enraptured by (BG)an immoral woman,
And be embraced in the arms of a seductress?
21 (BH)For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord,
And He [r]ponders all his paths.
22 (BI)His own iniquities entrap the wicked man,
And he is caught in the cords of his sin.
23 (BJ)He shall die for lack of instruction,
And in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.
Dangerous Promises
6 My son, (BK)if you become [s]surety for your friend,
If you have [t]shaken hands in pledge for a stranger,
2 You are snared by the words of your mouth;
You are taken by the words of your mouth.
3 So do this, my son, and deliver yourself;
For you have come into the hand of your friend:
Go and humble yourself;
Plead with your friend.
4 (BL)Give no sleep to your eyes,
Nor slumber to your eyelids.
5 Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter,
And like a bird from the hand of the [u]fowler.
The Folly of Indolence
6 (BM)Go to the ant, you sluggard!
Consider her ways and be wise,
7 Which, having no [v]captain,
Overseer or ruler,
8 Provides her [w]supplies in the summer,
And gathers her food in the harvest.
9 (BN)How long will you [x]slumber, O sluggard?
When will you rise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to sleep—
11 (BO)So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler,
And your need like an armed man.
The Wicked Man
12 A worthless person, a wicked man,
Walks with a perverse mouth;
13 (BP)He winks with his eyes,
He [y]shuffles his feet,
He points with his fingers;
14 Perversity is in his heart,
(BQ)He devises evil continually,
(BR)He sows discord.
15 Therefore his calamity shall come (BS)suddenly;
Suddenly he shall (BT)be broken (BU)without remedy.
16 These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to [z]Him:
17 (BV)A[aa] proud look,
(BW)A lying tongue,
(BX)Hands that shed innocent blood,
18 (BY)A heart that devises wicked plans,
(BZ)Feet that are swift in running to evil,
19 (CA)A false witness who speaks lies,
And one who (CB)sows discord among brethren.
Beware of Adultery
20 (CC)My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
21 (CD)Bind them continually upon your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
22 (CE)When you roam, [ab]they will lead you;
When you sleep, (CF)they will keep you;
And when you awake, they will speak with you.
23 (CG)For the commandment is a lamp,
And the law a light;
Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,
24 (CH)To keep you from the evil woman,
From the flattering tongue of a seductress.
25 (CI)Do not lust after her beauty in your heart,
Nor let her allure you with her eyelids.
26 For (CJ)by means of a harlot
A man is reduced to a crust of bread;
(CK)And [ac]an adulteress will (CL)prey upon his precious life.
27 Can a man take fire to his bosom,
And his clothes not be burned?
28 Can one walk on hot coals,
And his feet not be seared?
29 So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her shall not be innocent.
30 People do not despise a thief
If he steals to satisfy himself when he is starving.
31 Yet when he is found, (CM)he must restore sevenfold;
He may have to give up all the substance of his house.
32 Whoever commits adultery with a woman (CN)lacks understanding;
He who does so destroys his own soul.
33 Wounds and dishonor he will get,
And his reproach will not be wiped away.
34 For (CO)jealousy is a husband’s fury;
Therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.
35 He will [ad]accept no recompense,
Nor will he be appeased though you give many gifts.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 3:4 Lit. good understanding
- Proverbs 3:6 Or make smooth or straight
- Proverbs 3:8 Body, lit. navel
- Proverbs 3:8 Lit. drink
- Proverbs 3:18 hold her fast
- Proverbs 3:27 Lit. its owners
- Proverbs 4:16 Lit. robbed
- Proverbs 4:18 Lit. light
- Proverbs 4:24 devious
- Proverbs 5:1 Lit. Bow
- Proverbs 5:2 appreciate good judgment
- Proverbs 5:3 Lit. a strange
- Proverbs 5:5 Or Sheol
- Proverbs 5:9 vigor
- Proverbs 5:10 Lit. strength
- Proverbs 5:16 Channels
- Proverbs 5:19 Lit. intoxicated
- Proverbs 5:21 observes, lit. weighs
- Proverbs 6:1 guaranty or collateral
- Proverbs 6:1 Lit. struck
- Proverbs 6:5 One who catches birds in a trap or snare
- Proverbs 6:7 Lit. leader
- Proverbs 6:8 Lit. bread
- Proverbs 6:9 Lit. lie down
- Proverbs 6:13 gives signals, lit. scrapes
- Proverbs 6:16 Lit. His soul
- Proverbs 6:17 Lit. Haughty eyes
- Proverbs 6:22 Lit. it
- Proverbs 6:26 Wife of another, lit. a man’s wife
- Proverbs 6:35 Lit. lift up the face of any
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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