⁷ “May my enemy be like the wicked,
    and may my opponent be like the unrighteous.
⁸ For what is the hope of the godless when God cuts them off,
    when God takes away their lives?
⁹ Will God hear their cry
    when trouble comes upon them?
¹⁰ Will they take delight in the Almighty?^[d]
    Will they call upon God at all times?
¹¹ I will teach you concerning the hand of God;
    that which is with the Almighty^[e] I will not conceal.
¹² All of you have seen it yourselves;
    why then have you become altogether vain?

¹³ “This is the portion of the wicked with God,
    and the heritage that oppressors receive from the Almighty:^[f]
14 If their children are multiplied, it is for the sword;
    and their offspring have not enough to eat.
¹⁵ Those who survive them the pestilence buries,
    and their widows make no lamentation.
¹⁶ Though they heap up silver like dust,
    and pile up clothing like clay—
¹⁷ they may pile it up, but the just will wear it,
    and the innocent will divide the silver.
¹⁸ They build their houses like nests,
    like booths made by sentinels of the vineyard.
¹⁹ They go to bed with wealth, but will do so no more;
    they open their eyes, and it is gone.
²⁰ Terrors overtake them like a flood;
    in the night a whirlwind carries them off.
²¹ The east wind lifts them up and they are gone;
    it sweeps them out of their place.
²² It^[g] hurls at them without pity;
    they flee from its^[h] power in headlong flight.
²³ It^[i] claps its^[j] hands at them,
    and hisses at them from its^[k] place.

⁷ “That path no bird of prey knows,
    and the falcon’s eye has not seen it.
⁸ The proud wild animals have not trodden it;
    the lion has not passed over it.

⁹ “They put their hand to the flinty rock,
    and overturn mountains by the roots.
¹⁰ They cut out channels in the rocks,
    and their eyes see every precious thing.
¹¹ The sources of the rivers they probe;^[n]
    hidden things they bring to light.

¹² “But where shall wisdom be found?
    And where is the place of understanding?
¹³ Mortals do not know the way to it,^[o]
    and it is not found in the land of the living.
¹⁴ The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’
    and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
¹⁵ It cannot be gotten for gold,
    and silver cannot be weighed out as its price.
¹⁶ It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
    in precious onyx or sapphire.^[p]
17 Gold and glass cannot equal it,
    nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.
¹⁸ No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
    the price of wisdom is above pearls.
¹⁹ The chrysolite of Ethiopia^[q] cannot compare with it,
    nor can it be valued in pure gold.

²⁰ “Where then does wisdom come from?
    And where is the place of understanding?
²¹ It is hidden from the eyes of all living,
    and concealed from the birds of the air.
²² Abaddon and Death say,
    ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.’

²³ “God understands the way to it,
    and he knows its place.
²⁴ For he looks to the ends of the earth,
    and sees everything under the heavens.
²⁵ When he gave to the wind its weight,
    and apportioned out the waters by measure;
²⁶ when he made a decree for the rain,
    and a way for the thunderbolt;
²⁷ then he saw it and declared it;
    he established it, and searched it out.
²⁸ And he said to humankind,
‘Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
    and to depart from evil is understanding.’”

⁵ Wisdom^[b] also, when the nations in wicked agreement had been put to confusion,
recognized the righteous man and preserved him blameless before God,
and kept him strong in the face of his compassion for his child.

⁶ Wisdom^[c] rescued a righteous man when the ungodly were perishing;
he escaped the fire that descended on the Five Cities.^[d]
7 Evidence of their wickedness still remains:
a continually smoking wasteland,
plants bearing fruit that does not ripen,
and a pillar of salt standing as a monument to an unbelieving soul.
⁸ For because they passed wisdom by,
they not only were hindered from recognizing the good,
but also left for humankind a reminder of their folly,
so that their failures could never go unnoticed.

⁹ Wisdom rescued from troubles those who served her.
¹⁰ When a righteous man fled from his brother’s wrath,
she guided him on straight paths;
she showed him the kingdom of God,
and gave him knowledge of holy things;
she prospered him in his labors,
and increased the fruit of his toil.
¹¹ When his oppressors were covetous,
she stood by him and made him rich.
¹² She protected him from his enemies,
and kept him safe from those who lay in wait for him;
in his arduous contest she gave him the victory,
so that he might learn that godliness is more powerful than anything else.