Font Size
Proverbs 4-7
New American Standard Bible
Proverbs 4-7
New American Standard Bible
A Father’s Instruction
4 Listen, my sons, to the (A)instruction of a father,
And (B)pay attention so that you may [a]gain understanding,
2 For I give you good (C)teaching;
(D)Do not abandon my [b]instruction.
3 When I was a son to my father,
(E)Tender and (F)the only son in the sight of my mother,
4 He (G)taught me and said to me,
“Let your heart (H)take hold of my words;
(I)Keep my commandments and live;
5 (J)Acquire wisdom! (K)Acquire understanding!
Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not abandon her, and she will guard you;
(L)Love her, and she will watch over you.
7 (M)The [c]beginning of wisdom is: (N)Acquire wisdom;
And with all your possessions, acquire understanding.
8 (O)Prize her, and she will exalt you;
She will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will place (P)on your head a garland of grace;
She will present you with a crown of beauty.”
10 Listen, my son, and (Q)accept my sayings,
And the (R)years of your life will be many.
11 I have (S)instructed you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in upright paths.
12 When you walk, your (T)steps will not be hampered;
And if you run, you (U)will not stumble.
13 (V)Take hold of instruction; do not let go.
Guard her, for she is your (W)life.
14 (X)Do not enter the path of the wicked
And do not proceed in the way of evil people.
15 Avoid it, do not pass by it;
Turn away from it and pass on.
16 For they (Y)cannot sleep unless they do evil;
And [d]they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.
17 For they (Z)eat the bread of wickedness,
And drink the wine of violence.
18 But the (AA)path of the righteous is like the (AB)light of dawn
That (AC)shines brighter and brighter until the (AD)full day.
19 The (AE)way of the wicked is like darkness;
They do not know over what they [e](AF)stumble.
20 My son, (AG)pay attention to my words;
(AH)Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 (AI)They are not to escape from your sight;
(AJ)Keep them in the midst of your heart.
22 For they are (AK)life to those who find them,
And (AL)healing to all [f]their body.
23 Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For (AM)from it flow the springs of life.
24 Rid yourself of a (AN)deceitful mouth
And (AO)keep devious [g]speech far from you.
25 Let your eyes look directly ahead
And let your [h]gaze be fixed straight in front of you.
26 (AP)[i]Watch the path of your feet,
And all your (AQ)ways will be established.
27 (AR)Do not turn to the right or to the left;
(AS)Turn your foot from evil.
Pitfalls of Immorality
5 My son, (AT)pay attention to my wisdom,
(AU)Incline your ear to my understanding,
2 So that you may (AV)maintain discretion
And your (AW)lips may comply with knowledge.
3 For the lips of an [j](AX)adulteress (AY)drip honey,
And her [k]speech is (AZ)smoother than oil;
4 But in the end she is (BA)bitter as wormwood,
(BB)Sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet (BC)go down to death,
Her steps take hold of Sheol.
6 [l]She does not ponder the (BD)path of life;
Her ways are (BE)unstable, she (BF)does not know it.
7 (BG)Now then, my sons, listen to me
And (BH)do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
8 (BI)Keep your way far from her,
And do not go near the (BJ)door of her house,
9 Otherwise you will give your vigor to others,
And your years to the cruel one;
10 And strangers will be filled with your strength,
And your hard-earned possessions will go to the house of a foreigner;
11 And you will groan [m]in [n]the end,
When your flesh and your body are consumed;
12 And you say, “How I (BK)hated instruction!
And my heart (BL)disdainfully rejected rebuke!
13 I did not listen to the voice of my (BM)teachers,
Nor incline my ear to my instructors!
14 I was almost in total ruin
In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern,
And [o]fresh water from your own well.
16 Should your (BN)springs overflow into the street,
Streams of water in the public squares?
17 Let them be yours alone,
And not for strangers with you.
18 Let your (BO)fountain be blessed,
And (BP)rejoice in the (BQ)wife of your youth.
19 Like a loving (BR)doe and a graceful mountain goat,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be [p]exhilarated always with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an [q](BS)adulteress,
And embrace the breasts of a (BT)foreigner?
21 For the (BU)ways of everyone are before the eyes of the Lord,
And He (BV)observes all his paths.
22 His (BW)own wrongdoings will trap the wicked,
And he will be held by the ropes of his sin.
23 He will (BX)die for lack of instruction,
And in the greatness of his foolishness he will go astray.
Parental Counsel
6 My son, if you have become a (BY)guarantor for your neighbor,
Or have given a handshake for a stranger,
2 If you have been ensnared by the words of your mouth,
Or caught by the words of your mouth,
3 Then do this, my son, and save yourself:
Since you have come into the [r]hand of your neighbor,
Go, humble yourself, and be urgent with your neighbor to free yourself.
4 Give no (BZ)sleep to your eyes,
Nor slumber to your eyelids;
5 Save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter’s hand,
And like a (CA)bird from the hand of the fowler.
6 Go to the (CB)ant, you [s](CC)lazy one,
Observe its ways and be wise,
7 Which, having (CD)no chief,
Officer, or ruler,
8 Prepares its food (CE)in the summer
And gathers its provision in the harvest.
9 How long will you lie down, you [t]lazy one?
When will you arise from your sleep?
10 “(CF)A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to [u]rest,”
11 (CG)Then your poverty will come in like a [v]drifter,
And your need like [w]an armed man.
12 A (CH)worthless person, a wicked man,
Is one who walks with a (CI)perverse mouth,
13 Who (CJ)winks with his eyes, who [x]signals with his feet,
Who [y]points with his fingers;
14 Who, with (CK)perversion in his heart, continually (CL)devises evil,
Who [z](CM)spreads strife.
15 Therefore (CN)his disaster will come suddenly;
(CO)Instantly he will be broken and there will be (CP)no healing.
16 There are six things that the Lord hates,
Seven that are an abomination [aa]to Him:
17 (CQ)Haughty eyes, a (CR)lying tongue,
And hands that (CS)shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises (CT)wicked plans,
(CU)Feet that run rapidly to evil,
19 A (CV)false witness who declares lies,
And one who [ab](CW)spreads strife among brothers.
20 (CX)My son, comply with the commandment of your father,
And do not ignore the [ac]teaching of your mother;
21 (CY)Bind them continually on your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
22 When you (CZ)walk, [ad]they will guide you;
When you sleep, [ae]they will watch over you;
And when you awake, [af]they will talk to you.
23 For (DA)the commandment is a lamp and the [ag]teaching is light;
And rebukes for discipline are the way of life
24 To (DB)keep you from the evil woman,
From the smooth tongue of the foreign woman.
25 (DC)Do not desire her beauty in your heart,
Nor let her capture you with her (DD)eyelids.
26 For (DE)the price of a prostitute reduces one to a loaf of bread,
And [ah]an adulteress (DF)hunts for a precious life.
27 Can anyone take fire in his lap
And his clothes not be burned?
28 Or can a person walk on hot coals
And his feet not be scorched?
29 So is the one who (DG)goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her (DH)will not [ai]go unpunished.
30 People do not despise a thief if he steals
To (DI)satisfy [aj]himself when he is hungry;
31 But when he is found, he must (DJ)repay seven times as much;
He must give up all the property of his house.
32 One who commits adultery with a woman is (DK)lacking [ak]sense;
He who would (DL)destroy [al]himself commits it.
33 He will find wounds and disgrace,
And his shame will not be removed.
34 For (DM)jealousy [am]enrages a man,
And he will not have compassion on the (DN)day of vengeance.
35 He will not [an]accept any settlement,
Nor will he be [ao]satisfied though you make it a large gift.
The Lures of the Prostitute
7 My son, (DO)keep my words
And treasure my commandments within you.
2 (DP)Keep my commandments and live,
And my [ap]teaching (DQ)as the [aq]apple of your eye.
3 (DR)Bind them on your fingers;
(DS)Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
And call understanding your intimate friend,
5 So that they may keep you from an [ar]adulteress,
From the foreigner who flatters with her words.
6 For (DT)at the window of my house
I looked out (DU)through my lattice,
7 And I saw among the (DV)naive,
And discerned among the [as]youths
A young man (DW)lacking [at]sense,
8 Passing through the street near (DX)her corner;
And he walks along the way to (DY)her house,
9 In the (DZ)twilight, in the [au]evening,
In the [av]middle of the night and the darkness.
10 And behold, a woman comes to meet him,
(EA)Dressed as a prostitute and cunning of heart.
11 She is (EB)boisterous and rebellious,
Her (EC)feet do not remain at home;
12 She is now in the streets, now (ED)in the public squares,
And (EE)lurks by every corner.
13 So she seizes him and kisses him,
[aw]And with a (EF)brazen face she says to him:
14 “[ax]I was due to offer (EG)peace offerings;
Today I have (EH)paid my vows.
15 Therefore I have come out to meet you,
To seek your presence diligently, and I have found you.
16 I have spread my couch with (EI)coverings,
With colored (EJ)linens of Egypt.
17 I have sprinkled my bed
With (EK)myrrh, aloes, and (EL)cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink our fill of love until morning;
Let’s delight ourselves with caresses.
19 For [ay]my husband is not at home;
He has gone on a long journey.
20 He has taken a (EM)bag of money [az]with him.
At the full moon he will come home.”
21 With her many persuasions she entices him;
With her [ba](EN)flattering lips she seduces him.
22 Suddenly he follows her
As an ox goes to the slaughter,
Or as [bb]one walks in ankle bracelets to the discipline of a fool,
23 Until an arrow pierces through his liver;
As a (EO)bird hurries to the snare,
So he does not know that it will cost him his life.
24 Now therefore, my sons, (EP)listen to me,
And pay attention to the words of my mouth.
25 Do not let your heart (EQ)turn aside to her ways,
Do not stray into her paths.
26 For many are the [bc]victims she has brought to ruin,
And (ER)numerous are all those slaughtered by her.
27 Her (ES)house is the way to Sheol,
Descending to the chambers of death.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 4:1 Lit know
- Proverbs 4:2 Or law
- Proverbs 4:7 Or primary thing is wisdom
- Proverbs 4:16 Lit their sleep is robbed
- Proverbs 4:19 Or may stumble
- Proverbs 4:22 Lit his
- Proverbs 4:24 Or lips
- Proverbs 4:25 Or eyelids
- Proverbs 4:26 I.e., prob. stay on the path
- Proverbs 5:3 Lit strange woman
- Proverbs 5:3 Lit palate
- Proverbs 5:6 Lit That she not watch
- Proverbs 5:11 Or at
- Proverbs 5:11 Lit your end
- Proverbs 5:15 Lit flowing
- Proverbs 5:19 Lit intoxicated
- Proverbs 5:20 Lit strange woman
- Proverbs 6:3 Lit palm
- Proverbs 6:6 Lit idle one
- Proverbs 6:9 Lit idle one
- Proverbs 6:10 Lit lie down
- Proverbs 6:11 Lit one who moves about
- Proverbs 6:11 Lit a man with a shield
- Proverbs 6:13 Lit scrapes
- Proverbs 6:13 Lit instructs with
- Proverbs 6:14 Lit sends out
- Proverbs 6:16 Lit of His soul
- Proverbs 6:19 Lit sends out
- Proverbs 6:20 Or law
- Proverbs 6:22 Lit she
- Proverbs 6:22 Lit she
- Proverbs 6:22 Lit she
- Proverbs 6:23 Or law
- Proverbs 6:26 Lit a man’s wife
- Proverbs 6:29 Lit be innocent
- Proverbs 6:30 Lit his soul
- Proverbs 6:32 Lit heart
- Proverbs 6:32 Lit his soul
- Proverbs 6:34 Lit is the rage of
- Proverbs 6:35 Lit lift up the face of any
- Proverbs 6:35 Lit willing
- Proverbs 7:2 Or law
- Proverbs 7:2 Lit pupil
- Proverbs 7:5 Lit strange woman
- Proverbs 7:7 Lit sons
- Proverbs 7:7 Lit heart
- Proverbs 7:9 Lit evening of the day
- Proverbs 7:9 Lit pupil (of the eye)
- Proverbs 7:13 Lit She makes bold her face and says
- Proverbs 7:14 Lit Sacrifices of peace offerings are with me
- Proverbs 7:19 Lit the man
- Proverbs 7:20 Lit in his hand
- Proverbs 7:21 Lit smooth
- Proverbs 7:22 Or as a stag goes into a trap; as in some ancient versions, Heb is uncertain
- Proverbs 7:26 Lit wounded
Proverbs 4-7
New International Version
Proverbs 4-7
New International Version
Get Wisdom at Any Cost
4 Listen, my sons,(A) to a father’s instruction;(B)
pay attention and gain understanding.(C)
2 I give you sound learning,
so do not forsake my teaching.
3 For I too was a son to my father,
still tender, and cherished by my mother.
4 Then he taught me, and he said to me,
“Take hold(D) of my words with all your heart;
keep my commands, and you will live.(E)
5 Get wisdom,(F) get understanding;
do not forget my words or turn away from them.
6 Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;(G)
love her, and she will watch over you.(H)
7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get[a] wisdom.
Though it cost all(I) you have,[b] get understanding.(J)
8 Cherish her, and she will exalt you;
embrace her, and she will honor you.(K)
9 She will give you a garland to grace your head
and present you with a glorious crown.(L)”
10 Listen, my son,(M) accept what I say,
and the years of your life will be many.(N)
11 I instruct(O) you in the way of wisdom
and lead you along straight paths.(P)
12 When you walk, your steps will not be hampered;
when you run, you will not stumble.(Q)
13 Hold on to instruction, do not let it go;
guard it well, for it is your life.(R)
14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
or walk in the way of evildoers.(S)
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it;
turn from it and go on your way.
16 For they cannot rest until they do evil;(T)
they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble.
17 They eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.(U)
18 The path of the righteous(V) is like the morning sun,(W)
shining ever brighter till the full light of day.(X)
19 But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness;(Y)
they do not know what makes them stumble.(Z)
20 My son,(AA) pay attention to what I say;
turn your ear to my words.(AB)
21 Do not let them out of your sight,(AC)
keep them within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them
and health to one’s whole body.(AD)
23 Above all else, guard(AE) your heart,
for everything you do flows from it.(AF)
24 Keep your mouth free of perversity;
keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
25 Let your eyes(AG) look straight ahead;
fix your gaze directly before you.
26 Give careful thought to the[c] paths for your feet(AH)
and be steadfast in all your ways.
27 Do not turn to the right or the left;(AI)
keep your foot from evil.
Warning Against Adultery
5 My son,(AJ) pay attention to my wisdom,
turn your ear to my words(AK) of insight,
2 that you may maintain discretion
and your lips may preserve knowledge.
3 For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey,
and her speech is smoother than oil;(AL)
4 but in the end she is bitter as gall,(AM)
sharp as a double-edged sword.
5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave.(AN)
6 She gives no thought to the way of life;
her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.(AO)
7 Now then, my sons, listen(AP) to me;
do not turn aside from what I say.
8 Keep to a path far from her,(AQ)
do not go near the door of her house,
9 lest you lose your honor to others
and your dignity[d] to one who is cruel,
10 lest strangers feast on your wealth
and your toil enrich the house of another.(AR)
11 At the end of your life you will groan,
when your flesh and body are spent.
12 You will say, “How I hated discipline!
How my heart spurned correction!(AS)
13 I would not obey my teachers
or turn my ear to my instructors.
14 And I was soon in serious trouble(AT)
in the assembly of God’s people.”(AU)
15 Drink water from your own cistern,
running water from your own well.
16 Should your springs overflow in the streets,
your streams of water in the public squares?
17 Let them be yours alone,
never to be shared with strangers.
18 May your fountain(AV) be blessed,
and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.(AW)
19 A loving doe, a graceful deer(AX)—
may her breasts satisfy you always,
may you ever be intoxicated with her love.
20 Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife?
Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?
21 For your ways are in full view(AY) of the Lord,
and he examines(AZ) all your paths.(BA)
22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them;(BB)
the cords of their sins hold them fast.(BC)
23 For lack of discipline they will die,(BD)
led astray by their own great folly.(BE)
Warnings Against Folly
6 My son,(BF) if you have put up security(BG) for your neighbor,(BH)
if you have shaken hands in pledge(BI) for a stranger,
2 you have been trapped by what you said,
ensnared by the words of your mouth.
3 So do this, my son, to free yourself,
since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands:
Go—to the point of exhaustion—[e]
and give your neighbor no rest!
4 Allow no sleep to your eyes,
no slumber to your eyelids.(BJ)
5 Free yourself, like a gazelle(BK) from the hand of the hunter,(BL)
like a bird from the snare of the fowler.(BM)
6 Go to the ant, you sluggard;(BN)
consider its ways and be wise!
7 It has no commander,
no overseer or ruler,
8 yet it stores its provisions in summer(BO)
and gathers its food at harvest.(BP)
9 How long will you lie there, you sluggard?(BQ)
When will you get up from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest(BR)—
11 and poverty(BS) will come on you like a thief
and scarcity like an armed man.
12 A troublemaker and a villain,
who goes about with a corrupt mouth,
13 who winks maliciously with his eye,(BT)
signals with his feet
and motions with his fingers,(BU)
14 who plots evil(BV) with deceit in his heart—
he always stirs up conflict.(BW)
15 Therefore disaster will overtake him in an instant;(BX)
he will suddenly(BY) be destroyed—without remedy.(BZ)
16 There are six things the Lord hates,(CA)
seven that are detestable to him:
17 haughty eyes,(CB)
a lying tongue,(CC)
hands that shed innocent blood,(CD)
18 a heart that devises wicked schemes,
feet that are quick to rush into evil,(CE)
19 a false witness(CF) who pours out lies(CG)
and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.(CH)
Warning Against Adultery
20 My son,(CI) keep your father’s command
and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.(CJ)
21 Bind them always on your heart;
fasten them around your neck.(CK)
22 When you walk, they will guide you;
when you sleep, they will watch over you;
when you awake, they will speak to you.
23 For this command is a lamp,
this teaching is a light,(CL)
and correction and instruction
are the way to life,(CM)
24 keeping you from your neighbor’s wife,
from the smooth talk of a wayward woman.(CN)
25 Do not lust in your heart after her beauty
or let her captivate you with her eyes.
26 For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread,
but another man’s wife preys on your very life.(CO)
27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap
without his clothes being burned?
28 Can a man walk on hot coals
without his feet being scorched?
29 So is he who sleeps(CP) with another man’s wife;(CQ)
no one who touches her will go unpunished.
30 People do not despise a thief if he steals
to satisfy his hunger when he is starving.
31 Yet if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold,(CR)
though it costs him all the wealth of his house.
32 But a man who commits adultery(CS) has no sense;(CT)
whoever does so destroys himself.
33 Blows and disgrace are his lot,
and his shame will never(CU) be wiped away.
34 For jealousy(CV) arouses a husband’s fury,(CW)
and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
35 He will not accept any compensation;
he will refuse a bribe, however great it is.(CX)
Warning Against the Adulterous Woman
7 My son,(CY) keep my words
and store up my commands within you.
2 Keep my commands and you will live;(CZ)
guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.
3 Bind them on your fingers;
write them on the tablet of your heart.(DA)
4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and to insight, “You are my relative.”
5 They will keep you from the adulterous woman,
from the wayward woman with her seductive words.(DB)
6 At the window of my house
I looked down through the lattice.
7 I saw among the simple,
I noticed among the young men,
a youth who had no sense.(DC)
8 He was going down the street near her corner,
walking along in the direction of her house
9 at twilight,(DD) as the day was fading,
as the dark of night set in.
10 Then out came a woman to meet him,
dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
11 (She is unruly(DE) and defiant,
her feet never stay at home;
12 now in the street, now in the squares,
at every corner she lurks.)(DF)
13 She took hold of him(DG) and kissed him
and with a brazen face she said:(DH)
14 “Today I fulfilled my vows,
and I have food from my fellowship offering(DI) at home.
15 So I came out to meet you;
I looked for you and have found you!
16 I have covered my bed
with colored linens from Egypt.
17 I have perfumed my bed(DJ)
with myrrh,(DK) aloes and cinnamon.
18 Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning;
let’s enjoy ourselves with love!(DL)
19 My husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey.
20 He took his purse filled with money
and will not be home till full moon.”
21 With persuasive words she led him astray;
she seduced him with her smooth talk.(DM)
22 All at once he followed her
like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer[f] stepping into a noose[g](DN)
23 till an arrow pierces(DO) his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
little knowing it will cost him his life.(DP)
Footnotes
- Proverbs 4:7 Or Wisdom is supreme; therefore get
- Proverbs 4:7 Or wisdom. / Whatever else you get
- Proverbs 4:26 Or Make level
- Proverbs 5:9 Or years
- Proverbs 6:3 Or Go and humble yourself,
- Proverbs 7:22 Syriac (see also Septuagint); Hebrew fool
- Proverbs 7:22 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) 
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.