Proverbs 1:10-22

English Standard Version

¹⁰ My son, if sinners ^(A)entice you,
    do not consent.
¹¹ If they say, “Come with us, ^(B)let us lie in wait for blood;
    ^(C)let us ambush the innocent without reason;
¹² like Sheol let us ^(D)swallow them alive,
    and whole, like ^(E)those who go down to the pit;
¹³ we shall find all precious goods,
    we shall fill our houses with plunder;
¹⁴ throw in your lot among us;
    we will all have one purse”—
¹⁵ my son, ^(F)do not walk in the way with them;
    ^(G)hold back your foot from their paths,
¹⁶ for ^(H)their feet run to evil,
    and they make haste to shed blood.
^17 (I)For in vain is a net spread
    in the sight of any bird,
¹⁸ but these men ^(J)lie in wait for their own blood;
    they ^(K)set an ambush for their own lives.
^19 (L)Such are the ways of everyone who is ^(M)greedy for unjust gain;
    ^(N)it takes away the life of its possessors.

^20 (O)Wisdom cries aloud in the street,
    in the markets she raises her voice;
²¹ at the head of the noisy streets she cries out;
    at ^(P)the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
²² “How long, O ^(Q)simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will ^(R)scoffers delight in their scoffing
    and fools ^(S)hate knowledge?