Old/New Testament
Trust, Fear, and Honor Yahweh
3 My son, (A)do not forget my [a]law,
But let your heart (B)guard my commandments;
2 For (C)length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you.
3 Do not let (D)lovingkindness and truth forsake you;
(E)Bind them around your neck,
(F)Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will (G)find favor and (H)good insight
In the eyes of God and man.
5 (I)Trust in Yahweh with all your heart
And (J)do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways [b](K)acknowledge Him,
And He will (L)make your paths straight.
7 (M)Do not be wise in your own eyes;
(N)Fear Yahweh and turn away from evil.
8 It will be (O)healing to your [c]body
And (P)refreshment to your bones.
9 (Q)Honor Yahweh from your wealth
And from the (R)first of all your produce;
10 So your (S)barns will be filled with plenty
And your (T)vats will burst with new wine.
11 (U)My son, do not reject the [d]discipline of Yahweh
Or loathe His reproof,
12 For (V)whom Yahweh loves He reproves,
Even (W)as a father reproves the son in whom he delights.
13 (X)How blessed is the man who finds wisdom
And the man who obtains discernment.
14 For her (Y)profit is better than the profit of silver
And her produce better than fine gold.
15 She is (Z)more precious than [e]pearls;
And nothing you desire compares with her.
16 (AA)Length of days is in her right hand;
In her left hand are (AB)riches and glory.
17 Her (AC)ways are pleasant ways
And all her pathways are (AD)peace.
18 She is a (AE)tree of life to those who seize her,
And all those who hold her fast are blessed.
19 Yahweh (AF)by wisdom founded the earth,
By discernment He (AG)established the heavens.
20 By His knowledge the (AH)deeps were split up
And the (AI)skies drip with dew.
21 My son, (AJ)let them not deviate from your eyes;
Guard sound wisdom and discretion,
22 So they will be (AK)life for your soul
And (AL)grace for your neck.
23 Then you will (AM)walk in your way securely
And your foot will not (AN)stumble.
24 When you (AO)lie down, you will not be in dread;
You will lie down, and your sleep will be pleasant.
25 (AP)Do not be afraid of sudden dread
Nor of the (AQ)storm of the wicked when it comes;
26 For Yahweh will be [f]your confidence
And will (AR)keep your foot from being caught.
27 (AS)Do not withhold good from [g]those to whom it is due,
When it is in your hand to do it.
28 (AT)Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back,
And tomorrow I will give it,”
When it is there with you.
29 (AU)Do not devise [h]harm against your neighbor,
While he lives securely beside you.
30 (AV)Do not contend with a man without cause,
If he has dealt you no [i]harm.
31 (AW)Do not envy a man of violence
And do not choose any of his ways.
32 For the (AX)devious one is an abomination to Yahweh;
But His (AY)secret council is with the upright.
33 The (AZ)curse of Yahweh is on the house of the wicked one,
But He (BA)blesses the abode of the righteous.
34 Though (BB)He scoffs at the scoffers,
Yet (BC)He gives grace to the humble.
35 (BD)The wise will inherit glory,
But [j]fools raise up disgrace.
A Father’s Wise Instruction
4 Hear, O sons, the (BE)discipline of a father,
And (BF)pay attention that you may know understanding,
2 For I give you [k]sound (BG)learning;
(BH)Do not forsake my [l]instruction.
3 When I was a son to my father,
(BI)Tender and (BJ)the only son before my mother,
4 Then he (BK)instructed me and said to me,
“Let your heart (BL)hold fast my words;
(BM)Keep my commandments and live;
5 (BN)Acquire wisdom! (BO)Acquire understanding!
Do not forget and do not turn away from the sayings of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
(BP)Love her, and she will guard you.
7 [m](BQ)The beginning of wisdom is: (BR)Acquire wisdom;
And with all your acquiring, acquire understanding.
8 (BS)Prize her, and she will exalt you;
She will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will give (BT)for your head a garland of grace;
She will present you with a crown of beauty.”
10 Hear, my son, and (BU)receive my sayings
And the (BV)years of your life will be many.
11 I have (BW)instructed you in the way of wisdom;
I have led you in upright tracks.
12 When you walk, your (BX)steps will not be impeded;
And if you run, you (BY)will not stumble.
13 (BZ)Seize discipline; do not let go.
Guard her, for she is your (CA)life.
14 (CB)Do not enter the path of wicked men
And do not step into the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, do not pass by it;
(CC)Stray from it and pass on.
16 For they (CD)do not sleep unless they do evil;
And [n]they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble.
17 For they (CE)eat the bread of wickedness
And drink the wine of violence.
18 But the (CF)path of the righteous is like the (CG)light of dawn,
That (CH)shines brighter and brighter until the (CI)fullness of day.
19 The (CJ)way of the wicked is like thick darkness;
They do not know over what they [o](CK)stumble.
20 My son, (CL)pay attention to my words;
(CM)Incline your ear to my sayings.
21 (CN)Do not let them deviate from your eyes;
(CO)Keep them in the midst of your heart.
22 For they are (CP)life to those who find them
And (CQ)healing to all his flesh.
23 Guard your heart with all diligence,
For (CR)from it flow the springs of life.
24 Put away from you a (CS)perverse mouth
And (CT)put devious lips far from you.
25 Let your eyes look directly ahead
And even let your eyelids be fixed straight in front of you.
26 (CU)Watch the track of your feet
And all your (CV)ways will be established.
27 (CW)Do not turn to the right nor to the left;
(CX)Turn your foot from evil.
Warning Against Adultery
5 My son, (CY)pay attention to my wisdom,
(CZ)Incline your ear to my discernment;
2 That you may (DA)keep discretion
And that your (DB)lips may guard knowledge.
3 For the lips of a (DC)strange woman (DD)drip honey
And (DE)smoother than oil is her [p]speech;
4 But her end is (DF)bitter as wormwood,
(DG)Sharp as a two-edged sword.
5 Her feet (DH)go down to death,
Her steps take hold of Sheol,
6 Lest she watch the (DI)path of life;
Her tracks are (DJ)unstable, she (DK)does not know it.
7 (DL)So now, my sons, listen to me
And (DM)do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
8 (DN)Keep your way far from her
And do not go near the (DO)door of her house,
9 Lest you give your splendor to others
And your years to the cruel one;
10 Lest strangers be satisfied by your strength
And by your painful labor, those in the house of a foreigner;
11 And you groan at your [q]end,
When your flesh and your body are consumed;
12 And you say, “How I have (DP)hated discipline!
And my heart (DQ)spurned reproof!
13 I have not listened to the voice of my (DR)instructors,
And I have not inclined my ear to my teachers!
14 I was almost in utter ruin
In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
15 Drink water from your own cistern
And [r]fresh water from your own well.
16 Should your (DS)springs be dispersed abroad,
Streams of water in the streets?
17 Let them be for you alone,
And not for strangers with you.
18 Let your (DT)fountain be blessed,
And (DU)be glad in the (DV)wife of your youth.
19 As a loving (DW)hind and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be [s]intoxicated always with her love.
20 So why should you, my son, be intoxicated with a (DX)strange woman
And embrace the bosom of a (DY)foreign woman?
21 For the (DZ)ways of a man are before the eyes of Yahweh,
And He (EA)watches all his tracks.
22 His (EB)own iniquities will capture him who is the wicked one,
And with the cords of his sin he will be held fast.
23 He will (EC)die for lack of discipline,
And in the abundance of his [t]folly he will [u]stumble in intoxication.
God of All Comfort
1 Paul, (A)an apostle of (B)Christ Jesus (C)by the will of God, and (D)Timothy our brother,
To (E)the church of God which is at (F)Corinth with all the [a]saints who are throughout (G)Achaia:
2 (H)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 (I)Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and (J)God of all comfort, 4 who (K)comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in [b]any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For just (L)as the sufferings of Christ abound to us, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 But whether we are afflicted, it is (M)for your comfort and salvation; or whether we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is working in your perseverance in the same sufferings which we also suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that (N)as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.
8 For (O)we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of our (P)affliction which came to us in [c](Q)Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even to live. 9 [d]Indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not have confidence in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; 10 who (R)rescued us from so great a peril of death, and will rescue us, [e]He (S)on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet rescue us, 11 you also joining in (T)helping us through your prayers on our behalf, so that thanks may be given on our behalf by (U)many persons for the gracious gift bestowed on us through the prayers of many.
Paul’s Change of Plans
12 For our boasting is this: the testimony of (V)our conscience, that in [f]holiness and (W)godly sincerity, (X)not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you. 13 For we write nothing else to you than what you read and understand, and I hope you will understand (Y)until the end, 14 just as you also partially did understand us, that we are your reason for boasting as you also are ours, in (Z)the day of our Lord Jesus.
15 And in this confidence I intended at first to (AA)come to you, so that you might receive [g](AB)grace twice; 16 [h]that is, to (AC)pass [i]your way into (AD)Macedonia, and again from Macedonia to come to you, and by you to be (AE)helped on my journey to Judea. 17 Therefore, was I vacillating when I intended to do this? Or what I purpose, do I purpose (AF)according to the flesh, so that with me there will be yes, yes and no, no at the same time? 18 But as (AG)God is faithful, (AH)our word to you is not yes and no. 19 For (AI)the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me and (AJ)Silvanus and (AK)Timothy—was not yes and no, but has become yes (AL)in Him. 20 For (AM)as many as are the promises of God, (AN)in Him they are yes. Therefore also through Him is (AO)our Amen to the glory of God through us. 21 Now He who (AP)establishes us with you in Christ and (AQ)anointed us is God, 22 who also (AR)sealed us and (AS)gave the [j]pledge of the Spirit in our hearts.
23 But (AT)I call God as witness [k]to my soul, that (AU)to spare you I did not come again to (AV)Corinth. 24 Not that we (AW)lord it over your faith, but are workers with you for your joy; for in your faith you are (AX)standing firm.
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.