Proverbs

 2 To learn* wisdom+ and discipline;

To understand wise sayings;

 3 To acquire the discipline+ that gives insight,

Righteousness,+ good judgment,*+ and uprightness;*

 4 To impart shrewdness+ to the inexperienced;

To give a young man knowledge and thinking ability.+

 5 A wise person listens and takes in more instruction;+

A man of understanding acquires skillful direction*+

 6 To understand a proverb and a puzzling saying,*

The words of the wise and their riddles.+

 8 Listen, my son, to the discipline of your father,+

And do not forsake the instruction* of your mother.+

 9 They are an attractive wreath for your head+

And a fine ornament for your neck.+

12 We will swallow them alive as the Grave* does,

Whole, like those going down to the pit.

13 Let us seize all their precious treasures;

We will fill our houses with spoil.

14 You should join us,*

And we will all share equally what we steal.”*

Keep your feet off their path,+

16 For their feet run to do evil;

They hurry to shed blood.+

18 That is why these lie in ambush to shed blood;

They lie hidden to take the lives* of others.

19 These are the ways of those seeking dishonest profit,

Which will take away the life* of those who obtain it.+

Then I will pour out my spirit for you;

I will make my words known to you.+

24 Because I called out, but you kept refusing,

I stretched out my hand, but no one was paying attention,+

25 You kept neglecting all my advice

And rejecting my reproof,

26 I also will laugh when disaster strikes you;

I will mock when what you dread comes,+

27 When what you dread comes like a storm,

And your disaster arrives like a storm wind,

When distress and trouble come upon you.

28 At that time they will keep calling me, but I will not answer;

They will eagerly look for me, but they will not find me,+

29 Because they hated knowledge,+

And they did not choose to fear Jehovah.+

30 They refused my advice;

They disrespected all my reproof.

31 So they will bear the consequences* of their way,+

And they will be glutted with their own counsel.*

32 For the waywardness of the inexperienced will kill them,

And the complacency of fools will destroy them.

33 But the one listening to me will dwell in security+

And be undisturbed by the dread of calamity.”+