Sermon Central
Proverbs 1-9
Purpose and Theme 1The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2for gaining wisdom and instruction; for understanding words of insight;
3for receiving instruction in prudent behavior, doing what is right and just and fair;
4for giving prudence to those who are simple,
5let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance—
6for understanding proverbs and parables, the sayings and riddles of the wise.
7The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools
Prologue: Exhortations to Embrace Wisdom Warning Against the Invitation of Sinful Men 8Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
9They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.
10My son, if sinful men entice you, do not give in to them.
11If they say, “Come along with us; let’s lie in wait for innocent blood, let’s ambush some harmless soul;
12let’s swallow them alive, like the grave, and whole, like those who go down to the pit;
13we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder;
14cast lots with us; we will all share the loot”—
15my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths;
16for their feet rush into evil, they are swift to shed blood.
17How useless to spread a net where every bird can see it!
18These men lie in wait for their own blood; they ambush only themselves!
19Such are the paths of all who go after ill-gotten gain; it takes away the life of those who get it.
Wisdom’s Rebuke 20Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square;
21on top of the wall
22“How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?
23Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings.
24But since you refuse to listen when I call and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,
25since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke,
26I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
27when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.
28“Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me,
29since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD .
30Since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke,
31they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.
32For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; 33but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”
Moral Benefits of Wisdom 1My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you,
2turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding—
3indeed, if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding,
4and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure,
5then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.
6For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
7He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
8for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones.
9Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path.
10For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul.
11Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.
12Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse,
13who have left the straight paths to walk in dark ways,
14who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,
15whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways.
16Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words,
17who has left the partner of her youth and ignored the covenant she made before God.
18Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead.
19None who go to her return or attain the paths of life.
20Thus you will walk in the ways of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous.
21For the upright will live in the land, and the blameless will remain in it; 22but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be torn from it.
Wisdom Bestows Well-Being 1My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,
2for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity.
3Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.
4Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.
5Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
7Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.
8This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
9Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;
10then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
11My son, do not despise the LORD ’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke,
12because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.
13Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding,
14for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.
15She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.
16Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.
17Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace.
18She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed.
19By wisdom the LORD laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place;
20by his knowledge the watery depths were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew.
21My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion;
22they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck.
23Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble.
24When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,
26for the LORD will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared.
27Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.
28Do not say to your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I’ll give it to you”— when you already have it with you.
29Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you.
30Do not accuse anyone for no reason— when they have done you no harm.
31Do not envy the violent or choose any of their ways.
32For the LORD detests the perverse but takes the upright into his confidence.
33The LORD ’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous.
34He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed. 35The wise inherit honor, but fools get only shame.
Get Wisdom at Any Cost 1Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding.
2I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching.
3For I too was a son to my father, still tender, and cherished by my mother.
4Then he taught me, and he said to me, “Take hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands, and you will live.
5Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them.
6Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you.
7The beginning of wisdom is this: Get
8Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you.
9She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”
10Listen, my son, accept what I say, and the years of your life will be many.
11I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths.
12When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble.
13Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life.
14Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.
15Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.
16For they cannot rest until they do evil; they are robbed of sleep till they make someone stumble.
17They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
18The path of the righteous is like the morning sun, shining ever brighter till the full light of day.
19But the way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.
20My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words.
21Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart;
22for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body.
23Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
24Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips.
25Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you.
26Give careful thought to the
Warning Against Adultery 1My son, pay attention to my wisdom, turn your ear to my words of insight,
2that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge.
3For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil;
4but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword.
5Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to the grave.
6She gives no thought to the way of life; her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.
7Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what I say.
8Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house,
9lest you lose your honor to others and your dignity
10lest strangers feast on your wealth and your toil enrich the house of another.
11At the end of your life you will groan, when your flesh and body are spent.
12You will say, “How I hated discipline! How my heart spurned correction!
13I would not obey my teachers or turn my ear to my instructors.
14And I was soon in serious trouble in the assembly of God’s people.”
15Drink water from your own cistern, running water from your own well.
16Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares?
17Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers.
18May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19A loving doe, a graceful deer— may her breasts satisfy you always, may you ever be intoxicated with her love.
20Why, my son, be intoxicated with another man’s wife? Why embrace the bosom of a wayward woman?
21For your ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all your paths.
22The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare them; the cords of their sins hold them fast. 23For lack of discipline they will die, led astray by their own great folly.
Warnings Against Folly 1My son, if you have put up security for your neighbor, if you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger,
2you have been trapped by what you said, ensnared by the words of your mouth.
3So do this, my son, to free yourself, since you have fallen into your neighbor’s hands: Go—to the point of exhaustion—
4Allow no sleep to your eyes, no slumber to your eyelids.
5Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.
6Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!
7It has no commander, no overseer or ruler,
8yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.
9How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?
10A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest—
11and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.
12A troublemaker and a villain, who goes about with a corrupt mouth,
13who winks maliciously with his eye, signals with his feet and motions with his fingers,
14who plots evil with deceit in his heart— he always stirs up conflict.
15Therefore disaster will overtake him in an instant; he will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy.
16There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him:
17haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood,
18a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil,
19a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
Warning Against Adultery 20My son, keep your father’s command and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
21Bind them always on your heart; fasten them around your neck.
22When you walk, they will guide you; when you sleep, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you.
23For this command is a lamp, this teaching is a light, and correction and instruction are the way to life,
24keeping you from your neighbor’s wife, from the smooth talk of a wayward woman.
25Do not lust in your heart after her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyes.
26For a prostitute can be had for a loaf of bread, but another man’s wife preys on your very life.
27Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned?
28Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched?
29So is he who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished.
30People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his hunger when he is starving.
31Yet if he is caught, he must pay sevenfold, though it costs him all the wealth of his house.
32But a man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself.
33Blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away.
34For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge. 35He will not accept any compensation; he will refuse a bribe, however great it is.
Warning Against the Adulterous Woman 1My son, keep my words and store up my commands within you.
2Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.
3Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.
4Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” and to insight, “You are my relative.”
5They will keep you from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words.
6At the window of my house I looked down through the lattice.
7I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who had no sense.
8He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house
9at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in.
10Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.
11(She is unruly and defiant, her feet never stay at home;
12now in the street, now in the squares, at every corner she lurks.)
13She took hold of him and kissed him and with a brazen face she said:
14“Today I fulfilled my vows, and I have food from my fellowship offering at home.
15So I came out to meet you; I looked for you and have found you!
16I have covered my bed with colored linens from Egypt.
17I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.
18Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning; let’s enjoy ourselves with love!
19My husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey.
20He took his purse filled with money and will not be home till full moon.”
21With persuasive words she led him astray; she seduced him with her smooth talk.
22All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer
23till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his life.
24Now then, my sons, listen to me; pay attention to what I say.
25Do not let your heart turn to her ways or stray into her paths.
26Many are the victims she has brought down; her slain are a mighty throng. 27Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death.
Wisdom’s Call 1Does not wisdom call out? Does not understanding raise her voice?
2At the highest point along the way, where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
3beside the gate leading into the city, at the entrance, she cries aloud:
4“To you, O people, I call out; I raise my voice to all mankind.
5You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, set your hearts on it.
6Listen, for I have trustworthy things to say; I open my lips to speak what is right.
7My mouth speaks what is true, for my lips detest wickedness.
8All the words of my mouth are just; none of them is crooked or perverse.
9To the discerning all of them are right; they are upright to those who have found knowledge.
10Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold,
11for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her.
12“I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence; I possess knowledge and discretion.
13To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.
14Counsel and sound judgment are mine; I have insight, I have power.
15By me kings reign and rulers issue decrees that are just;
16by me princes govern, and nobles—all who rule on earth.
17I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me.
18With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity.
19My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver.
20I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice,
21bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me and making their treasuries full.
22“The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works,
23I was formed long ages ago, at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
24When there were no watery depths, I was given birth, when there were no springs overflowing with water;
25before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth,
26before he made the world or its fields or any of the dust of the earth.
27I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep,
28when he established the clouds above and fixed securely the fountains of the deep,
29when he gave the sea its boundary so the waters would not overstep his command, and when he marked out the foundations of the earth.
30Then I was constantly
31rejoicing in his whole world and delighting in mankind.
32“Now then, my children, listen to me; blessed are those who keep my ways.
33Listen to my instruction and be wise; do not disregard it.
34Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway.
35For those who find me find life and receive favor from the LORD . 36But those who fail to find me harm themselves; all who hate me love death.”
Invitations of Wisdom and Folly
1Wisdom has built her house; she has set up
2She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine; she has also set her table.
3She has sent out her servants, and she calls from the highest point of the city,
4“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
5“Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed.
6Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of insight.”
7Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse.
8Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
9Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.
10The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11For through wisdom
12If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer.
13Folly is an unruly woman; she is simple and knows nothing.
14She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way,
16“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
17“Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” 18But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.