Proverbs, 4

1. Listen, my children, to a father's instruction; pay attention, and learn what understanding is.

1. Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

2. What I am offering you is sound doctrine: do not forsake my teaching.

2. For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

3. I too was once a child with a father, in my mother's eyes a tender child, unique.

3. For I was my father's son, tender and only [beloved] in the sight of my mother.

4. This was what he used to teach me, 'Let your heart treasure what I have to say, keep my principles and you will live;

4. He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.

5. acquire wisdom, acquire understanding, never forget her, never deviate from my words.

5. Get wisdom, get understanding: forget [it] not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

6. Do not desert her, she will keep you safe; love her, she will watch over you.

6. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.

7. The first principle of wisdom is: acquire wisdom; at the cost of all you have, acquire understanding!

7. Wisdom [is] the principal thing; [therefore] get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

8. Hold her close, and she will make you great; embrace her, and she will be your pride;

8. Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

9. she will provide a graceful garland for your head, bestow a crown of honour on you.'

9. She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee.

10. Listen, my child, take my words to heart, and the years of your life will be multiplied.

10. Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.

11. I have educated you in the ways of wisdom, I have guided you along the path of honesty.

11. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

12. When you walk, your going will be unhindered, if you run, you will not stumble.

12. When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

13. Hold fast to discipline, never let her go, keep your eyes on her, she is your life.

13. Take fast hold of instruction; let [her] not go: keep her; for she [is] thy life.

14. Do not follow the path of the wicked, do not walk the way that the evil go.

14. Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil [men].

15. Avoid it, do not take it, turn your back on it, pass it by.

15. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.

16. For they cannot sleep unless they have first done wrong, they miss their sleep if they have not made someone stumble;

16. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause [some] to fall.

17. for the bread of wickedness is what they eat, and the wine of violence is what they drink.

17. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

18. The path of the upright is like the light of dawn, its brightness growing to the fullness of day;

18. But the path of the just [is] as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

19. the way of the wicked is as dark as night, they cannot tell the obstacles they stumble over.

19. The way of the wicked [is] as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

20. My child, pay attention to what I am telling you, listen carefully to my words;

20. My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.

21. do not let them out of your sight, keep them deep in your heart.

21. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

22. For they are life to those who find them and health to all humanity.

22. For they [are] life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.

23. More than all else, keep watch over your heart, since here are the wellsprings of life.

23. Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it [are] the issues of life.

24. Turn your back on the mouth that misleads, keep your distance from lips that deceive.

24. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

25. Let your eyes be fixed ahead, your gaze be straight before you.

25. Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

26. Let the path you tread be level and all your ways be firm.

26. Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.

27. Turn neither to right nor to left, keep your foot clear of evil.

27. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.