Proverbs 8

Wisdom’s Appeal

¹Doesn’t wisdom ^a call out?

Doesn’t understanding make her voice heard?

²At the heights overlooking the road,

at the crossroads, she takes her stand.

³Beside the gates ^b leading into the city,

at the main entrance, she cries out:

⁴“People, I call out to you;

my cry is to the children of Adam.

⁵Learn to be shrewd, you who are inexperienced;

develop common sense, you who are foolish.

⁶Listen, for I speak of noble things,

and what my lips say is right.

⁷For my mouth tells the truth, ^c

and wickedness is detestable to my lips.

⁸All the words from my mouth are righteous;

none of them are deceptive or perverse. ^d

⁹All of them are clear to the perceptive, ^e

and right to those who discover knowledge.

¹⁰Accept my instruction instead of silver,

and knowledge rather than pure gold. ^f

¹¹For wisdom is better than jewels, ^g

and nothing desirable can equal it. ^h

¹²I, wisdom, share a home with shrewdness

and have knowledge and discretion. ⁱ

¹³To fear the Lord is to hate evil. ^j

I hate arrogant pride, evil conduct,

and perverse speech.

¹⁴I possess good advice and sound wisdom; ^k

I have understanding and strength. ^l

¹⁵It is by me that kings reign ^m

and rulers enact just law;

¹⁶by me, princes lead,

as do nobles and all righteous judges. ⁿ

¹⁷I love those who love me, ^o

and those who search for me find me. ^p

¹⁸With me are riches and honor, ^q

lasting wealth and righteousness. ^r

¹⁹My fruit is better than solid gold,

and my harvest than pure silver. ^s

²⁰I walk in the ways of righteousness,

along the paths of justice,

²¹giving wealth as an inheritance to those who love me,

and filling their treasuries.

²²“The Lord acquired ^t me

at the beginning of his creation, ^u

before his works of long ago. ^v

²³I was formed ^w before ancient times,

from the beginning, before the earth began. ^x

²⁴I was born

when there were no watery depths ^y

and no springs filled with water.

²⁵Before the mountains were established,

prior to the hills, ^z I was given birth #—

²⁶before he made the land, the fields,

or the first soil on earth.

²⁷I was there when he established the heavens, ^aa

when he laid out the horizon on the surface of the ocean, ^ab

²⁸when he placed the skies above,

when the fountains of the ocean gushed out,

²⁹when he set a limit for the sea

so that the waters would not violate his command, ^ac

when he laid out the foundations of the earth. ^ad

³⁰I was a skilled craftsman ^ae beside him. ^af

I was his ^ag delight every day,

always rejoicing before him.

³¹I was rejoicing in his inhabited world, ^ah

delighting in the children of Adam. ^ai

³²“And now, sons, listen to me;

those who keep my ways are happy. ^aj

³³Listen to instruction and be wise; ^ak

don’t ignore it.

³⁴Anyone who listens to me is happy, ^al

watching at my doors every day,

waiting by the posts of my doorway.

³⁵For the one who finds me finds life ^am

and obtains favor from the Lord, ^an

³⁶but the one who misses me ^ao harms himself; ^ap

all who hate me love death.” ^aq