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Wisdom and Bad Friends

My child, you must follow
and treasure my teachings
    and my instructions.
Keep in tune with wisdom
and think what it means
    to have common sense.
Beg as loud as you can
    for good common sense.
Search for wisdom
as you would search for silver
    or hidden treasure.
Then you will understand
what it means to respect
    and to know the Lord God.

(A) All wisdom comes from the Lord,
and so do common sense
    and understanding.
God gives helpful advice[a]
    to everyone who obeys him
and protects those
    who live as they should.
God sees that justice is done,
and he watches over everyone
    who is faithful to him.
With wisdom you will learn
what is right
    and honest and fair.

10 Wisdom will control your mind,
and you will be pleased
    with knowledge.
11 Sound judgment and good sense
    will watch over you.
12 Wisdom will protect you
    from evil schemes
and from those liars
13 who turned from doing good
    to live in the darkness.
14 Most of all they enjoy
    being mean and deceitful.
15 They are dishonest themselves,
    and so are all their deeds.

Wisdom and Sexual Purity

16 Wisdom will protect you
from the smooth talk
    of a sinful woman,
17 who breaks her wedding vows
and leaves the man she married
    when she was young.
18 The road to her house leads
down
    to the dark world
    of the dead.
19 Visit her, and you will never
    find the road to life again.

20 Follow the example
of good people
    and live an honest life.
21 If you are honest and innocent,
    you will keep your land;
22 if you do wrong
and can never be trusted,
    you will be rooted out.

Footnotes

  1. 2.7 helpful advice: Or “wisdom.”

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