Online Bible

Wisdom and Foolishness Call Out

Wisdom has ^abuilt her house,She has hewn out her seven pillars;2 She has ¹^aslaughtered her cattle, she has ^bmixed her wine;She has also ^cprepared her table;3 She has ^asent out her maidens, she ^bcallsFrom the ^ctops of the heights of the city:4 “^aWhoever is simple, let him turn in here!”To him who ^blacks a heart of wisdom she says,5 “Come, ^aeat of my breadAnd drink of the wine I have mixed.6 “¹Forsake your simplicity and ^alive,And ^bstep into the way of understanding.”

7 He who ^adisciplines a scoffer receives disgrace for himself,And he who reproves a wicked man receives injury for himself.8 ^aDo not reprove a scoffer, lest he hate you,^bReprove a wise man and he will love you.9 Give knowledge to a wise man and he will be still wiser,Make a righteous man know it and he will ^aincrease his learning.10 The ^afear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom,And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.11 For ^aby me your days will become many,And years of life will be added to you.12 If you are wise, you are wise ^afor yourself,And if you ^bscoff, you alone will bear it.

13 The woman of ¹foolishness is ^aboisterous,A woman of simplicity, and ^bdoes not know anything.14 She sits at the doorway of her house,On a seat by ^athe high places of the city,15 To call to those who pass by that way,Who are making their paths straight:16 “^aWhoever is simple, let him turn in here,”And to him who lacks a heart of wisdom she says,17 “Stolen water is sweet;And ^abread eaten in secret is pleasant.”18 But he does not know that the ¹dead are there,That those she called are in the ^adepths of Sheol.

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Wisdom’s Invitation

Wisdom has ^abuilt her house,She has hewn out her seven pillars;2 She has ¹^aprepared her food, she has ^bmixed her wine;She has also ^cset her table;3 She has ^asent out her maidens, she ^bcallsFrom the ^ctops of the heights of the city:4 “^aWhoever is ¹naive, let him turn in here!”To him who ^blacks ²understanding she says,5 “Come, ^aeat of my foodAnd drink of the wine I have mixed.6 “¹Forsake your folly and ^alive,And ^bproceed in the way of understanding.”

7 He who ^acorrects a scoffer gets dishonor for himself,And he who reproves a wicked man gets ¹insults for himself.8 ^aDo not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you,^bReprove a wise man and he will love you.9 Give instruction to a wise man and he will be still wiser,Teach a righteous man and he will ^aincrease his learning.10 The ^afear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.11 For ^aby me your days will be multiplied,And years of life will be added to you.12 If you are wise, you are wise ^afor yourself,And if you ^bscoff, you alone will bear it.

13 The ¹woman of folly is ^aboisterous,She is ²naive and ^bknows nothing.14 She sits at the doorway of her house,On a seat by ^athe high places of the city,15 Calling to those who pass by,Who are making their paths straight:16 “^aWhoever is ¹naive, let him turn in here,”And to him who lacks ²understanding she says,17 “Stolen water is sweet;And ^abread eaten in secret is pleasant.”18 But he does not know that the ¹dead are there,That her guests are in the ^adepths of Sheol.

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Wisdom’s Invitation

Wisdom has ^abuilt her spacious and sufficient house;She has hewn out and set up her seven pillars.2 She has ^aprepared her food, she has ^bmixed her wine;She has also ^cset her table. Matt 22:2-43 She has ^asent out her maidens, she ^bcallsFrom the ^chighest places of the city:4 “^aWhoever is naive or inexperienced, let him turn in here!”As for him who ^blacks understanding, she says,5 “Come, ^aeat my foodAnd drink the wine I have mixed and accept my gifts. Is 55:1; John 6:276 “Leave behind your foolishness and the foolish and ^alive,And ^bwalk in the way of insight and understanding.”

7 He who ^acorrects and instructs a scoffer gets dishonor for himself,And he who rebukes a wicked man gets insults for himself.8 ¹^aDo not correct a scoffer who foolishly ridicules and takes no responsibility for his error or he will hate you;^bCorrect a wise man who learns from his error, and he will love you. Ps 141:59 Give instruction to a wise man and he will become even wiser;Teach a righteous man and he will ^aincrease his learning.10 The reverent ^afear of the LORD that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome is the beginning and the preeminent part of wisdom its starting point and its essence,And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding and spiritual insight.11 For ^aby me (wisdom from God) your days will be multiplied,And years of life shall be increased.12 If you are wise, you are wise ^afor yourself for your own benefit;If you ^bscoff thoughtlessly ridicule and disdain, you alone will pay the penalty.

13 The foolish woman is ^arestless and noisy;She is naive and easily misled and thoughtless, and ^bknows nothing at all of eternal value.14 She sits at the doorway of her house,On a seat by ^athe high and conspicuous places of the city,15 Calling to those who pass by,Who are making their paths straight:16 “^aWhoever is naive or inexperienced, let him turn in here!”And to him who lacks understanding (common sense) , she says,17 “Stolen waters (pleasures) are sweet because they are forbidden;And ^abread eaten in secret is pleasant.” Prov 20:1718 But he does not know that the spirits of the dead are there,And that her guests are already in the ^adepths of Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead) .