Wisdom Calls

¹ Does not wisdom call, and understanding raise its voice?

² ⌞Atop the heights⌟¹ beside the road, at the crossroads she stands.

1. Literally “At a head of the heights”

³ Beside gates, before towns, at the entrance of doors, she cries out:

⁴ “To you, O ⌞people⌟,¹ I call, and my cry is to the children of humankind.

1. Literally “men”

⁵ Learn prudence, O simple ones; fools, learn ⌞intelligence⌟.¹

1. Literally “heart”

⁶ Listen! For noble things I will speak, and upright things from the opening of my lips.

⁷ My mouth will utter truth, and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

⁸ All sayings of my mouth are in righteousness; none of them are twisted and crooked.

⁹ All of them are straight to him who understands, and upright to those who find knowledge.

¹⁰ Take my teaching and not silver; may you choose knowledge rather than choice gold.

¹¹ For wisdom is better than jewels, and all desires shall not compare with her.

¹² I, wisdom, live with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.

¹³ The fear of Yahweh is hatred of evil, pride, and arrogance and an evil way. And I hate a mouth of perversity.

¹⁴ ⌞Advice and sound judgment⌟¹ are mine; I am understanding, ⌞strength is mine⌟.²

1. Literally “To/for me are advice and sound judgment”
2. Literally “to/for me is strength”

¹⁵ By me kings reign, and rulers decree righteousness.

¹⁶ By me rulers rule, and nobles—all judges of righteousness.

¹⁷ I love ⌞those who love me⌟,¹ and those who seek me diligently shall find me.

1. Literally “her lovers”

¹⁸ Fortune and glory are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness.

¹⁹ My fruit is better than gold,¹ even refined gold, and my yield than choice silver.

1. Literally “fine gold”

²⁰ In the way of righteousness I walk, in the midst of paths of justice,

Wisdom at Creation

²¹ in order to endow those who love me with wealth, and I will fill their treasuries.

²² “Yahweh possessed¹ me, the first of his ways, before his acts ⌞of old⌟.²

1. Or “gained,” or “acquired”
2. Literally “from before” or “from then”

²³ From eternity, I was set up from the first, from the beginning¹ of the earth.

1. Hebrew “beginnings”

²⁴ When there were no depths, I was brought forth, when there were no springs of ⌞abounding⌟¹ water.

1. Literally “made heavy”

²⁵ Before mountains had been shaped, before hills, I was brought forth.

²⁶ When he had not yet made earth and fields, or the first dust of the world,

²⁷ ⌞when he established⌟¹ the heavens, there I was, ⌞when he drew⌟² a circle upon the face of the deep,

1. Literally “in his establishing”
2. Literally “in his drawing”

²⁸ ⌞when he made⌟¹ skies from above, when he founded fountains of the deep,

1. Literally “in his making”

²⁹ ⌞when he assigned⌟¹ his limits to the sea, that waters shall not transgress his ⌞command⌟,² ⌞when he marked⌟³ the foundations of the earth,

1. Literally “in his assigning”
2. Literally “mouth”
3. Literally “in his marking”

³⁰ I was ⌞beside⌟¹ him, a master workman, and I was delighting day by day, rejoicing before him ⌞always⌟,²

1. Literally “at the place of”
2. Literally “in all of time”

Benefits of Following Wisdom

³¹ rejoicing in the world of his earth, and my delight was with the children of humankind.

³² “And now, children, listen to me; happy are those who will keep my ways.

³³ Hear teaching and be wise; do not neglect it.

³⁴ Happy is the person who listens to me, in order to keep watch at my doors day by day, in order to guard the frames of my entrances.

³⁵ For he who finds me is he who finds¹ life, and he obtains favor from Yahweh.

1. Hebrew “those who find”

³⁶ But he who misses me injures himself.¹ All those who hate me love death.”

1. Or “soul,” or “inner self”