Proverbs 8

Does not wisdom call,
And understanding ^[a]lift up her voice?

^1-11 Do you hear Lady Wisdom calling?
    Can you hear Madame Insight raising her voice?
She’s taken her stand at First and Main,
    at the busiest intersection.
Right in the city square
    where the traffic is thickest, she shouts,
“You—I’m talking to all of you,
    everyone out here on the streets!
Listen, you idiots—learn good sense!
    You blockheads—shape up!
Don’t miss a word of this—I’m telling you how to live well,
    I’m telling you how to live at your best.
My mouth chews and savors and relishes truth—
    I can’t stand the taste of evil!
You’ll only hear true and right words from my mouth;
    not one syllable will be twisted or skewed.
You’ll recognize this as true—you with open minds;
    truth-ready minds will see it at once.
Prefer my life-disciplines over chasing after money,
    and God-knowledge over a lucrative career.
For Wisdom is better than all the trappings of wealth;
    nothing you could wish for holds a candle to her.

On top of the heights beside the way,
Where the paths meet, she takes her stand;

Beside the gates, at the opening to the city,
At the entrance of the doors, she cries out:

“To you, O men, I call,
And my voice is to the sons of men.

“O ^[b]naive ones, understand prudence;
And, O fools, understand ^[c]wisdom.

“Listen, for I will speak noble things;
And the opening of my lips will reveal right things.

“For my mouth will utter truth;
And wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

“All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness;
There is nothing crooked or perverted in them.

“They are all straightforward to him who understands,
And right to those who find knowledge.

“Take my instruction and not silver,
And knowledge rather than choicest gold.

“For wisdom is better than ^[d]jewels;
And all desirable things cannot compare with her.

“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
And I find knowledge and discretion.

“I am Lady Wisdom, and I live next to Sanity;
    Knowledge and Discretion live just down the street.
The Fear-of-God means hating Evil,
    whose ways I hate with a passion—
    pride and arrogance and crooked talk.
Good counsel and common sense are my characteristics;
    I am both Insight and the Virtue to live it out.
With my help, leaders rule,
    and lawmakers legislate fairly;
With my help, governors govern,
    along with all in legitimate authority.
I love those who love me;
    those who look for me find me.
Wealth and Glory accompany me—
    also substantial Honor and a Good Name.
My benefits are worth more than a big salary, even a very big salary;
    the returns on me exceed any imaginable bonus.
You can find me on Righteous Road—that’s where I walk—
    at the intersection of Justice Avenue,
Handing out life to those who love me,
    filling their arms with life—armloads of life!

“The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
Pride and arrogance and the evil way
And the perverted mouth, I hate.

“Counsel is mine and sound wisdom;
I am understanding, power is mine.

“By me kings reign,
And rulers decree justice.

“By me princes rule, and nobles,
All who judge rightly.

“I love those who love me;
And those who diligently seek me will find me.

“Riches and honor are with me,
Enduring wealth and righteousness.

“My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold,
And my yield better than choicest silver.

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

To endow those who love me with wealth,
That I may fill their treasuries.

“The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way,
Before His works ^[e]of old.

“God sovereignly made me—the first, the basic—
    before he did anything else.
I was brought into being a long time ago,
    well before Earth got its start.
I arrived on the scene before Ocean,
    yes, even before Springs and Rivers and Lakes.
Before Mountains were sculpted and Hills took shape,
    I was already there, newborn;
Long before God stretched out Earth’s Horizons,
    and tended to the minute details of Soil and Weather,
And set Sky firmly in place,
    I was there.
When he mapped and gave borders to wild Ocean,
    built the vast vault of Heaven,
    and installed the fountains that fed Ocean,
When he drew a boundary for Sea,
    posted a sign that said no trespassing,
And then staked out Earth’s Foundations,
    I was right there with him, making sure everything fit.
Day after day I was there, with my joyful applause,
    always enjoying his company,
Delighted with the world of things and creatures,
    happily celebrating the human family.

“From everlasting I was ^[f]established,
From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.

“When there were no depths I was ^[g]brought forth,
When there were no springs abounding with water.

“Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills I was ^[h]brought forth;

While He had not yet made the earth and the ^[i]fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.

“When He established the heavens, I was there,
When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,

When He made firm the skies above,
When the springs of the deep became ^[j]fixed,

When He set for the sea its boundary
So that the water would not transgress His ^[k]command,
When He marked out the foundations of the earth;

Then I was beside Him, as a master workman;
And I was daily His delight,
^[l]Rejoicing always before Him,

^[m]Rejoicing in the world, His earth,
And having my delight in the sons of men.

“Now therefore, O sons, listen to me,
For blessed are they who keep my ways.

“So, my dear friends, listen carefully;
    those who embrace these my ways are most blessed.
Mark a life of discipline and live wisely;
    don’t squander your precious life.
Blessed the man, blessed the woman, who listens to me,
    awake and ready for me each morning,
    alert and responsive as I start my day’s work.
When you find me, you find life, real life,
    to say nothing of God’s good pleasure.
But if you wrong me, you damage your very soul;
    when you reject me, you’re flirting with death.”