|| Or, an

eloquent

speech.

e Ps. 78.2.

fJob 28. 28.

Ps. 111. 10.

ch. 9. 10.

Ecc. 12. 13.

Or, the

principal

part.

g ch. 4. 1. & 6.

20.

h ch. 3. 22.

† Heb. an

adding.

i Gen. 39. 7,

&c.

Ps. 1. 1.

Eph. 5. 11.

k Jer. 5. 26.

1 Ps. 28. 1. &

143.7,

m Ps. 1. 1.

ch. 4. 14.

n Ps. 119. 101.

o Is. 59. 7.

Rom. 3. 15.

+ Heb. in the eyes of every

that

hath a wing.

pch. 15. 27.

1 Tim. 6. 10.

+ Heb. Wis

doms, that

is, Excellent

wisdom.

counsels:

6 To understand a proverb, and // the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

7 'f The fear of the LORD is || the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

9 For they shall be fan ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice thee, i consent thou not.

11 If they say, Come with us, let us klay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without

cause:

12 Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, las those that go down into the pit:

13 We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil:

14 Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

15 My son, im walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot

from their path:

16 °For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

17 Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. 18 And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.

19 P So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof. 204 Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

21 She crieth in the chief place of

qch. 8. 1, &c. concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

& 9.3. John 7. 37.

r Joel 2. 28.

8 Is. 65. 12. & 66. 4.

Jer. 7. 13.

Zech. 7. 11.

t Ps. 107. 11.

ver. 30.

Luke 7. 30.

u Ps. 2. 4.

}

x ch. 10. 24.

y Job 27. 9. &

35. 12,

Is. 1. 15.

Jer. 11. 11. &

22 How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;

25 But ye thave set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:

26 " I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;

27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

28 y Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find

8 He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. el Sam. 2. 9. 9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.

10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul;

11 Discretion shall preserve thee, funderstanding shall keep thee: 12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;

13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, to & walk in the ways of darkness;

14 Who brejoice to do evil, and i delight in the frowardness of the wicked;

15 k Whose ways are crooked, and they froward in their paths:

16 To deliver thee from 1 the strange woman, in even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; 17 Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.

An exhortation to obedience.

Before

Before

from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom CHRIST and discretion:

the land, and the perfect shall remain in it.

about 1000.

22 So shall they be life unto thy

pPs. 37 29.

soul, and grace to thy neck.

cch. 1.9.

23 d Then shalt thou walk in thy Ps. 37. 24. & way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.

91. 11, 12,

q Job 18. 17. Ps. 37. 28. &

101. 35.

a Deut. 8. 1.

Or,

& 50. 16, 20.

† Heh, years

of life.

bPs. 119. 165.

cEx. 13.9.

Deut. 6. 8.

ch. 6. 21. & 7.3.

dJer. 17. 1.

2 Cor. 3. 3.

e Pa. 111. 10.

See 1 Sam. 2. 26.

Luke 2. 52.
Acts 2. 47.

Rom. 14. 18.

Or. good

success.

fPs. 37. 3, 5.

g Jer. 9. 23.

11 Chr. 23.9.

i Jer. 10. 23.

lk Rom. 12. 16.

1 Job 1. 1.

ch. 16. 6.

+ Heb.

medicine.

† Heb. water

22 But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, and the transgressors shall be || rooted out of it.

plucked up.

CHAPTER III.

1 An exhortation to obedience, 5 to faith, 7 to mortification, 9 to devotion, patience. 13 The happy gain of wisdom. 19 The power, 21 and the benefits of wisdom. 27 An exhortation to charitableness, 30 peaceableness, 31 and contentedness. 33 The cursed state of the wicked. ; but

MY son, forget not my law;

let thine heart keep my commandments:

2 For length of days, and long life, and b peace, shall they add to thee. 3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5f Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; sand lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 hIn all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall i direct thy paths. 7k Be not wise in thine own eyes: 1 fear the LORD, and depart from evil. 8 It shall be f health to thy navel, and + marrow to thy bones.

9" Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:

10° So shall thy barns be filled with ing.or, moist- plenty, and thy presses shall burst

ch. 10. 0.

29 || Devise not evil against thy Or, Practise neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee.

30 Strive not with a man without inom, 12, 18. cause, if he have done thee no harm. 31k Envy thou not f the oppressor, and choose none of his ways.

32 For the froward is abomination to the LORD: Ibut his secret is with the righteous.

33 The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just. 34° Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly. 35 The wise shall inherit glory: but shame tshall be the promotion of fools.

CHAPTER IV.

1 Solomon, to persuade obedience, 3 sheweth what instruction he had of his parents, 5 to study wisdom, 14 and to shun the path of the wicked. 20 He exhorteth to faith, 23 and sanctification.

HEAR, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. 2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

k Ps. 37. 1. &

73. 3.

ch. 24. 1.

† Heh, a man

of violence.

1 Ps. 25. 11.

m Lev. 2ff, 14, &c.

Ps. 37. 22.

Zech. 5. 4.

Mal. 2. 2.

n Ps. 1. 3.

o James 4. 6.

1 Pet. 5. 5.

+ Heb. exalteth the fools.

a Ps. 34. 11. ch. 1. 8.

3 For I was my father's son, bten- b1 Chr. 29. 1. der and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

4 He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: dkeep my commandments, and live. 5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.

6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: flove her, and she shall keep thee.

7& Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

el Chr. 28. 9.

Eph. 6. 4.

dch. 7. 2. ech. 2. 2, 3,

f2 Thess.2.10.

g Matt. 13. 44.

Luke 10. 42.

8 h Exalt her, and she shall promote h1 Sam. 2.30.

thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her.

Solomon exhorteth to

Before

9 She shall give to thine head ian HRIST ornament of grace: || a crown of about 1000.

i ch. 1. 9. & 3.

22.

glory shall she deliver to thee.

10 Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; kand the years of thy life

Or, she shall shall be many.

compass thee with a crown

of glory.

k ch. 3. 2.

1 Pa. 18. 36.

m Ps. 91. 11, 12.

11 I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

12 When thou goest, 1 thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

13 Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.

14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil

men.

15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.

16° For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.

17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

is as

18 P But the path of the just the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

19 The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what

Is. 59. 9, 10. they stumble.

Jer. 23. 12.

John 12. 35.

s ch. 3. 3, 21.

tch. 2. 1.

uch. 3. 8. &

12. 18.

+ Heb.

medicine,

† Ileb, above all keeping.

† Heb. fro

20 My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. 21 Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

22 For they are life unto those that find them, and "thealth to all their flesh.

23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

24 Put away from thee fa froward wardness of mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.

mouth, and perverseness

of lips.

[ Or, all thy

ways shall

be ordered

aright.

25 Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

26 Ponder the path of thy feet, and

x Deut. 5. 32. || let all thy ways be established.

& 28. 14.

Josh. 1. 7.

y Is. 1. 16.

Rom, 12, 9.

a Mal, 2. 7.

bch. 2. 16. & 6.24.

† Heb.palate.

cPs. 55. 21.

27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.

the study of wisdom.

5 f Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

6 Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them.

7 Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth.

8 Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

9 Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

10 Lest strangers be filled with thy wealth; and thy labours be in the house of a stranger;

11 And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love. 20 And why wilt thou, my son, be ravished with la strange woman, and Ich. 2. 16. & embrace the bosom of a stranger?

21 m For the ways of man are before the eyes of the LORD, and he pondereth all his goings.

22"His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his † sins.

23 ° He shall die without instruction; and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.

CHAPTER VI.

1 Against suretiship, 6 idleness, 12 and mischievousness. 16 Seven things hateful to God. 20 The blessings of obedience. 25 The mischiefs of whoredom.

a

Y son, if thou be surety for thy Mfriend, if thou hast stricken thy

hand with a stranger,

2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

3 Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, || and make sure thy friend. 4b Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.

5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the

7.5,

m2 Chr. 16.9.

Job 31. 4. &

34. 21.

ch. 15. 3.

Jer. 16. 17.&

32. 19.

Hos. 7. 2.

Heb. 4. 13.

n Ps. 9. 15.

† Heb, sin.

o Job 4. 21. & 36. 12.

ach. 11. 15. & 17.18.& 20.16, & 22.26. & 27. 13.

|| Or, so shalt thou prevail with thy friend. bPs. 132. 4.

The blessings of obedience.

Before

e Job 12.7.

dch.24.33,34,

ech. 10. 4. &

13. 4. & 20. 4.

fJob 15. 12.

Ps. 35. 19.

ch. 10. 10.

g Mic. 2. 1.

h ver. 19.

+ Heb, cast

eth forth.

i Jer. 19. 11.

k 2 Chr.36.16.

+ Heb. of his

soul.

1Ps. 18. 27. &

101.5.

† Heb.

Haughty

eyes.

m Ps. 120.2.3.

n Is, 1. 15.

o Gen. 6. 5.

pIs. 59. 7.

Rom. 3. 15,

q Ps 27. 12.

ch. 19. 5, 9.

rver. 14.

sch. 1. 8.

Eph. 6. 1.

6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:

7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,

8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

9 d How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.

12 A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. 13 He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;

14 Frowardness is in his heart, she deviseth mischief continually; bhe † soweth discord.

hungry;

31 But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.

32 But whoso committeth adultery with a woman flacketh † understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul.

33 A wound and dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away.

34 For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

35 † He will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

CHAPTER VII.

1 Solomon persuadeth to a sincere and kind familiarity with wisdom. 6 In an example of his own experience, he sheweth 10 the cunning of a whore, 22 and the desperate simplicity of a young wanton. 24 He dehorteth from such wickedness.

tch. 3.3. & 7. neck. 3.

u ch. 3. 23, 21.

xch. 2. 11.

y Ps. 19. 8. &

119. 105.

Or, candle.

zch. 2. 16. &

5. 3. & 7. 5.

Or, of the

strange

tongue.

22 When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, Xit shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.

23 For the commandment is a || lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

24 To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery || of the tongue of a strange woman.

25 Lust not after her beauty in a Matt. 5. 28. thine heart; neither let her take thee

b ch. 29. 3,

c Gen. 39. 14.

† Heb. the

woman of a man, or, a man's wife.

d Ez, 13, 18,

with her eyelids.

26 For bby means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will d hunt for the precious life.

27 Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?

28 Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?

29 So he that goeth in to his neighbour's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent.

30 Men do not despise a thief, if he

thee.

Before CHRIST about 1000.

e Ex, 22, 1, 4,

fch. 7. 7.

+ Heb. heart.

† Heb. IHe

will not accept the face of any ran

80m.

Y son, keep my words, and alay ach. 2. 1. up my commandments with

ch. 4. 4.

2 b Keep my commandments, and Lev. 18. 5. live; "and my law as the apple of thine eye.

3 dBind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart.

4 Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman:

5 That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.

6 For at the window of my house I looked through my casement,

Із. 55. 3.

c Deut. 32. 10,

d Deut. 6. 8.

& 11. 18.

ch. 3. 3. & 6.

21.

ech. 2. 16. &

5. 3. & 6. 24.

7 And beheld among the simple ones, I discerned among f the youths, Heb. a young man fvoid of understanding,

8 Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house,

9% In the twilight, fin the evening, in the black and dark night:

10 And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of a harlot, and subtile of heart.

the sons, feu. 6. 32. & 9. 4, 16.

g Job 24. 15.

+ Heb. in the evening of the day.

11 (h She is loud and stubborn; iher ach. 9.13. feet abide not in her house:

12 Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every corner.)

13 So she caught him, and kissed him, and † with an impudent face said unto him,

14+ I have peace offerings with me; this day have I paid my vows.

15 Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee.

16 I have decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with k fine linen of Egypt.

17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.

18 Come, let us take our fill of love

il Tim. 5. 13. Tit. 2. 5.

+ Heb. she strengthened her fuce, and said.

+ Heb. Peace offerings are upon me.

k Is. 19.9.