Proverbs 4

A FATHER’S EXAMPLE

4Listen, sons, to a father’s discipline,^ac

and pay attention so that you may gain understanding,

²for I am giving you good instruction.^ad

Don’t abandon my teaching.

³When I was a son with my father,

tender and precious to my mother,

⁴he taught me and said,

“Your heart must hold on to my words.

Keep my commands and live.^ae

⁵Get wisdom, get understanding;^af

don’t forget or turn away from the words from my mouth.

⁶Don’t abandon wisdom, and she will watch over you;

love her,^ag and she will guard you.

⁷Wisdom is supreme—so get wisdom.

And whatever else you get, get understanding.^ah

⁸Cherish her, and she will exalt you;

if you embrace her, she will honor you.^a

⁹She will place a garland of favor on your head;

she will give you a crown of beauty.”^b

TWO WAYS OF LIFE

¹⁰Listen, my son. Accept my words,^c

and you will live many years.^d

¹¹I am teaching you the way of wisdom;

I am guiding you on straight paths.^e

¹²When you walk, your steps will not be hindered;^f

when you run, you will not stumble.^g

¹³Hold on to instruction; don’t let go.^h

Guard it, for it is your life.

¹⁴Keep off the path of the wicked;ⁱ

don’t proceed on the way of evil ones.

¹⁵Avoid it; don’t travel on it.

Turn away from it, and pass it by.

¹⁶For they can’t sleep

unless they have done what is evil;

they are robbed of sleep

unless they make someone stumble.^j

¹⁷They eat the bread of wickedness

and drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,^k

shining brighter and brighter until midday.

¹⁹But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom;^l

they don’t know what makes them stumble.^m

THE STRAIGHT PATH

²⁰My son, pay attention to my words;

listen closely to my sayings.ⁿ

²¹Don’t lose sight of them;^o

keep them within your heart.

²²For they are life to those who find them,

and health to one’s whole body.

²³Guard your heart above all else,^A

for it is the source of life.^p

²⁴Don’t let your mouth speak dishonestly,^q

and don’t let your lips talk deviously.

²⁵Let your eyes look forward;

fix your gaze^B straight ahead.^r

²⁶Carefully consider the path^C for your feet,^s

and all your ways will be established.

²⁷Don’t turn to the right or to the left;^t

keep your feet away from evil.