Proverbs 1:20–33

The Call of Wisdom

^20aWisdom shouts in the street,

She gives forth her voice in the square;

²¹At the head of the noisy streets she calls out;

At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings:

²²“How long, O ^asimple ones, will you love simplicity?

And ^bscoffers delight in scoffing

And ¹fools ^chate knowledge?

²³“Turn to my reproof,

Behold, I will ^apour out my spirit on you;

I will make my words known to you.

²⁴“Because ^aI called and you ^brefused,

I ^cstretched out my hand and no one paid attention;

²⁵And you ^aneglected all my counsel

And were not ^bwilling to accept my reproof;

²⁶I will also ^alaugh at your ^bdisaster;

I will mock when your ^cdread comes,

²⁷When your dread comes like a storm

And your disaster comes like a ^awhirlwind,

When distress and anguish come upon you.

²⁸“Then they will ^acall on me, but I will not answer;

They will ^bseek me earnestly but they will not find me,

²⁹Because they ^ahated knowledge

And did not choose the fear of Yahweh.

³⁰“They ^awere not willing to accept my counsel,

They spurned all my reproof.

³¹“So they shall ^aeat of the fruit of their way

And be ^bsatisfied with their own devices.

³²“For the ^aturning away of the simple will kill them,

And the complacency of fools will destroy them.

³³“But ^ahe who listens to me shall dwell securely

And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”