Proverbs Chapter 8    

¹Does not Wisdom call out, and discernment raise her voice?
  ²At the top of the heights overlooking the road, at the crossroads she takes her stand.
  ³Beside the gates, at the opening to the city, at the entrance of the gateways she shouts aloud:
  ⁴“To you, O men, I call out, and my voice is to all humankind.
  ⁵Understand prudence, O naïve ones, and understand good sense, O foolish ones.
  ⁶Listen, for I speak of things that are correct, and the opening of my lips brings forth upright words.
  ⁷For my mouth will utter truth, and wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
  ⁸All the words of my mouth are spoken in righteousness; nothing in them is twisted or perverted.
  ⁹All of them are straightforward to the one who understands, and they are right to those finding knowledge.”
  ¹⁰Take my teaching, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold.
  ¹¹Because Wisdom is better than gems, and all delightful things cannot be compared with her.
  ¹²“I, Wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.
  ¹³The fear of Yahweh is to hate evil— pride and arrogance and the evil road and a perverse mouth, I hate.
  ¹⁴Counsel belongs to me, along with sound advice. I have understanding; strength belongs to me.
  ¹⁵By me kings reign, and by me rulers decree righteousness.
  ¹⁶By me rulers govern; even nobles—all who judge with righteousness.
  ¹⁷I love those who love me, and those who desire me will find me.
  ¹⁸Riches and glory are with me, enduring prosperity and righteousness.
  ¹⁹My fruit is better than gold, even better than refined gold, and my gain is better than silver.
  ²⁰I walk in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of justice,
  ²¹to cause those who love me to inherit property, and I will fill their storehouses.
  ²²Yahweh created me at the beginning of his journey, prior to his works from back then.
  ²³From antiquity I was woven together, from the start, from the earlier times of the earth.
  ²⁴I was born when there were no deep oceans, when there were no springs abounding with waters.
  ²⁵Before the mountains were settled, before the hills were formed I was born;
  ²⁶when he had not yet made the earth and the fields, or the initial dust of the world;
  ²⁷when he prepared the heavens, I was there; when he inscribed the horizon above the face of the deep;
  ²⁸when he fixed the clouds above, when he strengthened the springs of the deep;
  ²⁹when he set for the sea its limit so the waters would not disobey his mouth; when he marked out the foundations of the earth;
  ³⁰then I was beside him growing up, and I was his great delight daily, playing in his presence at every moment;
  ³¹playing in the world—his earth, and full of delight with humankind.
  ³²So now, O sons, listen to me; blessed are those who keep my ways.
  ³³Listen to my teaching and become wise, and do not neglect it.
  ³⁴Blessed is the one who listens to me, keeping watch at my doors day after day, watching at the entrance to my gates,
  ³⁵because the one finding me finds life, and he will obtain favor from Yahweh.
  ³⁶But the one sinning against me is doing violence to his own soul; all those who hate me love death.”