Peace of Our Savior Lutheran Church and Preschool - WELS

¹⁴ Without guidance people fall,
but in many advisors there is safety.
¹⁵ Guaranteeing a loan for a stranger leads to trouble,
but one who hates to shake hands ^[1] remains secure.
¹⁶ A gracious woman takes hold of honor,
but ruthless men take hold of riches. ^[2]
17 A merciful man benefits his own soul,
but a cruel man brings trouble on his own flesh.
¹⁸ A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
but one who sows righteousness reaps a true reward.
¹⁹ Just as righteousness leads to life,
pursuing evil leads to death.
²⁰ Perverted hearts are disgusting to the Lord,
but his favor rests on those whose way has integrity.
²¹ Be sure of this: An evil person will not go unpunished,
but the children of the righteous will escape.
²² The beauty of a woman who lacks moral judgment
    is like a gold ring in a pig’s snout.
²³ The desire of the righteous leads only to good.
The hope of the wicked leads to fury.
²⁴ One person scatters his wealth, but it still increases.
Another hoards it unjustly, but this leads only to poverty.
²⁵ A person who spreads blessings will be enriched.
One who gives a refreshing drink will be refreshed.
²⁶ People curse the person who hoards grain,
but a blessing rests on the head of one who sells it.
²⁷ Whoever searches for good seeks favor,
but whoever pursues evil will find it.
²⁸ Whoever trusts his wealth will fall,
but righteous people will flourish like green plants.
²⁹ Whoever troubles his household will inherit the wind,
and a stubborn fool will be a slave to a person with a wise heart.
³⁰ The fruit of a righteous person is a tree of life,
and one who harvests souls is wise.
³¹ If a righteous person is paid back on earth,
how much more a wicked person or a sinner!

A wise son brings joy to his father,
but a foolish son brings grief to his mother.
² Treasures gained by wickedness produce no profit,
but righteousness saves from death.
³ The Lord will not allow the righteous to starve,
but he frustrates the greed of the wicked.
⁴ Lazy hands produce poverty,
but hardworking hands bring riches.
⁵ Whoever gathers crops in summer is a sensible ^[1] son.
Whoever sleeps at harvest time is a disgraceful ^[2] son.

⁶ Blessings crown the head of a righteous person,
but violence covers the mouth of the wicked. ^[3]
7 To remember a righteous person is a blessing,
but the name of the wicked will rot.
⁸ A wise heart accepts commands,
but a babbling fool will be ruined.
⁹ Whoever walks with integrity walks safely,
but whoever follows crooked ways will be found out.
¹⁰ Whoever winks at evil causes trouble,
and a babbling fool will be ruined.
¹¹ The mouth of a righteous person is a fountain of life,
but violence covers the mouth of the wicked. ^[4]
12 Hatred stirs up a quarrel,
but love covers all sins.
¹³ Wisdom is found on the lips of a discerning person,
but a rod is appropriate for the back of one who lacks sense.
¹⁴ Wise people store up knowledge,
but the mouth of a stubborn fool brings ruin.
¹⁵ A rich person’s wealth is his strong city.
Poverty is the ruin of poor people.
¹⁶ The work of a righteous person leads to life.
The income of a wicked person leads to sin.
¹⁷ Whoever practices discipline is on the path to life,
but whoever rejects a warning goes astray.
¹⁸ Whoever conceals hatred has lying lips,
and whoever spreads gossip is a fool.
¹⁹ When there are many words, sin never stops, ^[5]
but a person who restrains his lips acts wisely.
²⁰ The tongue of a righteous person is fine silver.
The heart of a wicked person has little value.
²¹ The lips of a righteous person shepherd many,
but stubborn fools die for lack of sense.
²² The blessing of the Lord makes a person wealthy,
and he adds no sorrow to it. ^[6]
23 Carrying out a wicked scheme is a game for the fool,
but wisdom gives pleasure to a person with understanding.

²⁴ What the wicked person dreads will come upon him,
but the Lord will grant what the righteous desire.
²⁵ When the storm has passed, the wicked person is no more,
but the righteous person has an everlasting foundation.
²⁶ Like vinegar to the teeth and like smoke to the eyes,
so is a lazy person to those who send him.
²⁷ The fear of the Lord will add days to a person’s life,
but the years of wicked people will be cut short.
²⁸ The confident hope of the righteous is joy,
but the ambitions of the wicked will perish.
²⁹ The way of the Lord is a fortress for a person who has integrity,
but it brings destruction for evildoers.
³⁰ A righteous person will never be toppled, ^[7]
but wicked people will not dwell on earth.
³¹ The mouth of a righteous person produces the fruit of wisdom,
but a perverse tongue will be cut off.
³² The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, ^[8]
but the mouth of the wicked produces depraved words.

⁷ Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults,
and whoever warns a wicked person invites abuse.
⁸ Do not warn a mocker, or he will hate you.
Warn a wise person, and he will love you.
⁹ Give advice to a wise person, and he will become even wiser.
Teach a righteous person, and he will add to his learning.

¹³ The woman Folly is boisterous.
She is deluded. She knows nothing.
¹⁴ She sits at the doorway of her house,
on a throne on the heights of the city,
¹⁵ in order to call to those who pass by on the street,
those who are simply going along on their way,
¹⁶ “Whoever is gullible, let him turn in here.”
To someone who lacks sense she says,
¹⁷ “Stolen waters are sweet,
and food eaten in secret is delicious.”
¹⁸ But he does not know that the souls of the dead are there,
that her guests are in the depths of hell. ^[3]

¹² I, Wisdom, dwell with good judgment. ^[4]
I discover knowledge and foresight.
¹³ The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.
I hate haughtiness, arrogance, an evil way, and a perverse mouth.
¹⁴ Good advice and sound judgment are mine.
I, Understanding, have strength.
¹⁵ By me kings reign,
and rulers administer justice.
¹⁶ By me officials govern,
as well as nobles and all just judges.
¹⁷ I certainly love those who love me,
and those who eagerly look for me find me.
¹⁸ Riches and honor are with me,
as well as enduring wealth and righteousness.
¹⁹ My fruit is better than gold, better than pure gold,
and what I produce is better than fine silver.
²⁰ I walk on the path of righteousness,
down the middle of the pathways of justice,
²¹ so I can provide a rich inheritance to those who love me,
and I can fill their treasuries.

²² The Lord possessed ^[5] me at the beginning of his way,
before his works of long ago.
²³ From eternity I was appointed,
from the beginning, from before the origin of the earth.
²⁴ When there were no deep waters, I was brought forth, ^[6]
when there were no springs filled with water.
²⁵ Before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was brought forth,
²⁶ when he had not yet made land or fields
or the first dust of the world.
²⁷ When he established the heavens, I was there.
When he drew the horizon around the surface of the deep,
²⁸ when he placed the clouds in the sky above,
when the fountains of the deep gushed out,
²⁹ when he established his decree for the sea,
so that the waters could not go beyond the limit set by his command,
when he marked out the foundations of the earth,
³⁰ I was beside him as a master craftsman.
I was his joy day after day.
I rejoiced in his presence at all times.
³¹ I rejoiced in his inhabited world.
I was delighted with the children of Adam. ^[7]

³² So now, you children, listen to me,
because those who keep my ways are blessed.
³³ Listen to discipline and become wise.
Do not neglect it.
³⁴ How blessed is the person who listens to me,
so that he can watch at my doors day after day,
so that he can stand guard beside my front door,
³⁵ because whoever finds me finds life,
and he obtains favor from the Lord,
³⁶ but whoever sins against me harms himself.
All who hate me love death.

⁶ Go to the ant, you slacker! ^[1]
Observe its ways and become wise.
⁷ Although it has no overseer, officer, or ruler,
⁸ it stores its food in summer.
It gathers its provisions at harvest time.
⁹ How long will you lie there, you slacker?
When will you get up from your sleep?
¹⁰ A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of your hands to rest,
¹¹ and poverty will come on you like a prowler,
and scarcity will come on you like a warrior.

¹² A worthless, wicked scoundrel,
who goes around with a corrupt mouth,
¹³ who winks with his eye, signals with his foot,
and gestures with his fingers,
¹⁴ who plots evil with a deceitful heart—
he always spreads conflict.
¹⁵ Therefore his disaster will come upon him suddenly.
All at once he will be broken, and there will be no remedy.

¹⁶ These are six things the Lord hates,
seven things that really disgust him:
¹⁷ arrogant eyes, a lying tongue,
hands that shed innocent blood,
¹⁸ a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that run quickly to do evil,
¹⁹ a false witness who breathes lies,
and a person who spreads conflict between brothers.

²⁰ My son, keep your father’s commands,
and do not forsake your mother’s teachings.
²¹ Fasten them permanently to your heart,
and tie them around your neck.
²² When you walk around, they will lead you.
When you lie down, they will stand guard over you.
When you wake up, they will converse with you,
²³ because a command is a lamp, teaching is a light,
and the warnings given by discipline are a road to life.
²⁴ They guard you from an evil woman,
from the smooth tongue of a woman who is not your wife.
²⁵ Do not desire her beauty in your heart.
Do not let her captivate you with her eyes.
²⁶ A prostitute costs you a loaf of bread,
but a married woman stalks your precious life.
²⁷ Can a man place fire on his lap
    without burning his clothes?
²⁸ Can a man walk on hot coals
    without scorching his feet?
²⁹ So it is with the man who goes to his neighbor’s wife.
No one who touches her will be forgiven.
³⁰ No one despises a thief when he steals
    to satisfy his hunger when he is starving,
³¹ but when he is caught, he will have to repay seven times as much.
He will have to give up all the wealth of his house.
³² Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks sense.
He who does it destroys himself.
³³ He will find disease and dishonor,
and his disgrace will never be wiped out,
³⁴ because jealousy ignites a husband’s anger,
and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
³⁵ He will not accept any amount as a payment.
He will not relent, even if you increase your offer.

⁶ At a window of my house, I looked out through the lattice.
⁷ I was watching the gullible ^[3] people.
Among the young men I noticed a youth without sense.
⁸ He was crossing the street near her corner,
strolling along the road to her house,
⁹ in the twilight, in the evening of the day,
when the darkness of the night was coming. ^[4]
10 Suddenly a woman meets him.
She is dressed like a prostitute with a scheming heart!
¹¹ She is loud and rebellious.
Her feet will not stay home.
¹² One moment she is in the street.
The next moment she is in the public square.
She is on the prowl near every corner.
¹³ She grabs him and kisses him.
With a brazen face she says,
¹⁴ “I have food from fellowship offerings.
Today I fulfilled my vows.
¹⁵ That is why I came out to meet you.
I came eagerly to seek you,
and now I have found you!
¹⁶ I have covered my couch with a bedspread,
with colored cloth made of Egyptian yarn.
¹⁷ I have perfumed my bed
    with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
¹⁸ Come, let’s drink our fill of love ^[5] until morning.
Let’s enjoy making love.
¹⁹ Look, my husband isn’t home.
He has gone on a long trip.
²⁰ He took a bag of silver with him.
He will not come home till the next full moon.”
²¹ She deceives him with enticing words.
With smooth lips she seduces him.
²² He follows right after her,
like a steer going to slaughter,
like a deer prancing into a noose, ^[6]
23     until an arrow pierces its liver,
like a bird darting into a trap.
He does not realize this will cost him his life.
²⁴ Now, you sons, listen to me.
Pay attention to the words from my mouth.
²⁵ Do not let your heart turn in her direction.
Do not wander on her pathways,
²⁶ because she has brought down many victims.
Those she has killed are countless.
²⁷ Her house is on the road to the grave. ^[7]
It goes down to the chambers of death.