1My son, if you will take my words to your heart, storing up my laws in your mind;

2So that your ear gives attention to wisdom, and your heart is turned to knowledge;

3Truly, if you are crying out for good sense, and your request is for knowledge;

4If you are looking for her as for silver, and searching for her as for stored-up wealth;

5Then the fear of the Lord will be clear to you, and knowledge of God will be yours.

6For the Lord gives wisdom; out of his mouth come knowledge and reason:

7He has salvation stored up for the upright, he is a breastplate to those in whom there is no evil;

8He keeps watch on the ways which are right, and takes care of those who have the fear of him.

9Then you will have knowledge of righteousness and right acting, and upright behaviour, even of every good way.

10For wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasing to your soul;

11Wise purposes will be watching over you, and knowledge will keep you;

12Giving you salvation from the evil man, from those whose words are false;

13Who give up the way of righteousness, to go by dark roads;

14Who take pleasure in wrongdoing, and have joy in the evil designs of the sinner;

15Whose ways are not straight, and whose footsteps are turned to evil:

16To take you out of the power of the strange woman, who says smooth words with her tongue;

17Who is false to the husband of her early years, and does not keep the agreement of her God in mind:

18For her house is on the way down to death; her footsteps go down to the shades:

19Those who go to her do not come back again; their feet do not keep in the ways of life:

20So that you may go in the way of good men, and keep in the footsteps of the upright.

21For the upright will be living in the land, and the good will have it for their heritage.

22But sinners will be cut off from the land, and those whose acts are false will be uprooted.