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Proverbs 1

1

The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel;

2

To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding;

3

To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity;

4

To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.

5

A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels:

6

To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

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7

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

8

My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:

9

For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

10

My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

11

If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause:

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12

Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit:

13

We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil:

14

Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

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15

My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path:

16

For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

17

Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird.

18

And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.

19

So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

20

Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

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21

She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

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22

How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

23

Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

24

Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded;

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25

But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof:

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I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;

27

When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.

28

Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:

29

For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord:

30

They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.

31

Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

32

For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.

33

But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

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Proverbs 1:21

“She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,”

Study Summary

Wisdom continues: 'At the head of the noisy streets she cries out, at the entrance of the city gates she makes her speech.' Her location at these centers of public life—where commerce happens, justice is administered, and the community gathers—indicates that Wisdom addresses herself to ordinary life, not to the spiritually elite. The 'noisy streets' and 'city gates' are zones of human activity and decision-making. This positioning suggests that wisdom is not irrelevant to practical affairs but deeply engaged with how people actually live together. Wisdom's voice at the gates recalls the judicial function: she speaks as one with authority to pronounce on what is just and righteous. Her persistence in speaking at every gathering point indicates her refusal to abandon those who have not yet heeded her call.

Community Reflections

1
David Osei (test user)8h ago
Strength in weakness — Proverbs 1

God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The imagery here is agricultural — the original audience would have immediately understood the metaphor of sowing, waiting, and harvesting.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. Their context of persecution gives these words a weight we often miss.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. Now I understand why — it's a daily declaration of dependence on God.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. Reading the Psalms alongside this gives a fuller picture of what the…

Read the note →

Proverbs 1:21

“She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,”

Study Summary

Wisdom continues: 'At the head of the noisy streets she cries out, at the entrance of the city gates she makes her speech.' Her location at these centers of public life—where commerce happens, justice is administered, and the community gathers—indicates that Wisdom addresses herself to ordinary life, not to the spiritually elite. The 'noisy streets' and 'city gates' are zones of human activity and decision-making. This positioning suggests that wisdom is not irrelevant to practical affairs but deeply engaged with how people actually live together. Wisdom's voice at the gates recalls the judicial function: she speaks as one with authority to pronounce on what is just and righteous. Her persistence in speaking at every gathering point indicates her refusal to abandon those who have not yet heeded her call.

Community Reflections

1
David Osei (test user)8h ago
Strength in weakness — Proverbs 1

God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The imagery here is agricultural — the original audience would have immediately understood the metaphor of sowing, waiting, and harvesting.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. The Hebrew word used here carries a richness that English can't fully capture. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. God is faithful in every circumstance.. Their context of persecution gives these words a weight we often miss.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. Now I understand why — it's a daily declaration of dependence on God.. The early church would have heard this very differently than we do today. Reading the Psalms alongside this gives a fuller picture of what the…

Read the note →

Proverbs 1:21

Wisdom continues: 'At the head of the noisy streets she cries out, at the entrance of the city gates she makes her speech.' Her location at these centers of public life—where commerce happens, justice is administered, and the community gathers—indicates that Wisdom addresses herself to ordinary life, not to the spiritually elite. The 'noisy streets' and 'city gates' are zones of human activity and decision-making. This positioning suggests that wisdom is not irrelevant to practical affairs but deeply engaged with how people actually live together. Wisdom's voice at the gates recalls the judicial function: she speaks as one with authority to pronounce on what is just and righteous. Her persistence in speaking at every gathering point indicates her refusal to abandon those who have not yet heeded her call.