Proverbs 9

¹⁸And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.

¹²The one who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will never again leave it. Upon him I will write the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God (the new Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven from My God), and My new name.

⁹And recognizing the grace that I had been given, James, Cephas, and John—those reputed to be pillars—gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised.

⁵you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

⁶For it stands in Scripture: “See, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and precious cornerstone; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”

²⁰built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.

²¹In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

⁹For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.

¹⁰By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one must be careful how he builds.

³He sent his servants to call those he had invited to the banquet, but they refused to come.

⁴Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

⁶On this mountain the Lord of Hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all the peoples, a feast of aged wine, of choice meat, of finely aged wine.

¹⁶But Jesus replied, “A certain man prepared a great banquet and invited many guests.

¹⁷When it was time for the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

⁵“Come, eat my bread and drink the wine I have mixed.

³⁰Those who linger over wine, who go to taste mixed drinks.

²I would lead you and bring you to the house of my mother who taught me. I would give you spiced wine to drink, the nectar of my pomegranates.

¹⁴She sits at the door of her house, on a seat in the heights of the city,

¹Does not wisdom call out, and understanding raise her voice?

²On the heights overlooking the road, at the crossroads she takes her stand.

³He sent his servants to call those he had invited to the banquet, but they refused to come.

⁴Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

¹¹The Lord gives the command; a great company of women proclaim it:

²⁰Wisdom calls out in the street, she lifts her voice in the square;

²¹in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates she makes her speech:

¹⁷When it was time for the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

³²He who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself.

²⁵At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

⁵O simple ones, learn to be shrewd; O fools, gain understanding.

¹⁶“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment.

¹⁷The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” Let the one who hears say, “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come, and the one who desires the water of life drink freely.

⁷The Law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making wise the simple.

²⁷Do not work for food that perishes, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on Him God the Father has placed His seal of approval.”

¹I have come to my garden, my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my spice. I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk. Eat, O friends, and drink; drink freely, O beloved.

¹⁷“Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is tasty!”

¹²They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will be radiant over the bounty of the Lord—the grain, new wine, and oil, and the young of the flocks and herds. Their life will be like a well-watered garden, and never again will they languish.

¹³Then the maidens will rejoice with dancing, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into joy, and give them comfort and joy for their sorrow.

²⁶While they were eating, Jesus took bread, spoke a blessing and broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is My body.”

²⁷Then He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you.

⁴⁹Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died.

⁵⁰This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die.

²⁰He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.

¹¹I will guide you in the way of wisdom; I will lead you on straight paths.

²⁴“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.

¹⁷“Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.”

¹⁴Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evildoers.

¹⁵Avoid it; do not travel on it. Turn from it and pass on by.

¹¹⁵Depart from me, you evildoers, that I may obey the commandments of my God.

¹²A mocker does not love to be reproved, nor will he consult the wise.

⁹Do not speak to a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

¹⁶But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the Lord against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.

¹⁵Therefore the anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and He sent him a prophet, who said, “Why have you sought this people’s gods, which could not deliver them from your hand?”

¹⁶While he was still speaking, the king asked, “Have we made you the counselor to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?” So the prophet stopped, but he said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not heeded my advice.”

²⁰Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood up before the people and said to them, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you transgress the commandments of the Lord so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, He has forsaken you.’”

²¹But they conspired against Zechariah, and by order of the king, they stoned him in the courtyard of the house of the Lord.

⁸Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them to you, and you can do to them as you please. But do not do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”

⁹“Get out of the way!” they replied. And they declared, “This one came here as a foreigner, and he is already acting like a judge! Now we will treat you worse than them.” And they pressed in on Lot and moved in to break down the door.

¹⁸Poverty and shame come to him who ignores discipline, but whoever heeds correction is honored.

⁵Let the righteous man strike me; let his rebuke be an act of loving devotion. It is oil for my head; let me not refuse it. For my prayer is ever against the deeds of the wicked.

⁹Do not speak to a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

¹²A mocker does not love to be reproved, nor will he consult the wise.

¹A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.

⁶Do not give dogs what is holy; do not throw your pearls before swine. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.

⁵let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel

¹³I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.

¹¹He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

¹²Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.

¹²Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold is a wise man’s rebuke to a listening ear.

²⁰You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.

²¹I have not written to you because you lack knowledge of the truth, but because you have it, and because no lie comes from the truth.

³So let us know—let us press on to know the Lord. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.

¹⁰The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow His precepts gain rich understanding. His praise endures forever!

²⁸And He said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

⁷The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

¹³When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man.

⁵then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God.

²⁰And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true—in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

²⁷The fear of the Lord prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be cut short.

²for they will add length to your days, years and peace to your life.

¹⁶Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.

²so that you and your children and grandchildren may fear the Lord your God all the days of your lives by keeping all His statutes and commandments that I give you, and so that your days may be prolonged.

²“Can a man be of use to God? Can even a wise man benefit Him?

³Does it delight the Almighty that you are righteous? Does He profit if your ways are blameless?

²⁰The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.

³Most importantly, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.

⁴“Where is the promise of His coming?” they will ask. “Ever since our fathers fell asleep, everything continues as it has from the beginning of creation.”

²¹Reconcile now and be at peace with Him; thereby good will come to you.

²⁶A worker’s appetite works for him because his hunger drives him onward.

¹⁶He writes this way in all his letters, speaking in them about such matters. Some parts of his letters are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.

¹¹She is loud and defiant; her feet do not remain at home.

⁶She does not consider the path of life; she does not know that her ways are unstable.

¹⁹Better to live in the desert than with a contentious and ill-tempered wife.

⁴he is conceited and understands nothing. Instead, he has an unhealthy interest in controversies and disputes about words, out of which come envy, strife, abusive talk, evil suspicions,

⁹Better to live on a corner of the roof than to share a house with a quarrelsome wife.

³She has sent out her maidservants; she calls out from the heights of the city.

¹⁰Then a woman came out to meet him, with the attire of a harlot and cunning of heart.

¹¹She is loud and defiant; her feet do not remain at home.

²⁵Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways; do not stray into her paths.

²⁶For she has brought many down to death; her slain are many in number.

²⁷For a prostitute is a deep pit, and an adulteress is a narrow well.

²⁸Like a robber she lies in wait and multiplies the faithless among men.

¹³She seizes him and kisses him; she brazenly says to him:

¹⁴“I have made my peace offerings; today I have paid my vows.

⁴“Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!” she says to him who lacks judgment.

¹⁷Food gained by fraud is sweet to a man, but later his mouth is full of gravel.

³¹Do not gaze at wine while it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly.

³²In the end it bites like a snake and stings like a viper.

²⁰This is the way of an adulteress: She eats and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I have done nothing wrong.’

¹⁴But each one is tempted when by his own evil desires he is lured away and enticed.

¹⁵Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

⁶When the woman saw that the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom, she took the fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it.

¹²For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.

²⁷Her house is the road to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death.

¹⁸For her house sinks down to death, and her tracks to the departed spirits.

¹⁹None who go to her return or negotiate the paths of life.

⁵Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to Sheol.

⁵They do not know or understand; they wander in the darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

⁷The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

²⁶For the levy of the prostitute is poverty, and the adulteress preys upon your very life.