Proverbs 1:16-23 in English

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, And they make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For in vain is the net spread In the sight of any bird:

¹⁸ And these 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; It taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth aloud in the street; She uttereth her voice in the broad places;

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse; At the entrance of the gates, In the city, she uttereth her words:

²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? And scoffers delight them in scoffing, And fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn you at my reproof: Behold, I will pour out my spirit upon you; I will make known my words unto you.

¹⁷ for nets are not without cause spread for birds.

¹⁸ For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; and the overthrow of transgressors is evil.

¹⁹ These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; for by ungodliness they destroy their own life.

²⁰ Wisdom sings aloud in passages, and in the broad places speaks boldly.

²¹ And she makes proclamation on the top of the walls, and sits by the gates of princes; and at the gates of the city boldly says,

²² So long as the simple cleave to justice, they shall not be ashamed: but the foolish being lovers of haughtiness, having become ungodly have hated knowledge, and are become subject to reproofs.

²³ Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, and I will instruct you in my speech.

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:

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

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.

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:

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,

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.

¹⁶ For their feet run to do evil, and are swift to shed blood.

¹⁷ for nets are not without cause spread for birds.

¹⁸ For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; and the overthrow of transgressors is evil.

¹⁹ These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; for by ungodliness they destroy their own life.

²⁰ Wisdom sings aloud in passages, and in the broad places speaks boldly.

²¹ And she makes proclamation on the top of the walls, and sits by the gates of princes; and at the gates of the city boldly says,

²² So long as the simple cleave to justice, they shall not be ashamed: but the foolish being lovers of haughtiness, having become ungodly have hated knowledge, and are become subject to reproofs.

²³ Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, and I will instruct you in my speech.

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For in vain is the net spread, in the eyes of any bird:

¹⁸ And these 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; it taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth aloud in the street; she uttereth her voice in the broad places;

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse; at the entering in of the gates, in the city, she uttereth her words:

²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and scorners delight them in 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.

¹⁶ They rush to do evil deeds! They hurry to murder MTY people.

¹⁷ It is useless to put out a ◄trap/net to catch a bird► because when a bird sees it, it stays away from it.

¹⁸ But those wicked people are not like the birds, because they do not realize that when they prepare to ambush someone to kill him, they will be killed themselves!

¹⁹ That is what happens to people who eagerly try to get things by violently attacking others. They will only destroy themselves!

²⁰ Wisdom PRS shouts to people in the streets, and calls out to people in the ◄plazas/town squares►.

²¹ Wisdom calls out in noisy places, and at the entrances to cities.

²² Wisdom says, “How long will you stupid people continue to enjoy doing foolish things RHQ? How long will you people who ridicule God enjoy doing that RHQ? How long will you foolish people refuse to know what things are right RHQ?

²³ If you pay attention to me when I rebuke you, I will tell you what I am thinking in my inner being; I will give you some good advice.

¹⁶ For their feet run to do evil, and are swift to shed blood.

¹⁷ for nets are not without cause spread for birds.

¹⁸ For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; and the overthrow of transgressors is evil.

¹⁹ These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; for by ungodliness they destroy their own life.

²⁰ Wisdom sings aloud in passages, and in the broad places speaks boldly.

²¹ And she makes proclamation on the top of the walls, and sits by the gates of princes; and at the gates of the city boldly says,

²² So long as the simple cleave to justice, they shall not be ashamed: but the foolish being lovers of haughtiness, having become ungodly have hated knowledge, and are become subject to reproofs.

²³ Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, and I will instruct you in my speech.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ For their feet are running after evil, and they are quick to take a man's life.

¹⁷ Truly, to no purpose is the net stretched out before the eyes of the bird:

¹⁸ And they are secretly waiting for their blood and making ready destruction for themselves.

¹⁹ Such is the fate of everyone who goes in search of profit; it takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom is crying out in the street; her voice is loud in the open places;

²¹ Her words are sounding in the meeting-places, and in the doorways of the town:

²² How long, you simple ones, will foolish things be dear to you? and pride a delight to the haters of authority? how long will the foolish go on hating knowledge?

²³ Be turned again by my sharp words: see, I will send the flow of my spirit on you, and make my words clear to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For in vain the net is spread in the sight of anything which hath wings.

¹⁸ And these lay wait for their own blood; they lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the paths of every one that is greedy of gain: it taketh away the life of its possessors.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth without; she raiseth her voice in the broadways;

²¹ she calleth in the chief place of concourse, in the entry of the gates; in the city she uttereth her words:

²² How long, simple ones, will ye love simpleness, and scorners take pleasure in their scorning, and the foolish hate knowledge?

²³ Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour forth my spirit unto you, I will make known to you my words.

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ But a net is spread in vain before the eyes of them that have wings.

¹⁸ And they themselves lie in wait for their own blood, and practise deceits against their own souls.

¹⁹ So the wage of every covetous man destroy the souls of the possessors.

²⁰ Wisdom preacheth abroad, she uttereth her voice in the streets:

²¹ At the head of multitudes she crieth out, in the entrance of the gates of the city she uttereth her words, saying:

²² O children, how long will you love childishness, and fools covet those things which are hurtful to themselves, and the unwise hate knowledge?

²³ Turn ye at my reproof: behold I will utter my spirit to you, and will shew you my words.

¹⁶ For they rush to do evil; they hurry to commit violence and murder.

¹⁷ There's no point in trying to lure birds into a net when they can see it.

¹⁸ However, these evil people hide ready to kill others, but they themselves are the victims. They're only ambushing themselves!

¹⁹ This is what happens to you if you try to become rich through crime—it kills you!

²⁰ Wisdom calls out in the streets; she shouts aloud in the squares.

²¹ She cries out at busy corners; she explains her message at the town gates:

²² “How long will you stupid people love stupidity? How long will scornful people enjoy their mocking? How long will fools hate knowledge?

²³ Pay attention to my warnings, and I'll pour out my deepest thoughts to you—I'll explain what I know to you.

¹⁶ For their feete runne to euill, and make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ Certainely as without cause the net is spred before the eyes of all that hath wing:

¹⁸ So they lay waite for blood and lie priuily for their liues.

¹⁹ Such are the wayes of euery one that is greedy of gaine: he would take away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰ Wisdome cryeth without: she vttereth her voyce in the streetes.

²¹ She calleth in the hye streete, among the prease in the entrings of the gates, and vttereth her wordes in the citie, saying,

²² O ye foolish, howe long will ye loue foolishnes? and the scornefull take their pleasure in scorning, and the fooles hate knowledge?

²³ (Turne you at my correction: loe, I will powre out my mind vnto you, and make you vnderstand my wordes)

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For in vain the net is spread in the eyes of any bird;

¹⁸ And these lie in wait for their own blood, they lurk for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; it taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth aloud in the streets, she uttereth her voice in the broad places;

²¹ She calleth at the head of the noisy streets, at the entrances of the gates, in the city, she uttereth her words:

²² 'How long, ye thoughtless, will ye love thoughtlessness? And how long will scorners delight them in 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.

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:

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: In the city she uttereth her words, saying,

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.

¹⁶ For their feet run after evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For uselessly is the net spread out before the eyes of every winged bird:

¹⁸ While they lie in wait for their own blood; they watch in concealment for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the paths of every one that is greedy after unlawful gain; it taketh away the life of those that own it.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth loudly without; in the public places she uttereth her voice;

²¹ At the corner of noisy streets she calleth, at the entrances of gates; in the city she sayeth her speeches:

²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners take their delight in scorning, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn back to my admonition: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

¹⁷ For nets are not without cause spread for birds.

¹⁸ For they that are concerned in murder store up evils for themselves; And the overthrow of transgressors is evil.

¹⁹ These are the ways of all that perform lawless deeds; For by ungodliness they destroy their own life.

²⁰ Wisdom sings aloud in passages, And in the broad places speaks boldly.

²¹ And she makes proclamation on the top of the walls, And sits by the gates of princes; And at the gates of the city boldly says,

²² So long as the simple cleave to justice, they shall not be ashamed: But the foolish being lovers of haughtiness, Having become ungodly have hated knowledge, And are become subject to reproofs.

²³ Behold, I will bring forth to you the utterance of my breath, And I will instruct you in my speech.

¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, And make haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ For as the net is spread in vain Before the eyes of any bird,

¹⁸ So they lie in wait for their own blood; They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ Such are the ways of every one greedy of unjust gain; It taketh away the life of the possessor thereof.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth out in the highway; In the market-place she uttereth her voice;

²¹ At the head of the noisy streets she crieth aloud; At the entrances of the gates, throughout the city, she proclaimeth her words saying:

²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? How long will scoffers delight themselves in scoffing, And fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn ye at my reproof! Behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make known my words to you!

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For in vain is the net spread in the sight of any bird:

¹⁸ but these lay wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you 'ahav ·affectionately love· thoughtless living? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ their feet run to evil and they hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For it is useless to spread the net in the sight of any bird.

¹⁸ These men lie in wait for their own blood— they set an ambush for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who gains riches by injustice; unjust gain takes away the lives of those who hold on to it.

²⁰ Wisdom cries aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the open places;

²¹ at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, at the entrance of the city gates she speaks,

²² “How long, you naive people, will you love being naive? How long, you mockers, will you delight in mockery, and how long, you fools, will you hate knowledge?

²³ Pay attention to my correction; I will pour out my thoughts to you; I will make my words known to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

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; who taketh away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets:

²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying ,

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 to you, I will make known to you my words.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ for their feet run to evil. They hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷ For the net is spread in vain in the sight of any bird;

¹⁸ but these lay in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners.

²⁰ Wisdom calls aloud in the street. She utters her voice in the public squares.

²¹ She calls at the head of noisy places. At the entrance of the city gates, she utters her words:

²² “How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn at my reproof. Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you. I will make known my words to you.

¹⁶ For the feet of them run to evil; and they hasten to shed out blood.

¹⁷ But a net is laid in vain before the eyes of birds, that have wings.

¹⁸ Also they set ambush against their own blood; and make ready frauds, or guiles, against their own souls.

¹⁹ So the paths of each avaricious man ravish, or take away, the souls of them that wield.

²⁰ Wisdom preacheth withoutforth; in streets it giveth his voice.

²¹ It crieth oft in the head of companies; in the leaves of the gates of the city it bringeth forth his words, and saith,

²² How long, little men in wit, love young childhood, and fools shall covet those things, that be harmful to themselves, and unprudent men shall hate knowing?

²³ Be ye converted at my reproving; lo, I shall bring forth to you my spirit, and I shall show my words.

¹⁶ For the feet of them run to evil; and they hasten to shed out blood.

¹⁷ But a net is laid in vain before the eyes of birds, that have wings.

¹⁸ Also they set ambush against their own blood; and make ready frauds, or guiles, against their (own) souls.

¹⁹ So the paths of each avaricious man ravish, or take away, the souls of them that wield (them).

²⁰ Wisdom preacheth withoutforth; in streets it giveth his voice. (Wisdom preacheth outside; yea, it raiseth up its voice in the streets.)

²¹ It crieth oft in the head of companies; in the leaves of the gates of the city it bringeth forth his words, and saith, (It crieth often at the tops of the streets; and at the leaves of the gates of the city, it bringeth forth its words, and saith,)

²² How long, little men in wit, love young childhood, and fools shall covet those things, that be harmful to themselves, and unprudent men shall hate knowing? (How long, ye of little wit, or of low intelligence, shall ye love foolishness, and shall fools desire those things that be harmful to themselves, and shall the imprudent hate knowledge, or understanding?)

²³ Be ye converted at my reproving (or Be ye changed by my rebukes); lo, I shall bring forth to you my spirit, and I shall show (you) my words.

¹⁶ For their feet to evil do run, And they haste to shed blood.

¹⁷ Surely in vain is the net spread out before the eyes of any bird.

¹⁸ And they for their own blood lay wait, They watch secretly for their own lives.

¹⁹ So are the paths of every gainer of dishonest gain, The life of its owners it taketh.

²⁰ Wisdom in an out-place crieth aloud, In broad places she giveth forth her voice,

²¹ At the head of the multitudes she calleth, In the openings of the gates, In the city her sayings she saith:

²² 'Till when, ye simple, do ye love simplicity? And have scorners their scorning desired? And do fools hate knowledge?

²³ Turn back at my reproof, lo, I pour forth to you my spirit, I make known my words with you.