Proverbs 4 - American Standard Version 2015 American Standard Version 2015
Proverbs 4

¹ Hear, {\i my} sons, the instruction of a father,\par\tab And attend to know understanding:

² For I give you good doctrine;\par\tab Forsake ye not my law.

³ For I was a son unto my father,\par\tab Tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

⁴ And he taught me, and said unto me:\par\tab Let thy heart retain my words;\par\tab Keep my commandments, and live;

⁵ Get wisdom, get understanding;\par\tab Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth;

⁶ Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee;\par\tab Love her, and she will keep thee.

⁷ Wisdom {\i is} the principal thing; {\i therefore} get wisdom;\par\tab Yea, with all thy getting get understanding.

⁸ Exalt her, and she will promote thee;\par\tab She will bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her.

⁹ She will give to thy head a chaplet of grace;\par\tab A crown of beauty will she deliver to thee.\par

¹⁰ Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings;\par\tab And the years of thy life shall be many.

¹¹ I have taught thee in the way of wisdom;\par\tab I have led thee in paths of uprightness.

¹² When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened;\par\tab And if thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble.

¹³ Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go:\par\tab Keep her; for she is thy life.

¹⁴ Enter not into the path of the wicked,\par\tab And walk not in the way of evil men.

¹⁵ Avoid it, pass not by it;\par\tab Turn from it, and pass on.

¹⁶ For they sleep not, except they do evil;\par\tab And their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.

¹⁷ For they eat the bread of wickedness,\par\tab And drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸ But the path of the righteous is as the dawning light,\par\tab That shineth more and more unto the perfect day.

¹⁹ The way of the wicked is as darkness:\par\tab They know not at what they stumble.\par

²⁰ My son, attend to my words;\par\tab Incline thine ear unto my sayings.

²¹ Let them not depart from thine eyes;\par\tab Keep them in the midst of thy heart.

²² For they are life unto those that find them,\par\tab And health to all their flesh.

²³ Keep thy heart with all diligence;\par\tab For out of it are the issues of life.

²⁴ Put away from thee a wayward mouth,\par\tab And perverse lips put far from thee.

²⁵ Let thine eyes look right on,\par\tab And let thine eyelids look straight before thee.

²⁶ Make level the path of thy feet,\par\tab And let all thy ways be established.

²⁷ Turn not to the right hand nor to the left:\par\tab Remove thy foot from evil.\par