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¹ The prouerbes of Solomon the sonne of Dauid, kyng of Israel:² To learne wisdome and instruction, & to perceaue the wordes of vnderstandyng,³ To receaue the instruction of wisdome, iustice, iudgement, and equitie:⁴ To geue wyt vnto the simple, and that the young men myght haue knowledge and vnderstandyng.⁵ The wise man wyll geue eare, and wyll come by more wisdome, and he that is endued with vnderstanding shal attayne vnto [wise] counsayles.⁶ To vnderstande a parable, and the interpretation therof, the wordes of the wise, and their darke speaches.

⁷ The feare of the Lorde is the begynnyng of knowledge: but fooles dispise wisdome and instruction.⁸ My sonne, heare thy fathers doctrine, & forsake not the lawe of thy mother:⁹ For they shalbe an encrease of grace vnto thy head, and [as] a chayne about thy necke.

¹⁰ My sonne, if sinners entice thee, consent not vnto them.¹¹ If they say, come with vs, let vs lay wayte for blood, and lurke priuily for the innocent without a cause:¹² Let vs swallowe them vp lyke the graue quicke and whole, as those that go downe into the pit:¹³ So shall we finde all maner of costly riches, and fill our houses with spoyles:¹⁴ Cast in thy lot among vs, and let vs all haue one purse.¹⁵ My sonne, walke not thou with them, refrayne thy foote from their wayes.¹⁶ For their feete runne to euyll, and are hasty to shed blood.¹⁷ But [as] in vayne, the nette is layde foorth before the birdes eyes:¹⁸ So these lay wayte for the blood of them, and lye priuily for their liues.¹⁹ Such [are] the wayes of euery one that is greedie of gayne, who taketh away the life of the owner therof.

²⁰ Wisdome cryeth without, and putteth foorth her voyce in the streetes:²¹ She calleth before the congregation in the open gates, and sheweth her wordes through the citie, saying:²² O ye children, howe long wyll ye loue childishnesse? howe long wyll the scorners delite in scornyng, and the vnwise hate knowledge?²³ O turne you at my correction: lo I wyll expresse my mynde vnto you, and make you vnderstande my wordes.²⁴ Because I haue called, and ye refused, I haue stretched out my hande, and no man regarded:²⁵ But all my counsels haue ye dispised, and set my correction at naught:²⁶ Therfore wyll I also laugh at your destruction, and mocke you, when the thyng that ye feare commeth vpon you,²⁷ Euen when the thyng that ye be afraide of falleth in sodenly like a storme, and your miserie lyke a tempest, yea when trouble and heauinesse commeth vpon you.²⁸ Then shall they call vpon me, but I wyll not aunswere: they shall seeke me early, but they shall not finde me:²⁹ And that because they hated knowledge, and did not choose the feare of the Lorde,³⁰ They woulde none of my counsayle, but dispised all my correction.³¹ Therfore shall they eate of the fruite of their owne way, and be fylled with their owne inuentions.³² For the turnyng away of the vnwise shall slay them, and the prosperitie of fooles shall destroy them.³³ But whoso hearkeneth vnto me, shal dwell safely, and be sure from any feare of euyll.