| Berean Study Bible | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you, | 1My son, if you accept my words and store up my commands within you, |
| 2if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding, | 2listening closely to wisdom and directing your heart to understanding; |
| 3if you truly call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, | 3furthermore, if you call out to insight and lift your voice to understanding, |
| 4if you seek it like silver and search it out like hidden treasure, | 4if you seek it like silver and search for it like hidden treasure, |
| 5then you will discern the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God. | 5then you will understand the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God. |
| 6For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. | 6For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. |
| 7He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk with integrity, | 7He stores up success for the upright; He is a shield for those who live with integrity |
| 8to guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His saints. | 8so that He may guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His loyal followers. |
| 9Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity—every good path. | 9Then you will understand righteousness, justice, and integrity--every good path. |
| 10For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will delight your soul. | 10For wisdom will enter your mind, and knowledge will delight your heart. |
| 11Discretion will watch over you, and understanding will guard you, | 11Discretion will watch over you, and understanding will guard you, |
| 12to deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perversity, | 12rescuing you from the way of evil-- from the one who says perverse things, |
| 13from those who leave the straight paths to walk in the ways of darkness, | 13from those who abandon the right paths to walk in ways of darkness, |
| 14from those who enjoy doing evil and rejoice in the twistedness of evil, | 14from those who enjoy doing evil and celebrate perversion, |
| 15whose paths are crooked and whose ways are devious. | 15whose paths are crooked, and whose ways are devious. |
| 16It will rescue you from the forbidden woman, from the stranger with seductive words | 16It will rescue you from a forbidden woman, from a stranger with her flattering talk, |
| 17who abandons the partner of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God. | 17who abandons the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; |
| 18For her house sinks down to death, and her tracks to the departed spirits. | 18for her house sinks down to death and her ways to the land of the departed spirits. |
| 19None who go to her return or negotiate the paths of life. | 19None return who go to her; none reach the paths of life. |
| 20So you will follow in the ways of the good, and keep to the paths of the righteous. | 20So follow the way of good people, and keep to the paths of the righteous. |
| 21For the upright will inhabit the land, and the blameless will remain in it; | 21For the upright will inhabit the land, and those of integrity will remain in it; |
| 22but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the unfaithful will be uprooted. | 22but the wicked will be cut off from the land, and the treacherous uprooted from it. |
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