Chapter
Verse

Proverbs chapter 8

English Standard Version

1Does not wisdom call? Does not understanding raise her voice? 2On the heights beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; 3beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud: 4"To you, O men, I call, and my cry is to the children of man. 5O simple ones, learn prudence; O fools, learn sense. 6Hear, for I will speak noble things, and from my lips will come what is right, 7for my mouth will utter truth; wickedness is an abomination to my lips. 8All the words of my mouth are righteous; there is nothing twisted or crooked in them. 9They are all straight to him who understands, and right to those who find knowledge. 10 Take my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold, 11 for wisdom is better than jewels, and all that you may desire cannot compare with her. 12"I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. 13 The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. 14I have counsel and sound wisdom; I have insight; I have strength. 15By me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; 16by me princes rule, and nobles, all who govern justly. 17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. 18 Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness. 19My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. 20I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, 21granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries. 22 "The Lord possessed me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. 23Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. 24When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. 25Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth, 26before he had made the earth with its fields, or the first of the dust of the world. 27When he established the heavens, I was there; when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, 29when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, 30then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man. 32"And now, O sons, listen to me: blessed are those who keep my ways. 33 Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. 34 Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. 35For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord, 36but he who fails to find me injures himself; all who hate me love death."
New International Version

New American Standard Bible

1Does not wisdom call, And understanding raise her voice? 2On top of the heights beside the way, Where the paths meet, she takes her stand; 3Beside the gates, at the opening to the city, At the entrance of the doors, she cries out: 4'To you, people, I call, And my voice is to mankind. 5You naive ones, understand prudence; And, you fools, understand wisdom! 6Listen, for I will speak noble things; And the opening of my lips will reveal right things. 7For my mouth will proclaim truth; And wickedness is an abomination to my lips. 8All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; There is nothing crooked or perverted in them. 9They are all straightforward to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge. 10Accept my instruction and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold. 11For wisdom is better than jewels; And all desirable things cannot compare with her. 12'I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And I find knowledge and discretion. 13The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride, arrogance, the evil way, And the perverted mouth, I hate. 14Advice is mine and sound wisdom; I am understanding, power is mine. 15By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice. 16By me princes rule, and nobles, All who judge rightly. 17I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me. 18Riches and honor are with me, Enduring wealth and righteousness. 19My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold; And my yield better than choice silver. 20I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice, 21To endow those who love me with wealth, That I may fill their treasuries. 22'The Lord created me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old. 23From eternity I was established, From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth. 24When there were no ocean depths, I was born, When there were no springs abounding with water. 25Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was born; 26While He had not yet made the earth and the fields, Nor the first dust of the world. 27When He established the heavens, I was there; When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep, 28When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became fixed, 29When He set a boundary for the sea So that the water would not violate His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth; 30Then I was beside Him, as a master workman; And I was His delight daily, Rejoicing always before Him, 31 Rejoicing in the world, His earth, And having my delight in the sons of mankind. 32'Now then, sons, listen to me, For blessed are those who keep my ways. 33Listen to instruction and be wise, And do not neglect it. 34Blessed is the person who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at my doorposts. 35For one who finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the Lord. 36But one who sins against me injures himself; All those who hate me love death.'
Christian Standard Bible

New Living Translation

King James Version

New King James Version

1Does not wisdom cry out, And understanding lift up her voice? 2She takes her stand on the top of the high hill, Beside the way, where the paths meet. 3She cries out by the gates, at the entry of the city, At the entrance of the doors: 4“To you, O men, I call, And my voice is to the sons of men. 5O you simple ones, understand prudence, And you fools, be of an understanding heart. 6Listen, for I will speak of excellent things, And from the opening of my lips will come right things; 7For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. 8All the words of my mouth are with righteousness; Nothing crooked or perverse is in them. 9They are all plain to him who understands, And right to those who find knowledge. 10Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold; 11 For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her. 12“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And find out knowledge and discretion. 13 The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate. 14Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom; I am understanding, I have strength. 15 By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice. 16By me princes rule, and nobles, All the judges of the earth. 17 I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me. 18 Riches and honor are with me, Enduring riches and righteousness. 19My fruit is better than gold, yes, than fine gold, And my revenue than choice silver. 20I traverse the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice, 21That I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth, That I may fill their treasuries. 22“The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way, Before His works of old. 23 I have been established from everlasting, From the beginning, before there was ever an earth. 24When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills, I was brought forth; 26While as yet He had not made the earth or the fields, Or the primal dust of the world. 27When He prepared the heavens, I was there, When He drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28When He established the clouds above, When He strengthened the fountains of the deep, 29 When He assigned to the sea its limit, So that the waters would not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman; And I was daily His delight, Rejoicing always before Him, 31Rejoicing in His inhabited world, And my delight was with the sons of men. 32“Now therefore, listen to me, my children, For blessed are those who keep my ways. 33Hear instruction and be wise, And do not disdain it. 34 Blessed is the man who listens to me, Watching daily at my gates, Waiting at the posts of my doors. 35For whoever finds me finds life, And obtains favor from the Lord; 36But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; All those who hate me love death.”

What does Proverbs chapter 8 mean?

Earlier in the book of Proverbs, wisdom was personified as a woman calling out in public to be heard (Proverbs 1:20–21). Solomon once again uses this metaphor, depicting wisdom as she cries out from near and far for men to heed her call and listen to what she has to say. Wisdom's message is not obscured so that no one can find it. On the contrary, the basic principles of godly wisdom are so obvious that all people ought to hear and listen (Proverbs 8:1–5).

In contrast to those who are corrupt, crooked, or twisted, wisdom speaks noble, righteous, and true things. Her instruction is worth more than the finest gold, silver, and jewels. This is true in both practical and spiritual ways. A person who starts with nothing, but follows wisdom, has a better chance of becoming successful than a foolish person who stumbles into wealth. From an eternal perspective, this is also true (Mark 8:36): the soul is worth infinitely more than anything we might obtain in life (Proverbs 8:6–11).

Wisdom teaches that the fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. This "fear" is the kind of reverential, worshipful obedience that we should rightly offer to God (Proverbs 1:7). In contrast, that which disagrees with wisdom is pride, arrogance, and corruption (Proverbs 8:12–13).

For a leader to be truly benevolent, and just, they must use godly wisdom. This is a national application of the same benefits wisdom offers to individual people: she loves those who love her. Once again extolling the value of godly wisdom, Solomon notes that the effects of honoring God are better than fine gold and choice silver (Proverbs 8:14–21).

Solomon also notes that wisdom existed before God created the earth and the heavens. The depiction here of wisdom as something established by God before even the creation of the world speaks to God's perfection. At the same time, wisdom poetically speaks of being alongside the Lord as a master workman. This wording has led some to interpret this passage as a statement from Jesus, who was more literally "with" God in the beginning (John 1:1). However, this is a different context and not a literal representation of Christ. Rather, wisdom is an intrinsic part of how God created and enjoyed His work (Proverbs 8:22–31).

Returning to the theme of advice, wisdom urges human beings to listen to her and promises blessings to those who respond positively. She promises life to those who listen to her as well as favor from the Lord. However, those who fail to find wisdom—those who ignore God's teaching inflict injury on themselves and love death. They will ultimately be separated from God (Proverbs 8:32–36).
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