Rhyming Proverbs: Chapter 2

Rhyming Proverbs: Chapter 2

My son, if you accept my words and store
up my commands within you, turning your
ear unto wisdom, and your heart apply
to understanding–if for it, you’d cry,
call out for insight, and would cry aloud
for understanding, as, for silver, would
you look for it, as something you would find
for hidden treasure, then you’ll understand,
fear of the LORD, of God, some knowledge, found.
For he, the LORD, gives wisdom; from his mouth
come knowledge, understanding. He will hold
success in store for blameless ones, upright,
a shield to those who walk in blamelessness
for he guards that, the course the just would find,
his faithful ones, the way of those, protects.

Then you will understand what is both right
and just and fair–each path that’s good. It, deep,
will wisdom enter there within your heart,
and knowledge, pleasant, to your soul, will seem.
Discretion will protect, and it will guard,
your understanding. Wicked men, their ways,

from them will wisdom save you, those whose words,
perverse, those men who’ve left the paths are straight,
to walk in dark ways, who, in this, delight,
in doing wrong, and in this, they’ll rejoice:
perverseness, evil’s, their paths, they will find,
are crooked, devious, their ways employed.

Will wisdom from the ‘dult’rous woman, save,
the wayward woman, that is their intent:
seductive words, who, up, her partner, gave,
he from her youth, ignored the covenant
before God, what she made. Leads down to death,
is surely where her house leads, and her ways
unto the spirits of the dead. None who’ve been wed
to her, return, the paths of life, attain.

Thus you will walk, those ways the good will drive,
and keep the paths the righteous will maintain.
For they, the upright, in the land, will live,
the blameless, there, the place where they’ll remain;
but they, the wicked, from the land, they’re cleaved,
unfaithful ones will be torn from it, clean.