1He that feareth the Lord will do this;
And he that hath possession of the law shall obtain her.
2And as a mother shall she meet him,
And receive him as a wife married in her virginity.
3With bread of understanding shall she feed him,
And give him water of wisdom to drink.
4He shall be stayed upon her, and shall not be moved;
And shall rely upon her, and shall not be confounded.
5And she shall exalt him above his neighbours;
And in the midst of the congregation shall she open his mouth.
6He shall inherit joy, and a crown of gladness,
And an everlasting name.
7Foolish men shall not obtain her;
And sinners shall not see her.
8She is far from pride;
And liars shall not remember her.
9Praise is not comely in the mouth of a sinner;
For it was not sent him from the Lord.
10For praise shall be spoken in wisdom;
And the Lord will prosper it.
11Say not thou, It is through the Lord that I fell away;
For thou shalt not do the things that he hateth.
12Say not thou, It is he that caused me to err;
For he hath no need of a sinful man.
13The Lord hateth every abomination;
And they that fear him love it not.
14He himself made man from the beginning,
And left him in the hand of his own counsel.
15If thou wilt, thou shalt keep the commandments;
And to perform faithfulness is of thine own good pleasure.
16He hath set fire and water before thee:
Thou shalt stretch forth thy hand unto whichsoever thou wilt.
17Before man is life and death;
And whichsoever he liketh, it shall be given him.
18For great is the wisdom of the Lord:
He is mighty in power, and beholdeth all things;
19And his eyes are upon them that fear him;
And he will take knowledge of every work of man.
20He hath not commanded any man to be ungodly;
And he hath not given any man licence to sin.