Psalm 149

1 Praise the Lord!

Praise to God for His Salvation and JudgmentSing to the Lord a new song, And His praise in the assembly of saints.

2 Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King.3 Let them praise His name with the dance; Let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp.4 For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the humble with salvation.5 Let the saints be joyful in glory; Let them sing aloud on their beds.6  Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, And a two-edged sword in their hand,7 To execute vengeance on the nations, And punishments on the peoples;8 To bind their kings with chains, And their nobles with fetters of iron;9 To execute on them the written judgment This honor have all His saints. Praise the Lord!

Psalm 150

1 Praise the Lord!

Let All Things Praise the LordPraise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament!

2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes!5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals!6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!

Proverbs 1

The Beginning of Knowledge

1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel:2 To know wisdom and instruction, To perceive the words of understanding,3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity;4 To give prudence to the simple, To the young man knowledge and discretion5 A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel,6 To understand a proverb and an enigma, The words of the wise and their riddles.7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Shun Evil Counsel

8 My son, hear the instruction of your father, And do not forsake the law of your mother;9 For they will be a graceful ornament on your head, And chains about your neck.10 My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent.11 If they say, Come with us, Let us lie in wait to shed blood; Let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause;12 Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, And whole, like those who go down to the Pit;13 We shall find all kinds of precious possessions, We shall fill our houses with spoil;14 Cast in your lot among us, Let us all have one purse15 My son, do not walk in the way with them, Keep your foot from their path;16 For their feet run to evil, And they make haste to shed blood.17 Surely, in vain the net is spread In the sight of any bird;18 But they lie in wait for their own blood, They lurk secretly for their own lives.19 So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain; It takes away the life of its owners.

The Call of Wisdom

20 Wisdom calls aloud outside; She raises her voice in the open squares.21 She cries out in the chief concourses, At the openings of the gates in the city She speaks her words:22 How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, And fools hate knowledge.23 Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you.24 Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded,25 Because you disdained all my counsel, And would have none of my rebuke,26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes,27 When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you.28 Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me.29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the Lord,30 They would have none of my counsel And despised my every rebuke.31 Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way, And be filled to the full with their own fancies.32 For the turning away of the simple will slay them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them;33 But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, And will be secure, without fear of evil.