[1] Wisdom has built her house; she has carved its seven columns.
[2] She has prepared a great banquet, mixed the wines, and set the table.
[3] She has sent her servants to invite everyone to come. She calls out from the heights overlooking the city.
[4] “Come in with me,” she urges the simple. To those who lack good judgment, she says,
[5] “Come, eat my food, and drink the wine I have mixed.
[6] Leave your simple ways behind, and begin to live; learn to use good judgment.”
[7] Anyone who rebukes a mocker will get an insult in return. Anyone who corrects the wicked will get hurt.
[8] So don’t bother correcting mockers; they will only hate you. But correct the wise, and they will love you.
[9] Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn even more.
[10] Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.
[11] Wisdom will multiply your days and add years to your life.
[12] If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit. If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.
[13] The woman named Folly is brash. She is ignorant and doesn’t know it.
[14] She sits in her doorway on the heights overlooking the city.
[15] She calls out to men going by who are minding their own business.
[16] “Come in with me,” she urges the simple. To those who lack good judgment, she says,
[17] “Stolen water is refreshing; food eaten in secret tastes the best!”
[18] But little do they know that the dead are there. Her guests are in the depths of the grave.