19 My fruit
is better than gold, yes, than fine gold,
And my revenue than choice silver.
20 I
1 traverse the way of righteousness,
In the midst of the paths of justice,
‡
21 That I may cause those who love me to inherit wealth,
That I may fill their treasuries.
22 “The
a Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way,
Before His works of old.
‡
23 a I have been established from everlasting,
From the beginning, before there was ever an earth.
‡
24 When
there were no depths I was brought forth,
When
there were no fountains abounding with water.
25 a Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills, I was brought forth;
‡
26 While as yet He had not made the earth or the
1 fields,
Or the
1 primal dust of the world.
‡
27 When He prepared the heavens, I
was there,
When He drew a circle on the face of the deep,
28 When He established the clouds above,
When He strengthened the fountains of the deep,
29 a When He assigned to the sea its limit,
So that the waters would not transgress His command,
When
b He marked out the foundations of the earth,
‡
30 a Then I was beside Him
as1 a master craftsman;
b And I was daily
His delight,
Rejoicing always before Him,
‡
31 Rejoicing in His inhabited world,
And
a my delight
was with the sons of men.
‡
32 “Now therefore, listen to me,
my children,
For
a blessed
are those who keep my ways.
‡
33 Hear instruction and be wise,
And do not disdain
it.
New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.