Proverbs 4.7

type: passage created: 2026-05-06 updated: 2026-05-06 book: Proverbs chapter: 4 verses: "7" translation_default: ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT tags: [scripture] citation_count: 2 enriched: false

Quoted in

Proverbs 4.7

Book: Proverbs · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"5. Get wisdom, get understanding; Forget not, neither decline from the words of my mouth; 6. Forsake her not, and she will preserve thee; Love her, and she will keep thee."

"7. Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom; Yea, with all thy getting get understanding."

"8. Exalt her, and she will promote thee; She will bring thee to honor, when thou dost embrace her. 9. She will give to thy head a chaplet of grace; A crown of beauty will she deliver to thee." (Proverbs 4:5-9, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"5. Get wisdom. Get understanding. Don’t forget, neither swerve from the words of my mouth. 6. Don’t forsake her, and she will preserve you. Love her, and she will keep you."

"7. Wisdom is supreme. Get wisdom. Yes, though it costs all your possessions, get understanding."

"8. Esteem her, and she will exalt you. She will bring you to honor, when you embrace her. 9. She will give to your head a garland of grace. She will deliver a crown of splendor to you.”" (Proverbs 4:5-9, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"5. Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. 6. Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee."

"7. Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding."

"8. Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. 9. She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee. ^{a crown: or, she shall compass thee with a crown of glory}" (Proverbs 4:5-9, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"5. Get wisdom, get understanding, Do not forget, nor turn away From the sayings of my mouth. 6. Forsake her not, and she doth preserve thee, Love her, and she doth keep thee."

"7. The first thing [is] wisdom, get wisdom, And with all thy getting get understanding."

"8. Exalt her, and she doth lift thee up, She honoureth thee, when thou dost embrace her. 9. She giveth to thy head a wreath of grace, A crown of beauty she doth give thee freely." (Proverbs 4:5-9, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: Solomon (principal); Agur; Lemuel; wise men
Audience: young Israelite men in the wisdom tradition
Location: Israel, Solomonic court
Time period: principal composition c. 970-930 BC (Solomon); compilation c. 700 BC (Hezekiah)

Theological reading

Key words

H7225 - reshit, reshit (Strong's H7225). Also appears in: Genesis 1.1, Deuteronomy 21, 1 Samuel 15.

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.