¹¹ Now these were more noble than the Jews of Thessalonica, for they gave serious attention to the word, searching in the holy Writings every day, to see if these things were so.

⁹ For, starting his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, he came to Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, by the good help of his God.

¹⁰ For Ezra had given his mind to learning the law of the Lord and doing it, and to teaching his rules and decisions in Israel.

¹¹ Now this is a copy of the letter which King Artaxerxes gave to Ezra, the priest and the scribe, who put into writing the words of the orders of the Lord, and of his rules for Israel:

¹⁵ And that from the time when you were a child, you have had knowledge of the holy Writings, which are able to make you wise to salvation, through faith in Christ Jesus.

¹⁶ Every holy Writing which comes from God is of profit for teaching, for training, for guiding, for education in righteousness:

¹⁷ So that the man of God may be complete, trained and made ready for every good work.

¹³ Till I come, give attention to the reading of the holy Writings, to comforting the saints, and to teaching.

¹⁰⁵ <NUN> Your word is a light for my feet, ever shining on my way.

¹⁵ Let it be your care to get the approval of God, as a workman who has no cause for shame, giving the true word in the right way.

¹ The wise sayings of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel.

² To have knowledge of wise teaching; to be clear about the words of reason:

³ To be trained in the ways of wisdom, in righteousness and judging truly and straight behaviour:

⁴ To make the simple-minded sharp, and to give the young man knowledge, and serious purpose:

⁵ (The wise man, hearing, will get greater learning, and the acts of the man of good sense will be wisely guided:)

⁶ To get the sense of wise sayings and secrets, and of the words of the wise and their dark sayings.

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the start of knowledge: but the foolish have no use for wisdom and teaching.

⁷ I will give you praise with an upright heart in learning your right decisions.

²⁴ Jesus said to them, Is not this the reason for your error, that you have no knowledge of the holy Writings or of the power of God?

¹⁷ For this reason, my loved ones, having knowledge of these things before they take place, take care that you are not turned away by the error of the uncontrolled, so falling from your true faith.

¹⁸ But be increased in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. May he have glory now and for ever. So be it.

¹ My son, keep my teaching in your memory, and my rules in your heart:

² For they will give you increase of days, years of life, and peace.

³ Let not mercy and good faith go from you; let them be hanging round your neck, recorded on your heart;

⁶ Destruction has overtaken my people because they have no knowledge; because you have given up knowledge, I will give you up, so that you will be no priest to me, because you have not kept in mind the law of your God, I will not keep your children in my memory.

⁹⁷ <MEM> O what love I have for your law! I give thought to it all the day.

⁹⁸ Your teaching has made me wiser than my haters: for it is mine for ever.

⁹⁹ I have more knowledge than all my teachers, because I give thought to your unchanging word.

¹⁰⁰ I have more wisdom than the old, because I have kept your orders.

⁹ <BETH> How may a young man make his way clean? by guiding it after your word.

¹⁰ I have made search for you with all my heart: O let me not go wandering far from your teaching.

¹¹ I have kept your sayings secretly in my heart, so that I might do no sin against you.

¹² Praise be to you, O Lord: give me knowledge of your rules.

¹³ With my lips have I made clear all the decisions of your mouth.

¹⁴ I have taken as much delight in the way of your unchanging word, as in all wealth.

¹⁵ I will give thought to your orders, and have respect for your ways.

¹⁶ I will have delight in your rules; I will not let your word go out of my mind.

¹⁷ <GIMEL> Give me, your servant, the reward of life, so that I may keep your word;

¹⁰ For the prophets who gave the news of the grace which would come to you, made search with all care for knowledge of this salvation;

¹¹ Attempting to see what sort of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them was pointing to, when it gave witness to the pains which Christ would undergo and the glories which would come after them.

¹² And it was made clear to those prophets that they were God's servants not for themselves but for you, to give you word of the things which have now come to your ears from the preachers of the good news through the Holy Spirit sent down from heaven; things which even angels have a desire to see.

²⁰ Then say to them, Put your faith in the teaching and the witness. ... If they do not say such things. ... For him there is no dawn. ...

⁴ Now those things which were put down in writing before our time were for our learning, so that through quiet waiting and through the comfort of the holy Writings we might have hope.

³⁹ You make search in the holy Writings, in the belief that through them you get eternal life; and it is those Writings which give witness about me.

²³ For the rule is a light, and the teaching a shining light; and the guiding words of training are the way of life.

¹³ Take learning in your hands, do not let her go: keep her, for she is your life.