English · ASV

Proverbs 4

Listen to this chapter
0:00 0:00

Listen to the Father's Instruction 1–9

1
Hear, mysons, the instruction of a father, And attend to know understanding: ​
2
For I give you good doctrine; Forsake ye not my law.
3
For I was a son unto my father, Tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother. ​
4
And he taught me, and said unto me: Let thy heart retain my words; Keep my commandments, and live; ​
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
Wisdomisthe 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. ​

The Blessings of Following Wisdom 10–13

10
Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; And the years of thy life shall be many.
11
I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in paths of uprightness.
12
When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; And if thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. ​
13
Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: Keep her; for she is thy life.

Avoid the Path of the Wicked 14–19

14
Enter not into the path of the wicked, And walk not in the way of evil men.
15
Avoid it, pass not by it; Turn from it, and pass on.
16
For they sleep not, except they do evil; And their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. ​
17
For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.
18
But the path of the righteous is as the dawning light, That shineth more and more unto the perfect day. ​
19
The way of the wicked is as darkness: They know not at what they stumble.

Guard Your Heart 20–27

20
My son, attend to my words; Incline thine ear unto my sayings.
21
Let them not depart from thine eyes; Keep them in the midst of thy heart.
22
For they are life unto those that find them, And health to all their flesh.
23
Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life. ​
24
Put away from thee a wayward mouth, And perverse lips put far from thee. ​
25
Let thine eyes look right on, And let thine eyelids look straight before thee.
26
Make level the path of thy feet, And let all thy ways be established. ​
27
Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: Remove thy foot from evil.

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Proverbs 4

Verse 1

Hear, ye children — 'Children' is banim, sons. 'Instruction' is musar, discipline or correction, the word of Prov 1:8, 'hear the instruction of thy father'. 'Attend' (qashab) is to prick up the ears. The father speaks in the plural here and to 'my son' in v.10; the call to come and hear matches Ps 34:11, 'Come, ye children, hearken unto me'.

Verse 3

tender and only beloved — The speaker recalls his own place in his father's house. 'Tender' (rak) is the word David uses of Solomon, 'young and tender' (1 Chr 22:5; 29:1). 'Only' is yachid, the word of Isaac, 'thine only son' (Gen 22:2). The teaching of vv.4–9 is what he was given as a boy and now passes on.

Verse 4

retain my words — 'Taught' is yarah, to direct or teach. 'Retain' (tamak) is to hold fast, and the object is the 'heart' (leb), as in Deut 6:6, 'these words … shall be in thine heart'. 'Keep my commandments, and live' is repeated in Prov 7:2; the Law's own promise is 'he shall live in them' (Lev 18:5).

Verse 7

the principal thing — The Hebrew is re'shith, 'beginning', the word of 'the fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge' (1:7) and of Wisdom's own account, 'The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way' (8:22). 'Get' and 'getting' are qanah and qinyan, to acquire or buy; Prov 23:23 says 'Buy the truth, and sell it not'.

Verse 9

an ornament of grace — The 'ornament' (livyah) is a wreath, found only here and in Prov 1:9, there said of a father's instruction. 'Crown of glory' (atarah tiphereth) is the phrase of 16:31, 'The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness'. 'Deliver' is magan, to shield or hand over, as in Gen 14:20, 'hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand'.

Verse 12

not be straitened — Yatsar is to be narrow or hemmed in, the word of Job 18:7, 'The steps of his strength shall be straitened'. The wise walk unhindered, as David said, 'Thou hast enlarged my steps under me' (Ps 18:36). 'Stumble' is kashal, the verb of v.19, 'they know not at what they stumble', and of v.16, 'cause some to fall'.

Verse 16

their sleep is taken away — 'Sleep' is shenah, and 'taken away' is gazal, to seize or rob, the verb of 'Rob not the poor' (22:22). The wicked lose sleep as a victim loses goods. Compare Ps 36:4, 'He deviseth mischief upon his bed', and Mic 2:1. 'Cause some to fall' is kashal, the verb of 'stumble' in v.12.

Verse 18

the path of the just — 'Path' is orach, a well-trodden road; the 'just' is the tsaddiq, the righteous. 'Shineth more and more' is literally 'going and shining'. 'Perfect' is kun, established or fixed, so the light grows until the day stands firm. Verse 19 sets 'the way of the wicked' as darkness. Christ says, 'he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness' (John 8:12).

Verse 23

the issues of life — 'Keep' is natsar, to guard or watch, the verb used of the tongue in Ps 34:13. 'Diligence' is mishmar, a guard or watch. 'Issues' (totsa'oth) are goings out. Christ says the same of the heart's output: 'out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh' (Matt 12:34); 'from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts' (Mark 7:21).

Verse 24

a froward mouth — 'Froward' (iqqeshuth) is twistedness and 'perverse' (lezuth) is crookedness; lezuth occurs only here, and iqqeshuth only here and Prov 6:12, 'a froward mouth'. After the heart (v.23) comes the speech that comes out of it (Matt 12:34). 'Put away' is sur, to turn off; 'put far' is rachaq.

Verse 26

Ponder the path of thy feet — Palas is to weigh or level, the verb of Prov 5:21, 'he pondereth all his goings', said of the LORD. The 'path' is ma'gal, a track. 'Established' is kun, the verb of 'the perfect day' in v.18: ways are fixed as the day is. Ps 37:23 has it of the LORD: 'The steps of a good man are ordered' (kun) 'by the LORD'.