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Proverbs 3

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Keep the Law, Find Favor 1–4

1
My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: ​
2
For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
3
Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: ​
4
So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. ​

Trust in the Lord Completely 5–8

5
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. ​
6
In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ​
7
Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
8
It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. ​

Honor God with Your Wealth 9–10

9
Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: ​
10
So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

Do Not Despise Discipline 11–12

11
My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: ​
12
For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. ​

The Priceless Value of Wisdom 13–20

13
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. ​
14
For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. ​
15
She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.
16
Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour.
17
Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.
18
She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her. ​
19
The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens. ​
20
By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.

Wisdom Provides Safety and Peace 21–26

21
My son, let not them depart from thine eyes: keep sound wisdom and discretion: ​
22
So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck.
23
Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.
24
When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. ​
25
Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh.
26
For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.

Live Righteously with Neighbors 27–35

27
Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. ​
28
Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee.
29
Devise not evil against thy neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee. ​
30
Strive not with a man without cause, if he have done thee no harm.
31
Envy thou not the oppressor, and choose none of his ways.
32
For the froward is abomination to the LORD: but his secret is with the righteous. ​
33
The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.
34
Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly. ​
35
The wise shall inherit glory: but shame shall be the promotion of fools.

Bible text: King James Version (1769 Blayney text) · Public domain

Study Notes for Proverbs 3

Verse 1

my law — Torah, the word for the law given through Moses, here the father's instruction to his son. 'Forget' is shakach, and 'keep' is natsar, to guard, the verb of Prov 4:23, 'Keep thy heart with all diligence': the heart is set to watch over the commandments, not only to remember them.

Verse 3

mercy and truth — Chesed (covenant kindness) and emet (faithfulness) are the pair that mark the LORD's own paths: 'All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth' (Ps 25:10). 'Table' is luach, the word for the 'tables of stone' (Ex 24:12); the heart is the tablet in Jer 17:1 and 2 Cor 3:3.

Verse 4

favour and good understanding — Chen, favour, and sekel tov, good understanding, the fruit of keeping the commandments (v.1) and of mercy and truth (v.3). The verse is taken up of Christ as a boy, who 'increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man' (Luke 2:52); compare 1 Sam 2:26, said of Samuel.

Verse 5

lean not unto thine own understanding — Batach is to rely on, in safety; sha'an is to lean the weight on a support, as Egypt was leaned on in 'when they leaned upon thee, thou brakest' (Ezek 29:7), or to 'stay upon the LORD' (Isa 10:20). 'Understanding' (binah) is set against the LORD; v.7 repeats it: 'Be not wise in thine own eyes.'

Verse 6

he shall direct thy paths — Yada, to know, is to acknowledge him in 'all thy ways'. Yashar is to make straight or level, so that the paths (orach) run true; its adjective is the 'righteous' (the upright) of v.32. The promise is joined to v.5: trusting with all the heart, then acknowledging in every way.

Verse 8

health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones — 'It' is the fear of the LORD and departing from evil (v.7). Rippuy is a cure, healing. Shor, the navel, occurs elsewhere only at Ezek 16:4; the 'marrow' (shiqquy) is literally moisture or drink, refreshment to the bones. Prov 4:22 says of the words of wisdom, 'health to all their flesh'.

Verse 9

the firstfruits of all thine increase — Kabad, to honour, is to give weight. The firstfruits (reshit) are the law of Ex 23:19, 'The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God', and of Deut 26:2. 'Increase' is tebuah, produce; v.10 answers with barns 'filled with plenty'.

Verse 11

the chastening of the LORD — Musar is discipline and instruction, the word of 'instruction' in Prov 1:2; 'correction' is tochechah, reproof. Hebrews 12:5 quotes these two verses to Christians as the exhortation that 'speaketh unto you as unto children': 'My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him.'

Verse 12

whom the LORD loveth he correcteth — Yakach is to reprove. 'Delighteth' is ratsah, to be pleased with: the father corrects the son he is pleased with. Heb 12:6 gives the line, 'For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth'; Deut 8:5 has the same comparison, 'as a man chasteneth his son'.

Verse 13

Happy is the man that findeth wisdom — Ashre is the exclamation of Ps 1:1, 'Blessed is the man'. Wisdom here is a 'she' (vv.15–18), who is found: 'whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD' (Prov 8:35). 'Getteth' is puq, to obtain.

Verse 14

better than the merchandise of silver — Sachar is trading profit and tebuah the yield, the same word as 'increase' in v.9. What wisdom produces is set against what silver and 'fine gold' (charuts, mined gold) produce: 'How much better is it to get wisdom than gold!' (Prov 16:16).

Verse 18

a tree of life — The tree of Gen 2:9, which stood in the garden of Eden and whose way the cherubim guarded (Gen 3:24); it returns in Rev 22:2. In Proverbs it is named four times (3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4). Wisdom is held by 'lay hold' (chazaq) and 'retaineth' (tamak), a firm grasp.

Verse 19

The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth — Yasad is to lay a foundation and kun to set firm. Wisdom speaks in Prov 8:27 of the making of the heavens, 'When he prepared the heavens, I was there'. In the New Testament Christ is 'the power of God, and the wisdom of God' (1 Cor 1:24), and 'All things were made by him' (John 1:3).

Verse 21

sound wisdom and discretion — Tushiyyah, sound wisdom, is practical ability to carry a matter through; mezimmah, discretion, is the planning mind (Prov 1:4; 2:11; 8:12). 'Depart' is luz, to turn aside, the same root as 'the froward' (those who turn aside) in v.32.

Verse 24

thou shalt not be afraid — The promise of Lev 26:6, 'ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid'. 'Sweet' is arab, to be pleasant. The verse follows v.23, 'thy foot shall not stumble', and precedes v.25, 'Be not afraid of sudden fear'. Compare Ps 4:8, 'I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep'.

Verse 27

to whom it is due — Literally 'from its owners' (ba'al), those who have a claim to the good. 'Withhold' is mana, to hold back. V.28 gives the case: 'Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give.' Compare Gal 6:10, 'let us do good unto all men'.

Verse 29

he dwelleth securely by thee — 'Securely' is betach, the noun of the root behind 'trust' in v.5: the neighbour sits beside you in trust. 'Devise' is charash, first to scratch or plough, then to fabricate. The verse forbids planning harm against a neighbour who lives next to you without suspicion.

Verse 32

his secret is with the righteous — Sod is the close counsel of those sitting together: 'The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him' (Ps 25:14); he 'revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets' (Amos 3:7). The 'righteous' are the upright (yashar), the same root as 'direct' in v.6.

Verse 34

he scorneth the scorners — One root, luts, appears twice: the scorner is scorned. 'Lowly' is anav, the humble and afflicted. James 4:6 and 1 Pet 5:5 quote the verse with 'the proud' for the scorners: 'God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.'