Proverbs

Chapter 4

A Father’s Instruction

Proverbs 4 presents a father's instruction passed down from his own father, urging sons to prize wisdom above all else because she preserves, honors, and directs life. The chapter contrasts the brightening path of the righteous with the dark way of the wicked and ends by calling for vigilant attention to the heart, speech, gaze, and steps so that life stays on a straight course.

As the fourth chapter of Proverbs, this passage gathers the book's early themes into a sustained fatherly appeal: get wisdom, avoid the wicked path, and guard the inner life from which conduct flows. It deepens the parental voice of the opening chapters while sharpening the moral contrast between the way that leads to life and the way that ends in ruin.

1 section·202 words·~1 min read

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Proverbs 4

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vv. 1-27

A Father’s Instruction

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L¹isten, my sons, to a father’s instruction; ²For I give you sound teaching; ³When I was a son to my father, ⁴he taught me and said, ⁵Get wisdom, get understanding; ⁶Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you; ⁷Wisdom is supreme; so acquire wisdom. ⁸Prize her, and she will exalt you; ⁹She will set a garland of grace on your head;

¹⁰Listen, my son, and receive my words, ¹¹I will guide you in the way of wisdom; ¹²When you walk, your steps will not be impeded; ¹³Hold on to instruction; do not let go.

¹⁴Do not set foot on the path of the wicked ¹⁵Avoid it; do not travel on it. ¹⁶For they cannot sleep ¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness ¹⁸The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, ¹⁹But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom;

²⁰My son, pay attention to my words; ²¹Do not lose sight of them; ²²For they are life to those who find them, ²³Guard your heart with all diligence, ²⁴Put away deception from your mouth; ²⁵Let your eyes look forward; ²⁶Make a level path for your feet, ²⁷Do not swerve to the right or to the left;

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01vv. 1-27A Father’s InstructionThe father calls his sons to hear instruction, recounts the wisdom he himself received, and urges them to acquire wisdom at any cost because she guards, exalts, and adorns those who love her. He then warns them to avoid the path of the wicked, contrasts the righteous path with the darkness of the wicked, and closes by commanding careful custody of heart, speech, sight, and steps.