Proverbs 3
Proverbs 3 is the third chapter of the Book of Proverbs in the Hebrew Bible, or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. The book is a compilation of several wisdom literature collections, with the heading in 1:1 may be intended to regard Solomon as the traditional author of the whole book, but the dates of the individual collections are difficult to determine. The book probably obtained its final shape in the post-exilic period. This chapter is a part of the first collection of the book.
Text
Hebrew
The following table shows the Hebrew text of Proverbs 3 with vowels alongside an English translation based upon the JPS 1917 translation.| Verse | Hebrew | English translation |
| 1 | My son, forget not my teaching; But let thy heart keep my commandments; | |
| 2 | For length of days, and years of life, And peace, will they add to thee. | |
| 3 | Let not kindness and truth forsake thee; Bind them about thy neck, write them upon the table of thy heart; | |
| 4 | So shalt thou find grace and good favour In the sight of God and man. | |
| 5 | Trust in the with all thy heart, And lean not upon thine own understanding. | |
| 6 | In all thy ways acknowledge Him, And He will direct thy paths. | |
| 7 | Be not wise in thine own eyes; Fear the, and depart from evil; | |
| 8 | It shall be health to thy navel, And marrow to thy bones. | |
| 9 | Honour the with thy substance, And with the first-fruits of all thine increase; | |
| 10 | So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, And thy vats shall overflow with new wine. | |
| 11 | My son, despise not the chastening of the, Neither spurn thou His correction; | |
| 12 | For whom the loveth He correcteth, Even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. | |
| 13 | Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, And the man that obtaineth 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; In her left hand are 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 holdest her fast. | |
| 19 | The by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens. | |
| 20 | By His knowledge the depths were broken up, And the skies drop down the dew. | |
| 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 securely, And thou shalt not dash thy foot. | |
| 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 terror, Neither of the destruction of the wicked, when it cometh; | |
| 26 | For the will be thy confidence, And will keep thy foot from being caught. | |
| 27 | Withhold not good from him to whom it is due, When it is in the power of thy 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 man of violence, And choose none of his ways. | |
| 32 | For the perverse is an abomination to the ; But His counsel is with the upright. | |
| 33 | The curse of the is in the house of the wicked; But He blesseth the habitation of the righteous. | |
| 34 | If it concerneth the scorners, He scorneth them, But unto the humble He giveth grace. | |
| 35 | The wise shall inherit honour; But as for the fools, they carry away shame. |
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Biblical Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text, which includes the Aleppo Codex, and Codex Leningradensis.There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint, made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus, Codex Sinaiticus, and Codex Alexandrinus.
Analysis
This chapter belongs to a section regarded as the first collection in the book of Proverbs, known as "Didactic discourses". The Jerusalem Bible describes chapters 1–9 as a prologue of the chapters 10–22:16, the so-called " proverbs of Solomon", as "the body of the book".The chapter has the following structure:
- introductory exhortation,
- an admonition to be faithful to the Lord.
- commendation of Wisdom as
- * the most valuable possession,
- *essential to creation, and
- *the way to a long and safe life
- a warning to avoid unneighborliness and emulating the wicked.
Trust in God (3:1–12)
This passage stands out among the instructions in the first collection, because of its spiritual content that may be seen as a development to the motto of the whole book in Proverbs 1:7–9, that "Wisdom consists in complete trust in and submission to God". It is related to 'loyalty and faithfulness', which can refer to relationships between human and God or human to human, and are to be 'worn as an adornment around the neck' as well as 'written on the heart'. As the kernel of the instructions in this chapter, 'trust in God' is contrasted in verses 5 and 6 with self-reliance, saying that the best action is the complete commitment and submission to God. The analogy of medicinal healing benefits of wisdom recurs in Proverbs 15:30, 16:24, and 17:22; although sometimes tastes bitter, it is a divine chastisement and a proof of God's fatherly love.Verse 1
- "Teaching": from Hebrew root torah, "guidance, direction", paralleling 'commandments', from Hebrew root mitzvah; both terms may refer to "the law of God" although here it is applied in wisdom instruction.
Verses 5–6
- "Trust": from Hebrew root , related to the words rendered 'securely' in Proverbs 3:23 and 'confidence' in Proverbs 14:26; in the Hebrew Bible is used in literal physical sense and figurative sense, often in the negative context of false securities, trusting in worthless things, but here in the context of security the Lord who is a 'reliable object of confidence'.