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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Proverbs 3:1 My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/proverbs/3-1.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/new9.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><meta property="og:image" content="https://biblehub.com/visuals/6/20_Pro_03_01.jpg" /><meta property="og:title" content="Proverbs 3:1 - Trust in the LORD" /><meta property="og:site_name" content="Bible Hub" /><meta property="og:description" content="My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;" /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader-revcatch.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script><script>(function(w,d,b,s,i){var cts=d.createElement(s);cts.async=true;cts.id='catchscript'; cts.dataset.appid=i;cts.src='https://app.protectsubrev.com/catch_rp.js?cb='+Math.random(); document.head.appendChild(cts); }) (window,document,'head','script','rc-anksrH');</script></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="/vmenus/proverbs/3-1.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmc/proverbs/3-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="/">Bible</a> > <a href="/proverbs/">Proverbs</a> > <a href="/proverbs/3.htm">Chapter 3</a> > Verse 1</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div><div id="ad1"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/ad1.htm" width="100%" height="48" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="/proverbs/2-22.htm" title="Proverbs 2:22">◄</a> Proverbs 3:1 <a href="/proverbs/3-2.htm" title="Proverbs 3:2">►</a></div></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="topverse"> <a href="#audio" class="clickchap2" title="Context and Audio Bible"> Audio </a> <a href="#crossref" class="clickchap2" title="Cross References"> Cross </a> <a href="#study" class="clickchap2" title="Study Bible"> Study </a> <a href="#commentary" class="clickchap2" title="Commentary"> Comm </a> <a href="#lexicon" class="clickchap2" title="Lexicon"> Heb </a> </div><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheadingv"><b>Verse</b><a href="/bsb/proverbs/3.htm" class="clickchap" style="color:#001320" title="Click any translation name for full chapter">  (Click for Chapter)</a></div><div id="par"><span class="versiontext"><a href="/niv/proverbs/3.htm">New International Version</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nlt/proverbs/3.htm">New Living Translation</a></span><br />My child, never forget the things I have taught you. Store my commands in your heart.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/esv/proverbs/3.htm">English Standard Version</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/bsb/proverbs/3.htm">Berean Standard Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/kjv/proverbs/3.htm">King James Bible</a></span><br />My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nkjv/proverbs/3.htm">New King James Version</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart keep my commands;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb_/proverbs/3.htm">New American Standard Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, But have your heart comply with my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb/proverbs/3.htm">NASB 1995</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, But let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb77/proverbs/3.htm">NASB 1977 </a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, But let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsb/proverbs/3.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a></span><br />My son, do not forget my law, But let your heart guard my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/amp/proverbs/3.htm">Amplified Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, But let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/csb/proverbs/3.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />My son, don’t forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commands;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hcsb/proverbs/3.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />My son, don&#8217t forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commands; <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/asv/proverbs/3.htm">American Standard Version</a></span><br />My son, forget not my law; But let thy heart keep my commandments:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cev/proverbs/3.htm">Contemporary English Version</a></span><br />My child, remember my teachings and instructions and obey them completely. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/erv/proverbs/3.htm">English Revised Version</a></span><br />My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gwt/proverbs/3.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teachings, and keep my commands in mind,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gnt/proverbs/3.htm">Good News Translation</a></span><br />My child, don't forget what I teach you. Always remember what I tell you to do. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/isv/proverbs/3.htm">International Standard Version</a></span><br />My son, don't forget my instruction, and keep my commandments carefully in mind. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/msb/proverbs/3.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/net/proverbs/3.htm">NET Bible</a></span><br />My child, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nheb/proverbs/3.htm">New Heart English Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching; but let your heart keep my commandments:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/wbt/proverbs/3.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a></span><br />My son, forget not my law; but let thy heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/web/proverbs/3.htm">World English Bible</a></span><br />My son, don’t forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments, <div class="vheading2"><b>Literal Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsv/proverbs/3.htm">Literal Standard Version</a></span><br />My son! Do not forget my law, "" And let your heart keep my commands,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/ylt/proverbs/3.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a></span><br /> My son! my law forget not, And my commands let thy heart keep,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/slt/proverbs/3.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a></span><br />My son, thou shalt not forget my law, and thy heart shall guard my commands:<div class="vheading2"><b>Catholic Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/drb/proverbs/3.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a></span><br />My son, forget not my law, and let thy heart keep my commandments. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cpdv/proverbs/3.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart guard my precepts.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nabre/proverbs/3.htm">New American Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my teaching, take to heart my commands; <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nrsvce/proverbs/3.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a></span><br />My child, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments;<div class="vheading2"><b>Translations from Aramaic</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lamsa/proverbs/3.htm">Lamsa Bible</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my law; but let your heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hpbt/proverbs/3.htm">Peshitta Holy Bible Translated</a></span><br />My son, do not forget my law and let your heart keep my commandments<div class="vheading2"><b>OT Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/jps/proverbs/3.htm">JPS Tanakh 1917</a></span><br />My son, forget not my teaching; But let thy heart keep my commandments;<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/sep/proverbs/3.htm">Brenton Septuagint Translation</a></span><br /><i>My</i> son, forget not my laws; but let thine heart keep my words:<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/parallel/proverbs/3-1.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></span></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="audio" id="audio"></a><div class="vheadingv"><b>Audio Bible</b></div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kpUA5ZltBeQ?start=350" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><div class="vheadingv"><b>Context</b></div><span class="hdg"><a href="/bsb/proverbs/3.htm">Trust in the LORD</a></span><br> <span class="reftext">1</span><span class="highl"><a href="/hebrew/1121.htm" title="1121: bə·nî (N-msc:: 1cs) -- Son. From banah; a son, in the widest sense (like 'ab, 'ach, etc.).">My son,</a> <a href="/hebrew/408.htm" title="408: ’al- (Adv) -- Not (a subjective neg.). A negative particle; not; once as a noun, nothing.">do not</a> <a href="/hebrew/7911.htm" title="7911: tiš·kāḥ (V-Qal-Imperf-2ms) -- To forget. Or shakeach; a primitive root; to mislay, i.e. To be oblivious of, from want of memory or attention.">forget</a> <a href="/hebrew/8451.htm" title="8451: tō·w·rā·ṯî (N-fsc:: 1cs) -- Direction, instruction, law. Or torah; from yarah; a precept or statute, especially the Decalogue or Pentateuch.">my teaching,</a> <a href="/hebrew/3820.htm" title="3820: lib·be·ḵā (N-msc:: 2ms) -- A form of lebab; the heart; also used very widely for the feelings, the will and even the intellect; likewise for the centre of anything.">but let your heart</a> <a href="/hebrew/5341.htm" title="5341: yiṣ·ṣōr (V-Qal-Imperf-3ms) -- To watch, guard, keep. A primitive root; to guard, in a good sense Or a bad one.">keep</a> <a href="/hebrew/4687.htm" title="4687: ū·miṣ·wō·ṯay (Conj-w:: N-fpc:: 1cs) -- Commandment. From tsavah; a command, whether human or divine.">my commandments;</a> </span><span class="reftext">2</span>for they will add length to your days, years and peace to your life.…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/6-6.htm">Deuteronomy 6:6-9</a></span><br />These words I am commanding you today are to be upon your hearts. / And you shall teach them diligently to your children and speak of them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. / Tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/119-11.htm">Psalm 119:11</a></span><br />I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/11-18.htm">Deuteronomy 11:18-21</a></span><br />Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as reminders on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. / Teach them to your children, speaking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. / Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates, ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/joshua/1-8.htm">Joshua 1:8</a></span><br />This Book of the Law must not depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. For then you will prosper and succeed in all you do.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/1-1.htm">Psalm 1:1-3</a></span><br />Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. / But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. / He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/proverbs/4-20.htm">Proverbs 4:20-22</a></span><br />My son, pay attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. / Do not lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. / For they are life to those who find them, and health to the whole body.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/proverbs/7-1.htm">Proverbs 7:1-3</a></span><br />My son, keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. / Keep my commandments and live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. / Tie them to your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/colossians/3-16.htm">Colossians 3:16</a></span><br />Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/john/14-15.htm">John 14:15</a></span><br />If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/john/15-10.htm">John 15:10</a></span><br />If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and remain in His love.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/matthew/7-24.htm">Matthew 7:24-25</a></span><br />Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. / The rain fell, the torrents raged, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because its foundation was on the rock.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/james/1-22.htm">James 1:22-25</a></span><br />Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves. / For anyone who hears the word but does not carry it out is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror, / and after observing himself goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_timothy/3-14.htm">2 Timothy 3:14-17</a></span><br />But as for you, continue in the things you have learned and firmly believed, since you know from whom you have learned them. / From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. / All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/hebrews/2-1.htm">Hebrews 2:1</a></span><br />We must pay closer attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/1_john/2-3.htm">1 John 2:3-5</a></span><br />By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments. / If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him. / But if anyone keeps His word, the love of God has been truly perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him:</div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div><p class="tsk2">My son, forget not my law; but let your heart keep my commandments:</p><p class="hdg">forget</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/proverbs/1-8.htm">Proverbs 1:8</a></b></br> My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/proverbs/4-5.htm">Proverbs 4:5</a></b></br> Get wisdom, get understanding: forget <i>it</i> not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/proverbs/31-5.htm">Proverbs 31:5</a></b></br> Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted.</p><p class="hdg">let</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/deuteronomy/4-9.htm">Deuteronomy 4:9</a></b></br> Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons;</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/deuteronomy/6-6.htm">Deuteronomy 6:6-9</a></b></br> And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: … </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/deuteronomy/8-1.htm">Deuteronomy 8:1</a></b></br> All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers.</p><div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/proverbs/2-1.htm">Commandments</a> <a href="/proverbs/2-1.htm">Commands</a> <a href="/psalms/137-5.htm">Forget</a> <a href="/proverbs/2-10.htm">Heart</a> <a href="/proverbs/1-8.htm">Law</a> <a href="/psalms/145-7.htm">Memory</a> <a href="/psalms/130-3.htm">Observe</a> <a href="/psalms/119-171.htm">Rules</a> <a href="/proverbs/1-32.htm">Teaching</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/proverbs/4-4.htm">Commandments</a> <a href="/proverbs/4-4.htm">Commands</a> <a href="/proverbs/4-5.htm">Forget</a> <a href="/proverbs/3-3.htm">Heart</a> <a href="/proverbs/3-30.htm">Law</a> <a href="/proverbs/4-5.htm">Memory</a> <a href="/proverbs/5-2.htm">Observe</a> <a href="/proverbs/4-4.htm">Rules</a> <a href="/proverbs/3-11.htm">Teaching</a><div class="vheading2">Proverbs 3</div><span class="reftext">1. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/proverbs/3-1.htm">various exhortations</a></span><br><span class="reftext">13. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/proverbs/3-13.htm">The gain of wisdom</a></span><br><span class="reftext">27. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/proverbs/3-27.htm">Exhortation to goodness</a></span><br><span class="reftext">33. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/proverbs/3-33.htm">the different state of the wicked and upright</a></span><br></div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div><br /><br /> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:inline-block;width:200px;height:200px" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3753401421161123" data-ad-slot="3592799687"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> <br /><br /> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top"><a href="/study/proverbs/3.htm">Study Bible</a></td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/study/proverbs/" title="Book Summary and Study">Book ◦</a> <a href="/study/chapters/proverbs/3.htm" title="Chapter summary and Study">Chapter </a></tr></table></div><b>My son</b><br>The phrase "My son" reflects the intimate and personal nature of the instruction, suggesting a fatherly relationship. In the context of Proverbs, this is often seen as Solomon addressing his son, but it also represents God speaking to His children. This familial language is common in wisdom literature, emphasizing the importance of passing down wisdom through generations. It echoes the relationship between God and Israel, where God refers to Israel as His "firstborn son" (<a href="/exodus/4-22.htm">Exodus 4:22</a>).<p><b>do not forget my teaching</b><br>The admonition to "not forget" implies the importance of active remembrance and meditation on God's Word. In ancient Israel, oral tradition was crucial, and teachings were often memorized and recited. This phrase underscores the necessity of internalizing divine wisdom, as seen in <a href="/deuteronomy/6-6.htm">Deuteronomy 6:6-9</a>, where the Israelites are instructed to keep God's commandments on their hearts and teach them diligently to their children. Forgetting God's teaching can lead to spiritual decline, as illustrated in the history of Israel's repeated cycles of forgetting and returning to God.<p><b>but let your heart keep my commandments;</b><br>The heart, in biblical terms, is the center of one's being, encompassing mind, will, and emotions. To "keep" commandments in the heart suggests a deep, internal commitment rather than mere external compliance. This aligns with the Shema in <a href="/deuteronomy/6-4.htm">Deuteronomy 6:4-5</a>, which calls for loving God with all one's heart, soul, and strength. The emphasis on the heart also points to the New Covenant promise in <a href="/jeremiah/31-33.htm">Jeremiah 31:33</a>, where God writes His law on the hearts of His people. This foreshadows the work of Christ, who fulfills the law and enables believers to keep God's commandments through the Holy Spirit.<div class="vheading2">Persons / Places / Events</div>1. <b><a href="/topical/s/solomon.htm">Solomon</a></b><br>- Traditionally attributed as the author of Proverbs, Solomon was the son of King David and known for his wisdom. He is addressing his son, which can be understood as a literal son or a figurative representation of a student or follower.<br><br>2. <b><a href="/topical/f/father-son_relationship.htm">Father-Son Relationship</a></b><br>- The verse reflects a paternal relationship, emphasizing the importance of passing down wisdom and instruction from one generation to the next.<br><br>3. <b><a href="/topical/a/ancient_israel.htm">Ancient Israel</a></b><br>- The cultural and historical context of this verse is ancient Israel, where wisdom literature was a key component of religious and moral education.<div class="vheading2">Teaching Points</div><b><a href="/topical/t/the_importance_of_remembering_god's_teaching.htm">The Importance of Remembering God's Teaching</a></b><br>Just as Solomon instructs his son not to forget his teaching, we are called to remember and meditate on God's Word daily. This involves regular reading, study, and memorization of Scripture.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/h/heartfelt_obedience.htm">Heartfelt Obedience</a></b><br>The heart is central to our obedience. Keeping commandments is not just about external compliance but involves a sincere, internal commitment to God's ways.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/g/generational_wisdom.htm">Generational Wisdom</a></b><br>Passing down wisdom and biblical teaching to the next generation is crucial. Parents and mentors should actively engage in teaching and modeling godly principles.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/t/the_role_of_the_heart_in_spiritual_life.htm">The Role of the Heart in Spiritual Life</a></b><br>The heart in Hebrew thought is the seat of intellect and emotion. We must guard our hearts and ensure they are aligned with God's commandments.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/p/practical_application_of_commandments.htm">Practical Application of Commandments</a></b><br>Applying God's commandments in everyday life is essential. This involves making decisions that reflect biblical values and principles.<div class="vheading2">Lists and Questions</div><a href="/top10/lessons_from_proverbs_3.htm">Top 10 Lessons from Proverbs 3</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what_does_the_bible_say_on_speech.htm">What does the Bible teach about controlling speech?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what_is_the_definition_of_actual_grace.htm">How can a young man purify his path?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what_does_proverbs_3_6_mean.htm">What does Proverbs 3:6 mean?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_do_devout_suffer_or_die_young.htm">Proverbs 3:2 promises “long life and peace” for obedience—how do we reconcile this with devout individuals who die young or endure immense turmoil? </a><a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/proverbs/3.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verses 1-18.</span> - 4. <span class="accented">Fourth admonitory discourse.</span> The third chapter introduces us to a group of admonitions, and the first of these (vers. 1-18) forms the fourth admonitory discourse of the teacher. To all intents and purposes this is a continuation of the discourse in the preceding chapter, for inasmuch as that described the benefits, spiritual and moral, which follow from the pursuit of Wisdom, in promoting godliness and providing safety from evil companions, so this in like manner depicts the gain flowing from Wisdom, the happiness of the man who finds Wisdom, and the favour which he meets with both with God and man. The discourse embraces exhortations to obedience (vers. 1-4), to reliance on God (vers. 5, 6) against self-sufficiency and self-dependence (vers. 7, 8), to self-sacrificing devotion to God (vers. 9, 10), to patient submission to God's afflictive dispensations (vers. 11, 12), and concludes with pointing out the happy gain of Wisdom, her incomparable value, and wherein that value consists (vers. 13-18). It is noticeable that in each case the exhortation is accompanied with a corresponding promise of reward (vers, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10), and these promises are brought forward with the view to encourage the observance of the duties recommended or enjoined. Jehovah is the central point to which all the exhortations converge. Obedience, trust, self-sacrificing devotion, submission, are successively brought forward by the teacher as due to God, and the persons in whom they are exhibited are truly happy in finding Wisdom. The transition in thought from the former to the latter part of the discourse is easy and natural. Obedience and trust are represented as bringing favour, guidance, and health - in a word, prosperity. But God is not only to be honoured in times of prosperity, but also in adversity his loving hand is to be recognized; and in this submission to his will is true wisdom. <span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 1.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">My son</span> (<span class="accented">b'ni</span>) serves to externally connect this discourse with the preceding. <span class="cmt_word">Forget not my law.</span> This admonition bears a strong resemblance to that in <a href="/proverbs/1-8.htm">Proverbs 1:8</a>, though the terms employed are somewhat different, <span class="accented">torah</span> and <span class="accented">mits'oth</span> here occupying the place respectively of <span class="accented">musar</span> and <span class="accented">torah</span> in that passage. <span class="accented">My law</span> (<span class="accented">torathi</span>), is literally, <span class="accented">my teaching</span>, or <span class="accented">doctrine</span>, from the root <span class="accented">yarah</span>, "to teach." The <span class="accented">torah</span> is the whole body of salutary doctrine, and designates "Law" from the standpoint of teaching. Forgetting here is not So much oblivion arising from defective memory, as a wilful disregard and neglect of the admonitions of the teacher. <span class="cmt_word">Thine heart</span> (<span class="accented">libekha</span>); Vulgate<span class="accented">, cor</span>; LXX., <span class="greek">καρδία</span> and so the sum total of the affections. <span class="cmt_word">Keep</span>; <span class="accented">yitstsor</span>, from <span class="accented">notsar</span>, "to keep, or observe that which is commanded." The word is of frequent occurrence in the Proverbs, and appears about twenty-five times. <span class="cmt_word">My commandments</span> (<span class="accented">mits'othay</span>); Vulgate, <span class="accented">praecepta mea</span>; LXX., <span class="greek">τὰ ῤήματα μου</span>; <span class="accented">i.e.</span> my precepts. The Hebrew verb from which it is derived means "to command, or prescribe." The law and commandments here alluded to are those which immediately follow, from ver. 3 onwards. The three main ideas combined in this verse are remembrance, affection, and obedience. Remembering the law or teaching will depend, to a large extent, on the interest felt in that law; and the admonition to "forget not" is an admonition to give "earnest heed," so that the law or teaching may be firmly fixed in the mind. In using the words, "let thy heart keep," the teacher goes to the root of the matter. There may be an historical remembrance of, or an intellectual assent to, the commandments, but these are insufficient, for the keeping of the commandments must be based on the recognition of the fact that the affections of the heart are to be employed in the service of God, the keeping of the commandments is to be a labour of love. Again, the expression, "keep my commandments," implies, of course, external conformity to their requirements: we are "to observe to do them" (<a href="/deuteronomy/8-1.htm">Deuteronomy 8:1</a>); but it implies, further, spiritual obedience, <span class="accented">i.e.</span> an obedience with which love is combined (<a href="/deuteronomy/30-20.htm">Deuteronomy 30:20</a>), and which arises from the inward principles of the heart being in harmony with the spirit of the commandments (see Wardlaw). <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/commentaries/proverbs/3-1.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a></span><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Hebrew</div><span class="word">My son,</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּ֭נִי</span> <span class="translit">(bə·nî)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1121.htm">Strong's 1121: </a> </span><span class="str2">A son</span><br /><br /><span class="word">do not</span><br /><span class="heb">אַל־</span> <span class="translit">(’al-)</span><br /><span class="parse">Adverb<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_408.htm">Strong's 408: </a> </span><span class="str2">Not</span><br /><br /><span class="word">forget</span><br /><span class="heb">תִּשְׁכָּ֑ח</span> <span class="translit">(tiš·kāḥ)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_7911.htm">Strong's 7911: </a> </span><span class="str2">To mislay, to be oblivious of, from want of memory, attention</span><br /><br /><span class="word">my teaching,</span><br /><span class="heb">תּוֹרָתִ֣י</span> <span class="translit">(tō·w·rā·ṯî)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_8451.htm">Strong's 8451: </a> </span><span class="str2">Direction, instruction, law</span><br /><br /><span class="word">but let your heart</span><br /><span class="heb">לִבֶּֽךָ׃</span> <span class="translit">(lib·be·ḵā)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3820.htm">Strong's 3820: </a> </span><span class="str2">The heart, the feelings, the will, the intellect, centre</span><br /><br /><span class="word">keep</span><br /><span class="heb">יִצֹּ֥ר</span> <span class="translit">(yiṣ·ṣōr)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_5341.htm">Strong's 5341: </a> </span><span class="str2">To watch, guard, keep</span><br /><br /><span class="word">my commandments;</span><br /><span class="heb">וּ֝מִצְוֺתַ֗י</span> <span class="translit">(ū·miṣ·wō·ṯay)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4687.htm">Strong's 4687: </a> </span><span class="str2">Commandment</span><br /><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 NIV</a><br /><a href="/nlt/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 NLT</a><br /><a href="/esv/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 ESV</a><br /><a href="/nasb/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 NASB</a><br /><a href="/kjv/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 KJV</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="//bibleapps.com/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 BibleApps.com</a><br /><a href="//bibliaparalela.com/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 Biblia Paralela</a><br /><a href="//holybible.com.cn/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 Chinese Bible</a><br /><a href="//saintebible.com/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 French Bible</a><br /><a href="/catholic/proverbs/3-1.htm">Proverbs 3:1 Catholic Bible</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/proverbs/3-1.htm">OT Poetry: Proverbs 3:1 My son don't forget my teaching (Prov. Pro Pr) </a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/proverbs/2-22.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Proverbs 2:22"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Proverbs 2:22" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/proverbs/3-2.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Proverbs 3:2"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Proverbs 3:2" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>