Proverbs 4:8-18

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.
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.
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.

Proverbs 4:8-18 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PROVERBS 4

In this chapter Solomon advises to seek after wisdom, to avoid bad company, and to continue in the right paths of goodness and truth: he excites attention to what he had to say, from the relation he stood in to the persons addressed; from the nature of his instructions, which were good and profitable; and from his own example, in attending to those his parents gave him, Pr 4:1-4; He exhorts above all things to get wisdom, from the superior excellency of it, and from the preservation, promotion, and honour, to be had by it, Pr 4:5-9; and he further enforces big exhortations, from their being the means of a comfortable life, and of the prolongation of it, and of leading in a right way without straitness or stumbling, Pr 4:10-13. And then proceeds to caution against bad company, and going into a bad way of life; which is enforced from the mischief done by those that walk in it, and from the darkness of it, to which the path of the just is opposed, Pr 4:14-19. And the exhortation to attend to and observe his instructions, and keep them, is repeated, from the consideration of their being life and health to them, Pr 4:20-22; and that they might be preserved, and not departed from, direction's are given about ordering the heart, mouth, lips, eyes, and feet, Pr 4:23-27.

The American Standard Version is in the public domain.