The law of the wise is a fountain of life, To turn one away from the snares of death.
Parallel translations
- WEB The teaching of the wise is a spring of life, to turn from the snares of death.
- KJV The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.
- BSB The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning one from the snares of death.
- NASB The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, To turn aside from the snares of death.
- NLT The instruction of the wise is like a life-giving fountain; those who accept it avoid the snares of death.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The teaching of the wise is a life-giving spring that steers people from deadly traps. Wisdom rescues from destruction.
Overview
Wise instruction is pictured as a 'spring of life,' refreshing and sustaining, and as a guide that turns one away from 'the snares of death.' The same imagery is applied to the fear of the LORD elsewhere in Proverbs, linking wisdom to reverence for God. Ultimately Christ's words are 'spirit and life' (John 6:63) and lead from death to life.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Prov 10:11The mouth of the righteous is a spring of life, but violence covers the mouth of the wicked.
- Prov 14:27The fear of Yahweh is a fountain of life, turning people from the snares of death.
- Ps 18:5The cords of Sheol were around me. The snares of death came on me.
- 2 Sam 22:6–7The cords of Sheol were around me. The snares of death caught me.
- Prov 16:17The highway of the upright is to depart from evil. He who keeps his way preserves his soul.
- Ps 116:3The cords of death surrounded me, the pains of Sheol got a hold of me. I found trouble and sorrow.
- Prov 16:6By mercy and truth iniquity is atoned for. By the fear of Yahweh men depart from evil.
- Prov 9:11For by me your days will be multiplied. The years of your life will be increased.
- Prov 15:24The path of life leads upward for the wise, to keep him from going downward to Sheol.
- Prov 16:22Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it, but the punishment of fools is their folly.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 13:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.