Discipline your son, for there is hope; don’t be a willing party to his death.
Parallel translations
- KJV Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.
- BSB Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be party to his death.
- NKJV Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction.
- NASB Discipline your son while there is hope, And do not desire his death.
- NLT Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives.
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
Discipline your child while there is hope, not consenting to his ruin. Loving correction is essential and timely.
Overview
This proverb urges parents to discipline their children while there is still hope of shaping them, warning that neglecting correction is to share in their destruction. It reflects Proverbs' conviction that loving, timely discipline is for the child's good (Prov. 13:24). The verse mirrors the heavenly Father's own discipline of those He loves (Heb. 12:6), always aimed at life and not death.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Prov 13:24One who spares the rod hates his son, but one who loves him is careful to discipline him.
- Prov 29:15The rod of correction gives wisdom, but a child left to himself causes shame to his mother.
- Prov 23:13–14Don’t withhold correction from a child. If you punish him with the rod, he will not die.
- Prov 22:15Folly is bound up in the heart of a child: the rod of discipline drives it far from him.
- Heb 12:7–10It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as with children, for what son is there whom his father doesn’t discipline?
- Prov 29:17Correct your son, and he will give you peace; yes, he will bring delight to your soul.
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 19:18 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
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