Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
Parallel translations
- WEB Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.
- KJV Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
- NKJV Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.
- NASB Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he grows older he will not abandon it.
- NLT Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.
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
Train a child in the right way, and he will hold to it when old. It matters because early godly upbringing shapes a lifetime.
Overview
This well-known proverb commends diligent, godly instruction of children, generally producing lasting fruit. Faithful Christians read it as a wise general principle and encouragement rather than an unconditional guarantee, since children retain responsibility and Proverbs speaks in such patterns. It calls parents to nurture children in the Lord (Ephesians 6:4; Deuteronomy 6:6-7).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Eph 6:4Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath; instead, bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
- Deut 6:7And 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.
- 2 Tim 3:15From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
- Gen 18:19For I have chosen him, so that he will command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, in order that the LORD may bring upon Abraham what He has promised.”
- Deut 4:9Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and grandchildren.
- Ps 78:3–6that we have heard and known and our fathers have relayed to us.
- 1 Sam 1:28I now dedicate the boy to the LORD. For as long as he lives, he is dedicated to the LORD.” So they worshiped the LORD there.
- 1 Sam 2:26And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the LORD and with man.
- 1 Sam 12:2–3Now here is the king walking before you, and I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have walked before you from my youth until this day.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 22:6 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.