When I saw, I reflected upon it; I looked, and received instruction.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then I saw, and considered well. I saw, and received instruction:
- KJV Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
- BSB I observed and took it to heart; I looked and received instruction:
- NKJV When I saw it, I considered it well; I looked on it and received instruction:
- NLT Then, as I looked and thought about it, I learned this lesson:
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 teacher reflects carefully on what he saw and draws a lesson from it. Wisdom comes through thoughtful observation.
Overview
Rather than passing by, the sage 'considers well' and receives instruction, showing that wisdom is gained by attentive reflection on God's world. This models the discipline of learning from the consequences others suffer. It commends a teachable heart that turns everyday sights into moral instruction.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- 1 Cor 10:11Now all these things happened to them by way of example, and they were written for our admonition, on whom the ends of the ages have come.
- Deut 13:11All Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall not do any more wickedness like this among you.
- Luke 2:51And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth. He was subject to them, and his mother kept all these sayings in her heart.
- 1 Cor 10:6Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
- Luke 2:19But Mary kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart.
- Ps 4:4Stand in awe, and don’t sin. Search your own heart on your bed, and be still. Selah.
- Jude 1:5–7Now I desire to remind you, though you already know this, that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who didn’t believe.
- Deut 21:21All the men of his city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall remove the evil from among you. All Israel shall hear, and fear.
- Deut 32:29Oh that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!
- Job 7:17What is man, that you should magnify him, that you should set your mind on him,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 24:32 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.