Pro 4:4-9 | NET2full | STEP | he taught me, and he said to me: “Let your heart lay hold of my words ; keep my commands so that you will live .

Proverbs 4:4-9

4 he taught me, and he said to me:
“Let your heart lay hold of my words;
keep my commands so that ^{▼▼tn The vav plus imperative “and live” expresses purpose, as is common with volitional verbs in a series.} you will live.
5 Acquire wisdom, acquire understanding;
do not forget and do not turn aside from the words I speak. ^{▼▼tn Heb “from the words of my mouth” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); TEV, CEV “what I say.”} ^{▼▼sn The verse repeats the imperative “acquire” to underscore the importance of getting wisdom.}
6 Do not forsake wisdom, ^{▼▼tn Heb “her.” The referent of the pronoun is personified “wisdom,” which has been specified in the translation for clarity.} and she will protect you;
love her, and she will guard you.
7 Wisdom is supreme ^{▼▼tn The absolute and construct state of רֵאשִׁית (reʾshit) are identical (BDB 912 s.v.). Some treat רֵאשִׁית חָכְמָה (reʾshit khokhmah) as a genitive-construct phrase: “the beginning of wisdom” (cf. NAB, NASB, NRSV). Others take רֵאשִׁית as an absolute functioning as predicate and חָכְמָה as the subject: “wisdom is the first/chief thing” (cf. KJV, ASV). The context here suggests the predicate.} —so ^{▼▼tn The term “so” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness and style.} acquire wisdom,
and whatever you acquire, ^{▼▼tn The noun קִנְיָן (qinyan) means “thing got or acquired; acquisition” (BDB 889 s.v.). With the preposition that denotes price, it means “with (or at the price of) all that you have acquired.” The point is that no price is too high for wisdom—give everything for it (K&D 16:108).} acquire understanding! ^{▼▼tc The verse is not in the LXX; some textual critics delete the verse as an impossible gloss that interrupts vv. 6 and 8 (e.g., C. H. Toy, Proverbs [ICC], 88).}
8 Esteem her highly ^{▼▼tn The verb is the Pilpel imperative from סָלַל (salal). In its ten Qal uses, it means to pile up, usually in building a road. The two uses in the doubling stems (here and Exod 9:17) are resultative or plurative, meaning “to raise up, to exalt.” To grant her a high position implies esteeming her.} and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will place a fair ^{▼▼sn The personification of wisdom continues with the bestowal of a wreath for the head (e.g., 1:9). The point is that grace will be given to the individual like a wreath about the head.} garland on your head;
she will bestow a beautiful crown ^{▼▼sn This verse uses wedding imagery: The wife (wisdom) who is embraced by her husband (the disciple) will place the wedding crown on the head of her new bridegroom. Wisdom, like a virtuous wife, will crown the individual with honor and grace. In vv. 4-9 Murphy points out the four fold repetition of “acquire” (קָנָה, qanah), the same term used of Boaz taking Ruth as a wife (Ruth 4:8, 10), and the calls to love her (Prov 4:6) and embrace her (4:8) (R. Murphy, Proverbs [WBC], 27). This section personifies wisdom and portrays the pursuit of wisdom as a paramount romantic pursuit.} on you.”