New English Translation
Proverbs 4:5
5Acquire wisdom, acquire understanding; do not forget and do not turn aside from the words I speak.
Proverbs 4:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.
- New International Version (NIV)Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Get wisdom; get insight; do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth.
Context of Proverbs 4:5
3When I was a son to my father, a tender only child before my mother, 4he taught me, and he said to me: “Let your heart lay hold of my words; keep my commands so that you will live. Acquire wisdom, acquire understanding; do not forget and do not turn aside from the words I speak. 6Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will guard you. 7Wisdom is supreme – so acquire wisdom, and whatever you acquire, acquire understanding!
Read all of Proverbs 4Proverbs 4:5 word by word
קְנֵ֣ה חָ֭כְמָה קְנֵ֣ה בִינָ֑ה אַל־תִּשְׁכַּ֥ח וְאַל־תֵּ֝֗ט מֵֽאִמְרֵי־פִֽי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 4:5
- Proverbs 1:22“How long will you simpletons love naiveté? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?
- Proverbs 2:2by making your ear attentive to wisdom, and by turning your heart to understanding,
- Proverbs 3:13Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who obtains understanding.
- Proverbs 8:5You who are naive, discern wisdom! And you fools, understand discernment!
- Proverbs 17:16Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no intention of acquiring wisdom?
- Proverbs 18:1One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects all sound judgment.
- Proverbs 19:8The one who acquires wisdom loves himself; the one who preserves understanding will prosper.
- Proverbs 23:23Acquire truth and do not sell it – wisdom, and discipline, and understanding.
- James 1:5But if anyone is deficient in wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without reprimand, and it will be given to him.
- 2 Chronicles 34:2He did what the Lord approved and followed in his ancestor David’s footsteps; he did not deviate to the right or the left.
- Job 23:11My feet have followed his steps closely; I have kept to his way and have not turned aside.
- Psalms 44:18We have not been unfaithful, nor have we disobeyed your commands.
- Psalms 119:51Arrogant people do nothing but scoff at me. Yet I do not turn aside from your law.
Commentaries on Proverbs 4:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5Get wisdom - True religion is essential to thy happiness; never forget its teachings, nor go aside from the path it prescribes.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4-20Verses 4-20 The counsel which has come to him, in substance, from his father. Compare it with 2 Samuel 23:2 etc.; 1 Chronicles 28:9; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Psalm 15:1-5; Psalm 24:1-10; Proverbs 4:7 Or, “The beginning of wisdom is - get wisdom.” To seek is to find, to desire is to obtain. Proverbs 4:12 The ever-recurring parable of the journey of life. In the way of wisdom the path is clear and open, obstacles disappear; in the quickest activity (“when thou…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5In the Old Testament, forgetting means more than just not remembering; it also means failing to obey.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. Get--as a possession not to be given up. neither decline--that is, from obeying my word.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 4:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries