New King James Version
Proverbs 19:18
18Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction.
Proverbs 19:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.
- New International Version (NIV)Discipline your children, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to their death.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Discipline your son, for there is hope; do not set your heart on putting him to death.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Discipline your children while there is hope. Otherwise you will ruin their lives.
Context of Proverbs 19:18
16He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul, But he who is careless of his ways will die. 17He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, And He will pay back what he has given. Chasten your son while there is hope, And do not set your heart on his destruction. 19A man of great wrath will suffer punishment; For if you rescue him, you will have to do it again. 20Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days.
Read all of Proverbs 19Proverbs 19:18 word by word
יַסֵּ֣ר בִּ֭נְךָ כִּי־יֵ֣שׁ תִּקְוָ֑ה וְאֶל־הֲ֝מִית֗וֹ אַל־תִּשָּׂ֥א נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 19:18
- Proverbs 13:24He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.
- Proverbs 22:15Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.
- Proverbs 23:14You shall beat him with a rod, And deliver his soul from hell.
- Proverbs 29:15The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother.
- Hebrews 12:7If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?
Commentaries on Proverbs 19:18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Let not thy soul spare for his crying - This is a hard precept for a parent. Nothing affects the heart of a parent so much as a child's cries and tears. But it is better that the child may be caused to cry, when the correction may be healthful to his soul, than that the parent should cry afterwards, when the child is grown to man's estate, and his evil habits are sealed for life.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18While there is hope - While he is still young, and capable of being reformed. Crying - Better, as in the margin, Do not set thy soul on his destruction; words which either counsel forbearance in the act of chastisement (compare Ephesians 6:4; Colossians 3:21); or urge that a false clemency is a real cruelty. The latter sense is preferable. The father is warned that to forbear from chastising is virtually to expose the son who needs it to a far worse…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18Verse 18 When parents keep under foolish tenderness, they do their best to render children a comfort to them, and happy in themselves.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18Gaining wisdom needs discipline for everyone, including children (see Proverbs 10:17; 13:1, 10; 15:31–32; 17:10). The short-term sadness from discipline is worth avoiding disaster.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. (Compare Pr 13:24; 23:13). let not ... spare--literally, "do not lift up thy soul" (Psa 24:4; 25:1), that is, do not desire to his death; a caution to passionate parents against angry chastisement.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 19:18
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 19
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries