Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 23:13
Withhold not correction from the child: for [if] thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
13. if thou beatest him ] Or, though, R.V. marg., meaning thou needest not to be afraid that corporal punishment will result in death. It is better, however, to understand death here as the consequence of the sin, into which, if allowed to go uncorrected, he will fall. See Pro 19:18 note. This view is borne out by the next verse here.
Pro 23:15-35 . The style of composition changes from separate proverbs or wise maxims to a continuous address, not unlike chaps. 1 9 in character.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
i. e., You will not kill your son by scourging him, you may kill him by with holding the scourge.
Pro 23:14
Hell – Sheol, the world of the dead.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
It is a likely mean to prevent their corruption, and the destruction which commonly follows it, as the next verse explains this.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
13, 14. While there is littledanger that the use of the “divine ordinance of the rod”will produce bodily harm, there is great hope of spiritual good.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Withhold not correction from the child,…. When he has committed a fault, and correction is necessary; for to spare it is the ruin of the child, and no proof of true affection in the parent, but the reverse; see Pr 13:24;
for, [if] thou beatest him with a rod, he shall not die; if he be beaten moderately, there is no danger of his dying under the rod, or with the stripes given him; besides, such moderate and proper corrections may be a means of preserving him from such crimes as would bring him to a shameful and untimely death, and so he shall not die such a death; and by such means, through the grace of God, he may escape the second, or eternal death.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
13 Withhold not correction from the child;
For thou will beat him with the rod, and he will not die.
14 Thou beatest him with the rod,
And with it deliverest his soul from hell.
The exhortation, 13a, presupposes that education by word and deed is a duty devolving on the father and the teacher with regard to the child. In 13b, is in any case the relative conjunction. The conclusion does not mean: so will he not fall under death (destruction), as Luther also would have it, after Deu 19:21, for this thought certainly follows Pro 23:14; nor after Pro 19:18: so may the stroke not be one whereof he dies, for then the author ought to have written ; but: he will not die of it, i.e., only strike if he has deserved it, thou needest not fear; the bitter medicine will be beneficial to him, not deadly. The standing before the double clause, Pro 23:14, means that he who administers corporal chastisement to the child, saves him spiritually; for does not refer to death in general, but to death falling upon a man before his time, and in his sins, vid., Pro 15:24, cf. Pro 8:26.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Verses 13-14 See comment on Pro 13:24.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
TEXT Pro. 23:13-23
13.
Withhold not correction from the child;
For if thou beat him with the rod, he will not die.
14.
Thou shalt beat him with the rod,
And shalt deliver his soul from Sheol.
15.
My son, if thy heart be wise,
My hear will be glad, even mine.
.
16.
Yea, my heart will rejoice
When thy lips speak right things.
17.
Let not thy heart envy sinners;
But be thou in the fear of Jehovah all the day long:
18.
For surely there is a reward;
And thy hope shall not be cut off.
19.
Hear thou, my son, arid be wise,
And guide thy heart in the way.
20.
Be not among winebibbers,
Among gluttonous eaters of flesh:
21.
For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty;
And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.
22.
Hearken unto thy father that begat thee,
And despise not thy mother when she is old.
23.
Buy the truth, and sell it not;
Yea, wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.
STUDY QUESTIONS OVER 23:13-23
1.
Does Pro. 23:13 sound like most people whip their children too hard or too easy?
2.
What is meant by Sheol in Pro. 23:14?
3.
How does Pro. 10:1 word the same truth as found in Pro. 23:15?
4.
Is the opposite of Pro. 23:16 just as true (that parents hearts weep when their children speak perverse things)?
5.
Do the wicked want us to envy them (Pro. 23:17)?
6.
Will a godly person in time have more than a sinner has now (Pro. 23:18)?
7.
How many times in this chapter does it say, My son (Pro. 23:19)?
8.
Why is this said so many times (Pro. 23:19)?
9.
What is the wrong of winebibbing and gluttony (Pro. 23:20; Pro. 23:20)?
10.
What is the relation of drowsiness to such habits (Pro. 23:21)?
11.
What two crimes can one commit against parents (Pro. 23:22)?
12.
What do buy and sell mean in Pro. 23:23?
PARAPHRASE OF 23:13-23
13, 14.
Dont fail to correct your children; discipline wont hurt them! They wont die if you use a stick on them! Punishment will keep them out of hell.
15, 16.
My son, how I will rejoice if you become a man of common sense. Yes, my heart will thrill to your thoughtful, wise words.
17, 18.
Dont envy evil men but continue to reverence the Lord all the time, for surely you have a wonderful future ahead of you. There is hope for you yet!
19, 21.
O my son, be wise and stay in Gods paths; dont carouse with drunkards and gluttons, for they are on their way to poverty. And remember that too much sleep clothes a man with rags.
22.
Listen to your fathers advice and dont despise an old mothers experience.
23.
Get the facts at any price, and hold on tightly to all the good sense you can.
COMMENTS ON 23:13-23
Pro. 23:13. Every child needs correction at times. He or she will not be correct in life without correction. At times this correction will have to be administered with the rod (whippings), and the language of our verse indicates that sometimes such must be administered with great severity.
Pro. 23:14. Sheol of the Old Testament was parallel with Hades of the New. When one dies, his spirit goes to Sheol (Hades). Instead of causing a child to die through physical chastisements (Pro. 23:13), such punishments will actually keep a child from a premature death through Gods wrath or through a childs own foolishness or other ways.
Pro. 23:15. Other passages showing that good children bring joy to parents: Pro. 10:1; Pro. 23:24-25; Pro. 29:3. There is a play on words here: If THY HEART be wise, MY HEART will be glad, Oh, how parents wait for and look for evidences of their childrens good qualities! Surely if children thought of this, how happy they could actually make their parents!. And how we can make our heavenly Father pleased by our wisely doing His will!
Pro. 23:16. The wise heart of Pro. 23:15 will reflect itself in lips that speak right things. How much good judgment is reflected by wise words, excellent speech, etc.!
Pro. 23:17. To envy sinners is not to be fearing Jehovah properly. Other passages that warn against envying sinners: Psa. 37:1; Pro. 3:31; Pro. 24:1; Pro. 24:19. Yet people at times do envy sinners (Psa. 73:3-7). But if one truly fears Jehovah, he will have no temptation to envy His enemies (sinners) upon whom Gods wrath will ultimately fall.
Pro. 23:18. Yes, a godly persons reward is coming, and how great it will be! Suchs hope will be fulfilled and not cut off: 1Pe. 1:3-5; Psa. 37:37. Pulpit Commentary: The writer has a firm belief in the moral government of God and in a future life which shall rectify all anomalies. If the poor man of Luke 16 were tempted to envy the rich man, it would have been a mistake because he himself ended up so much better off (Luk. 16:25).
Pro. 23:19. Again the father appeals for the son to be wise. Remember, it is a wise son that makes a glad father (Pro. 10:1). Pro. 4:23 speaks of the necessity one keeping his heart with all diligence. We note here that one is not to let his heart wander wheresoever society, trends, fads, or friends may lead it, but one is responsible to guide his heart in the way it should go. Failure to do this has been a great weakness of mankind.
Pro. 23:20. The Bible sounds many warnings against taking up with wine and drunkenness: Isa. 5:22; Mat. 24:48-51; Luk. 21:34; Rom. 13:13; Eph. 5:18. But gluttony is also noted here as wrong. Jesus enemies tried to down Him by calling him a gluttonous man (Mat. 11:19). In affluent times many are guilty of both winebibbing and gluttony.
Pro. 23:21. It costs money to eat like a glutton and drink like a drunkard. Many a man has devoured and destroyed a small fortune in this way. He is also brought to poverty by not showing up for work or by not being able to hold his job. The drowsiness has to do with his sleeping off his drunkenness. What a perversion of life!
Pro. 23:22. We are to listen to the wisdom and instruction of our fathers (Pro. 1:8; Eph. 6:1). How many sorrows and mistakes young men can avoid by hearkening to their fathers! Prodigals and know-it-alls dont listen; in time they will see that they should have listened. Concerning despising ones mother when she is old, Pulpit Commentary says, When old age with its consequent infirmities comes upon thy mother, despise her not, but rather thank God for giving her long life, and profit by her love and long experience.
Pro. 23:23. Truth, spoken of in this verse as wisdom, and instruction, and understanding, is something to obtain at all costs and something not to part with regardless of what earthly or momentary gains one may get by doing so. Pulpit Commentary: Consider truth as a thing of the highest value, and spare no pains, cost, or sacrifice to obtain it, and, when gotten, keep it safe; do not barter it for earthly profit or the pleasures of sense; do not be reasoned out of it, or laughed out of it…do not part with it for any consideration.
TEST QUESTIONS OVER 23:13-23
1.
What great message to parents is carried in Pro. 23:13?
2.
How many proper whippings keep a child from Sheol (Pro. 23:14)?
3.
What play on words is found in Pro. 23:15?
4.
What is the relationship between Pro. 23:15-16?
5.
Why should a godly person not envy a sinner (Pro. 23:17)?
6.
What is the relationship between Pro. 23:17-18?
7.
What is wrong with letting ones mind wander wheresoever it will go (Pro. 23:19)?
8.
What two sins of the body are forbidden in Pro. 23:20?
9.
Why is a drunkard and glutton brought to poverty (Pro. 23:21)?
10.
How can a young man avoid both sorrows and mistakes (Pro. 23:22)?
11.
Why would a person despise a mother when she is old (Pro. 23:22)?
12.
How do we buy truth? How do we sell it (Pro. 23:23)?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(13) He shall not diei.e., a moderate correction, such as that advised in Pro. 19:18 (see note), will not injure himquite the reverse.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
13, 14. Withhold not correction Solomon did not trust wholly to moral suasion in the education of children, but insisted on the rod as necessary for the salvation of the child. Compare Pro 13:24; Pro 19:18; Pro 22:15; Pro 29:15; on Pro 23:13; Pro 3:27. Not that all children need it, but some assuredly do. “By the neglect of early correction the passions obtain the ascendency, the temper becomes irascible, peevish, querulous; pride is nourished, humility destroyed; and by the habit of indulgence the mind is incapacitated to bear with firmness and equanimity the cares and sorrows, the checks and disappointments, to which flesh is heir.” Holden. Comp. Pro 4:13; Pro 15:24; Pro 7:27, seq. Pro 9:18.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
v. 13. Withhold not correction from the child; for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Pro 23:13 Withhold not correction from the child: for [if] thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.
Ver. 13. Withhold not correction from the child. ] See Trapp on “ Pro 13:24 “
He shall not die.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
child = youth.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 23:13-14
Pro 23:13-14
“Withhold not correction from the child; And, if thou beat him with the rod, he will not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, And shall deliver his soul from Sheol.”
If there had been any doubt about God’s commanding his followers to discipline their sons and daughters, this passage would have removed it. The two verses here are parallel; and that clarifies the meaning of Pro 23:13. At first glance, it might seem that the parent is to beat his son within in an inch of death; but, “This does not mean that the scourging will not kill him,” but it means that, “If you chastise him you will save him from the doom of the rebellious son (Deu 31:18-21). The following rendition obscures the true meaning:
“Do not hesitate to discipline a youth; Though you beat him with a stick, he will not die; Indeed you should beat him with a stick, And so save his life from Sheol.
Pro 23:13. Every child needs correction at times. He or she will not be correct in life without correction. At times this correction will have to be administered with the rod (whippings), and the language of our verse indicates that sometimes such must be administered with great severity.
Pro 23:14. Sheol of the Old Testament was parallel with Hades of the New. When one dies, his spirit goes to Sheol (Hades). Instead of causing a child to die through physical chastisements (Pro 23:13), such punishments will actually keep a child from a premature death through Gods wrath or through a childs own foolishness or other ways.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Pro 13:24, Pro 19:18, Pro 29:15, Pro 29:17
Reciprocal: Deu 21:18 – when they 1Sa 3:13 – restrained them not 1Ki 1:6 – had not Pro 22:15 – but Luk 15:18 – I have Eph 6:4 – but Heb 12:7 – endure
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
The sage again advocated discipline. Beating with a rod is not the only form of discipline advocated in Proverbs. It is simply one form used here as a poetic parallel to discipline (Heb. musar, moral correction). Other forms of discipline (reproof, temporary isolation, "grounding," etc.) may be more appropriate in some situations with children of differing ages and temperaments. These verses assure the parent that the child will not only survive the discipline, but he or she will survive because of it.
"The idea is that discipline helps the child to live a full life; if he dies (prematurely), it would be a consequence of not being trained. In Proverbs such a death might be moral and social as well as physical." [Note: Ross, p. 1070.]
"Severe discipline is not cruel, but to withhold it from callous youth is. . . . However, the cleansing rod must be applied with warmth, affection, and respect for the youth. Warmth and affection, not steely discipline, characterize the father’s lectures (cf. Pro 4:1-9). Parents who brutalize their children cannot hide behind the rod doctrine of Proverbs." [Note: Waltke, The Book . . . 31, p. 252.]