20.  ¶ My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 21. Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. 22. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. 23. For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life: {lamp: or, candle} 24. To keep thee from the evil woman,† from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. {of the...: or, of the strange tongue}

Footnote:

Heb. Woman of wickedness — the woman full of wickedness — wholly given to it. Compare Zechariah 5:7, 8.

 

 

Zechariah 5:7, 8

7 And, behold, there was lifted up a talent of lead: and this is a woman that sitteth in the midst of the ephah. {talent: or, weighty piece} 8 And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.

Proverbs 1:8, 9

8 My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 9 For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck. {an...: Heb. an adding}

 

Proverbs 4:1

1 ¶ Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

Proverbs 3:3

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

 

Proverbs 4:21

21 Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.

 

Proverbs 7:3

3 Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart.

Proverbs 3:3

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

 

Compare

Job 31:36

36 Surely I would take it upon my shoulder, and bind it as a crown to me.

Proverbs 3:22, 23

22 So shall they be life unto thy soul, and grace to thy neck. 23 Then shalt thou walk in thy way safely, and thy foot shall not stumble.

 

Proverbs 4:12

12 When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble

Proverbs 3:24

24 When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.

 

Psalm 63:5, [6]

5 My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: {marrow: Heb. fatness} 6 When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.

Psalm 139:17, 18

17 ¶ How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them! 18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

Footnote:

‘Felix mens, cui verbum individuus comes.’ — Bernard, Serm. xxxii. in Cant.

Footnote:

Psalm 119:105. See Bishop Patrick's note quoted in Scott.

 

 

Psalm 119:105

105 ¶ NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. {lamp: or, candle}

Psalm 19:11

11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.

 

2 Timothy 3:16, 17

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. {throughly...: or, perfected}

 

Compare

Matthew 7:13, 14

13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: {strait: or, narrow} 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. {Because: or, How}

Proverbs 2:10, 11, 16-19

10 ¶ When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; 11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: 16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; 17 Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. 18 For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead. 19 None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life.

 

Proverbs 5:1-8

1 ¶ My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding: 2 That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge. 3 For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil: {mouth: Heb. palate} 4 But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a twoedged sword. 5 Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell. 6 Lest thou shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, that thou canst not know them. 7 Hear me now therefore, O ye children, and depart not from the words of my mouth. 8 Remove thy way far from her, and come not nigh the door of her house:

 

Proverbs 7:1-5

1 ¶ My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. 2 Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye. 3 Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart. 4 Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy kinswoman: 5 That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from the stranger which flattereth with her words.

Proverbs 2:16

16 To deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flattereth with her words;

 

Proverbs 7:21

21 With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him.

Proverbs 5:11-13

11 And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed, 12 And say, How have I hated instruction, and my heart despised reproof; 13 And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

Psalm 19:9

9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. {true: Heb. truth}

 

Compare

Proverbs 5:11

11 And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,

 

Proverbs 17:4

4 ¶ A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips; and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue.