Proverbs 3: Trust in the LORD with All Thine Heart

"Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart" (3:3). Chesed and emet, loyal love and faithfulness, are the words God uses of himself (Exodus 34:6). They are to be worn like a necklace and written like the law on tablets.

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (3:5–6). "Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil" (3:7). The "heart" in Hebrew is the seat of thinking and choosing; to trust with all of it is to give God one's judgment.

"Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: so shall thy barns be filled with plenty" (3:9–10). "My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: for whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth" (3:11–12).

"Happy is the man that findeth wisdom… She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her" (3:13, 18). "The LORD by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens" (3:19). Then come the neighbour: "Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee" (3:27–28). The chapter ends: "Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly" (3:34).

Firstfruits

Israel's law required the first produce of the harvest to be brought to God (Exodus 23:19; Deuteronomy 26:1–11). Proverbs 3:9 is one of very few references in Proverbs to temple offerings. Its promise ("thy presses shall burst out with new wine") follows the logic of Deuteronomy 28: honour God, and the land is blessed.

Tree of life

The tree of life appears in Genesis 2:9 and 3:22–24, guarded after the expulsion from Eden. Proverbs uses the phrase four times (3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4) for things that give life: wisdom, the fruit of the righteous, a fulfilled desire, a gentle tongue. Whether Proverbs alludes to Genesis or both draw on a common image is debated. Revelation 22:2 later restores the tree in the new Jerusalem.

Neighbours and credit

Verses 27–30 deal with ordinary village obligations: wages, loans, help owed ("to them to whom it is due," literally "its owners"). Delaying payment when one can pay is wrong (compare Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 24:15, wages paid the same day). "In the power of thine hand" makes the duty proportional to ability.

"Lean not unto thine own understanding" (3:5)

The verb nish'an means to lean one's weight on something. The line rejects self-reliance, not reasoning: the same book urges the son to "get understanding" (4:5). The library's Greek reads differently: "do not be exalted in your own wisdom" (Giguet "ne t'enorgueillis point de ta sagesse"), making the warning about pride. See the passage page.

Hebrews and James

3:11–12 is quoted in Hebrews 12:5–6, following the Greek ("and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth": the Greek reads mastigoi, "scourges," where the Hebrew has "as a father"). 3:34 is quoted in James 4:6 and 1 Peter 5:5, again in its Greek form: "God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble." These are witnesses to how 1st-century Greek-speaking readers knew Proverbs.

3:9–10 and prosperity

Barns full and presses overflowing are a proverbial promise, in the language of covenant blessing; they are not a contract guaranteeing wealth to every giver. Proverbs itself recognises the honest poor (19:1; 28:6) and asks for "neither poverty nor riches" (30:8). See the investigation Wisdom Is Not a Guarantee of Wealth.

Greek additions

The library's Greek adds lines in several places: in 3:16 ("from her mouth proceeds justice, and she carries law and mercy on her tongue"), in 3:18 ("a secure support… as on the Lord"), and in 3:22. Such pluses are typical of Greek Proverbs; whether they translate a different Hebrew text or are the translator's additions is decided case by case (C check against Rahlfs and specialist studies).