Proverbs 22:6
Bible verses · Also called: Prov. 22:6, Proverbs 22 verse 6, Train up a child in the way he should go, When he is old, he will not depart from it
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Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
The text is the New Korean Revised Version (1998), shown under a licence from the Korean Bible Society. Wording may differ slightly from the Korean Revised Version and the Revised New Korean Standard Version. Read in the Korean Revised Version
Proverbs 22:6 is the proverb stating that a child taught the way he should go will not depart from it even when he is old. It is widely used as a motto for Christian education, and interpreters disagree over whether it is a promise that will certainly be fulfilled or a general principle.
Context
The first part of Proverbs 22 concludes the collection of Solomonic sayings that begins in chapter 10 (a new collection, "the words of the wise," begins at verse 17). Verse 6 is an independent saying with no direct connection to the verses before or after it. Verse 15 of the same chapter states, "Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him."
Interpretation
- "The way he should go" as God's way: Following the rendering of the New Korean Revised Version, this view takes the verse as an instruction to teach children from an early age the right way of fearing God. It is the most widespread reading.
- Training suited to the child's disposition: Because the Hebrew literally speaks of training a child "according to his way," some interpreters understand the verse as a call to teach each child in a manner suited to his or her temperament and stage of development.
- A warning: A minority view reads the verse as an ironic warning: if a child is allowed to go whatever way he wishes, he will be unable to abandon those habits even in old age.
- The meaning of "train up": The verb ḥānak can also mean "to dedicate" or "to initiate," so some interpret the verse as a call to dedicate the child to God and to give him a right start.
Debate
Some observe that reading this verse as an unconditional promise from God leads parents whose children have left the church despite receiving Christian instruction to blame themselves. Many commentators hold that Proverbs belongs to a genre that expresses principles of wisdom that hold true in most cases rather than promises without exception. Others, by contrast, maintain that the faith of those who cling to this verse as a promise and pray for their children should also be respected.
In the Korean Church
It is one of the verses most frequently used as a motto for Sunday school, dedication services for church school teachers, Children's Sunday, and Vacation Bible School.
Related Passages
- Deuteronomy 6:6-7
- Ephesians 6:4
- 2 Timothy 3:15
See also 4
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