Proverbs 22:25 (ASV)

Passage

Lest thou learn this ways, And get a snare to thy soul.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 22:23 For Jehovah will plead their cause, And despoil of life those that despoil them.

Proverbs 22:24 Make no friendship with a man that is given to anger; And with a wrathful man thou shalt not go:

Proverbs 22:25 Lest thou learn this ways, And get a snare to thy soul.

Proverbs 22:26 Be thou not one of them that strike hands, [Or] of them that are sureties for debts.

Proverbs 22:27 If thou hast not wherewith to pay, Why should he take away thy bed from under thee?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lest", "thou", "learn", "ways", "snare", and "soul". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lest" and "thou", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 24's "Make no friendship with a man that..." into verse 26's "Be thou not one of them that...", so "lest" and "thou" belong inside that flow. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lest" and "thou" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.