Proverbs 22:18 (LSB)

Passage

For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be established on your lips.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 22:16 He who oppresses the poor to make more for himself Or who gives to the rich will only come to lack.

Proverbs 22:17 Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And set your heart on my knowledge;

Proverbs 22:18 For it will be pleasant if you keep them within you, That they may be established on your lips.

Proverbs 22:19 So that your trust may be in Yahweh, I have made you know today, even you.

Proverbs 22:20 Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "pleasant", "keep", "within", "established", and "lips". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "pleasant" and "keep", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "Incline your ear and hear the words..." into verse 19's "So that your trust may be in...", so "pleasant" and "keep" 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 "pleasant" and "keep" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.