Proverbs 4:6 (LSB)

Passage

Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; Love her, and she will guard you.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 4:4 Then he instructed me and said to me, “Let your heart hold fast my words; Keep my commandments and live;

Proverbs 4:5 Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget and do not turn away from the sayings of my mouth.

Proverbs 4:6 Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; Love her, and she will guard you.

Proverbs 4:7 The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, acquire understanding.

Proverbs 4:8 Prize her, and she will exalt you; She will honor you if you embrace her.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "Acquire wisdom Acquire understanding Do not forget..." into verse 7's "The beginning of wisdom is Acquire wisdom...", so "forsake" 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 "forsake" and "keep" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.