Proverbs 4:1 (KJV)

Passage

Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.

Proverbs 4:2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.

Proverbs 4:3 For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hear", "children", "instruction", "father", "attend", and "understanding". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hear" and "children", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "For I give you good doctrine forsake...", so "hear" and "children" should be read forward into that movement. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

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