Proverbs 4:1 (YLT)

Passage

Hear, ye sons, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 4:1 Hear, ye sons, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding.

Proverbs 4:2 For good learning I have given to you, My law forsake not.

Proverbs 4:3 For, a son I have been to my father--tender, And an only one before my mother.

Study Lenses

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

The next verse adds "For good learning I have given to...", so "hear" and "sons" 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 "sons" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.