Proverbs 1:8–9
The son is asked to listen to his father and not forsake his mother's teaching
Study it word by word8Hear, my son, the correction of your father, and do not abandon the instruction of your mother;
9for they are a garland of favor for your head, and necklaces for your neck.
In its context
6to understand a proverb and a figurative saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.
7The fear of YHWH is the beginning of knowledge; wisdom and correction fools despise.
…
10My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.
11If they say, “Come with us; let us lie in wait for blood; let us ambush the innocent without cause;
Its words in the original
- שְׁמַעshema· hear, listen, obey
Hear, listen. In the Bible listening truly includes paying heed; so it often means "obey". In the causative form, make heard, proclaim.
- בְּנִbeni· son
Son. In the plural it can include sons and daughters, and also grandsons and descendants. "Son of..." also says what group someone belongs to ("sons of Israel" = Israelites).
- מוּסַרmusar· discipline, correction
Discipline: teaching that straightens, sometimes with punishment; it comes from the verb "discipline."
- אָבִיavi· father
Father; also ancestor ("our fathers"), and the founder or head of a family or group.
- תִּטֹּשׁtitosh· leave; permit
Leave, let go, permit. Elsewhere, abandon; also spread out.
- תּוֹרַתtorat· instruction, law
"Torah": instruction, teaching that gives direction; hence "law". Later it is the name of the five books of Moses. This translation uses "instruction", and "law" when the body of laws is meant.
- אִמֶּime· mother
Mother; also figuratively, a city as the mother of its people.
- לִוְיַתlivyat· garland, wreath
A garland, a wreath worn on the head as an ornament.
- חֵןchen· favor
Favor: someone's good disposition toward another. "Find favor in someone's eyes" is to be looked on with kindness. Also grace, charm.
- רֹאשֶׁroshe· head, chief
Head. From there the first or the chief of a group, the top of a mountain, the beginning of something, or the sum; also the branches of a river.
- עֲנָקִיםanakim· necklace
Necklace: an ornament worn around the neck.
- גַרְגְּרֹתֶיgargrote· neck
The neck, the throat; where necklaces and ornaments are worn.