Proverbs 19:20
Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days.
Listen to counsel
The Hebrew word for "listen" is "shama," which implies not just hearing but also obeying and understanding. In the ancient Near Eastern context, listening was a crucial part of wisdom literature, emphasizing the importance of being receptive to guidance. The term "counsel" refers to advice or guidance, often from those who are wise or experienced. In a conservative Christian perspective, this phrase encourages believers to seek and heed godly advice, recognizing that wisdom often comes through the community of faith and the teachings of Scripture.

and accept discipline
The word "accept" in Hebrew is "laqach," meaning to take or receive willingly. "Discipline" is translated from "musar," which can mean correction or instruction. Historically, discipline was seen as a path to wisdom and maturity. In the biblical context, accepting discipline is a sign of humility and a willingness to grow. For Christians, this phrase underscores the importance of being open to correction from God and others, understanding that discipline is a tool for spiritual growth and alignment with God's will.

that you may be wise
The phrase "that you may be wise" indicates the purpose or result of listening to counsel and accepting discipline. The Hebrew word for "wise" is "chakam," which denotes skill in living, moral insight, and practical understanding. Wisdom in the biblical sense is not just intellectual knowledge but a deep, God-given understanding of how to live rightly. This phrase encourages believers to pursue wisdom as a lifelong goal, aligning their lives with God's truth and principles.

the rest of your days
This phrase emphasizes the enduring nature of wisdom. The Hebrew word for "days" is "yom," which can refer to a literal day or an indefinite period. The idea here is that wisdom is not a temporary pursuit but a lifelong journey. For Christians, this serves as a reminder that the pursuit of wisdom and godly living is a continuous process that should permeate every aspect of life until the end. It highlights the eternal value of wisdom, which guides believers through all stages of life and into eternity.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Solomon
- Traditionally attributed as the author of Proverbs, Solomon was the son of King David and known for his wisdom. His proverbs are intended to impart wisdom and understanding.

2. Israel
- The nation to whom the Proverbs were originally addressed, representing God's chosen people who were to live according to His wisdom and laws.

3. The Wise
- A recurring theme in Proverbs, representing those who seek and apply God's wisdom in their lives.

4. The Fool
- Often contrasted with the wise, the fool in Proverbs is one who rejects wisdom and discipline.

5. The Path of Wisdom
- A metaphorical journey described throughout Proverbs, representing a life lived in accordance with God's guidance and instruction.
Teaching Points
The Importance of Listening
Listening is an active process that requires humility and openness to receive guidance and correction.

Accepting Discipline
Discipline is not merely punishment but a form of training that shapes character and leads to maturity.

The Pursuit of Lifelong Wisdom
Wisdom is not a one-time achievement but a lifelong pursuit that requires continual learning and growth.

The Role of Community in Wisdom
Seeking counsel implies the presence of a community or mentors who can provide guidance and support.

The Consequences of Ignoring Counsel
Ignoring wise counsel can lead to folly and negative consequences, as seen throughout the book of Proverbs.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the act of listening to counsel demonstrate humility, and why is this important in the Christian life?

2. In what ways can accepting discipline be seen as a positive and necessary part of spiritual growth?

3. Reflect on a time when you sought counsel from others. How did it impact your decision-making and spiritual journey?

4. How can you cultivate a community or find mentors who can provide godly counsel in your life?

5. Compare Proverbs 19:20 with James 1:5. How do these verses together encourage you to seek wisdom from both God and others?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Proverbs 1:5
- This verse emphasizes the importance of listening and increasing in learning, reinforcing the idea that wisdom comes from heeding counsel.

Hebrews 12:11
- Discusses the value of discipline, noting that while it may be unpleasant at the time, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

James 1:5
- Encourages believers to ask God for wisdom, who gives generously to all without finding fault.

Psalm 1:1-3
- Describes the blessedness of the man who delights in the law of the Lord, drawing a parallel to the wisdom gained from listening to counsel.
Instruction and Counsel Placed Before the YoungJ. Burnet.Proverbs 19:20
Ready At the EndW. Clarkson Proverbs 19:20
The True PrudenceE. Johnson Proverbs 19:18-21
People
Isaiah, Solomon
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Accept, Advice, Counsel, Discipline, Ear, Future, Gain, Instruction, Latter, Listen, Mayest, Open, Receive, Rest, Suggestion, Teaching, Wisdom, Wise
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Proverbs 19:20

     5165   listening
     5779   advice
     5780   advisers
     6604   acceptance, human
     8351   teachableness
     8367   wisdom, importance of

Library
How the Slothful and the Hasty are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 16.) Differently to be admonished are the slothful and the hasty. For the former are to be persuaded not to lose, by putting it off, the good they have to do; but the latter are to be admonished lest, while they forestall the time of good deeds by inconsiderate haste, they change their meritorious character. To the slothful therefore it is to be intimated, that often, when we will not do at the right time what we can, before long, when we will, we cannot. For the very indolence of
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

How the Impatient and the Patient are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 10.) Differently to be admonished are the impatient and the patient. For the impatient are to be told that, while they neglect to bridle their spirit, they are hurried through many steep places of iniquity which they seek not after, inasmuch as fury drives the mind whither desire draws it not, and, when perturbed, it does, not knowing, what it afterwards grieves for when it knows. The impatient are also to be told that, when carried headlong by the impulse of emotion, they act in some
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Second Journey through Galilee - the Healing of the Leper.
A DAY and an evening such as of that Sabbath of healing in Capernaum must, with reverence be it written, have been followed by what opens the next section. [2299] To the thoughtful observer there is such unbroken harmony in the Life of Jesus, such accord of the inward and outward, as to carry instinctive conviction of the truth of its record. It was, so to speak, an inward necessity that the God-Man, when brought into contact with disease and misery, whether from physical or supernatural causes,
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

The Kingdom of God Conceived as the Inheritance of the Poor.
These maxims, good for a country where life is nourished by the air and the light, and this delicate communism of a band of children of God reposing in confidence on the bosom of their Father, might suit a simple sect constantly persuaded that its Utopia was about to be realized. But it is clear that they could not satisfy the whole of society. Jesus understood very soon, in fact, that the official world of his time would by no means adopt his kingdom. He took his resolution with extreme boldness.
Ernest Renan—The Life of Jesus

"Boast not Thyself of to Morrow, for Thou Knowest not what a Day May Bring Forth. "
Prov. xxvii. 1.--"Boast not thyself of to morrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth." As man is naturally given to boasting and gloriation in something (for the heart cannot want some object to rest upon and take complacency in, it is framed with such a capacity of employing other things), so there is a strong inclination in man towards the time to come, he hath an immortal appetite, and an appetite of immortality; and therefore his desires usually stretch farther than the present
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Wrath of God
What does every sin deserve? God's wrath and curse, both in this life, and in that which is to come. Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.' Matt 25: 41. Man having sinned, is like a favourite turned out of the king's favour, and deserves the wrath and curse of God. He deserves God's curse. Gal 3: 10. As when Christ cursed the fig-tree, it withered; so, when God curses any, he withers in his soul. Matt 21: 19. God's curse blasts wherever it comes. He deserves also God's wrath, which is
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Unity of God
Q-5: ARE THERE MORE GODS THAN ONE? A: There is but one only, the living and true God. That there is a God has been proved; and those that will not believe the verity of his essence, shall feel the severity of his wrath. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.' Deut 6:6. He is the only God.' Deut 4:49. Know therefore this day, and consider it in thy heart, that the Lord he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath, there is none else.' A just God and a Saviour; there is none beside
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Man's Misery by the Fall
Q-19: WHAT IS THE MISERY OF THAT ESTATE WHEREINTO MAN FELL? A: All mankind by their fall lost communion with God, are under his wrath and curse, and so made liable to all the miseries in this life, to death itself, and to the pains of hell for ever. 'And were by nature children of wrath.' Eph 2:2. Adam left an unhappy portion to his posterity, Sin and Misery. Having considered the first of these, original sin, we shall now advert to the misery of that state. In the first, we have seen mankind offending;
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Covenanting According to the Purposes of God.
Since every revealed purpose of God, implying that obedience to his law will be given, is a demand of that obedience, the announcement of his Covenant, as in his sovereignty decreed, claims, not less effectively than an explicit law, the fulfilment of its duties. A representation of a system of things pre-determined in order that the obligations of the Covenant might be discharged; various exhibitions of the Covenant as ordained; and a description of the children of the Covenant as predestinated
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

The Ninth Commandment
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.' Exod 20: 16. THE tongue which at first was made to be an organ of God's praise, is now become an instrument of unrighteousness. This commandment binds the tongue to its good behaviour. God has set two natural fences to keep in the tongue, the teeth and lips; and this commandment is a third fence set about it, that it should not break forth into evil. It has a prohibitory and a mandatory part: the first is set down in plain words, the other
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

The Knowledge of God
'The Lord is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.' I Sam 2:2. Glorious things are spoken of God; he transcends our thoughts, and the praises of angels. God's glory lies chiefly in his attributes, which are the several beams by which the divine nature shines forth. Among other of his orient excellencies, this is not the least, The Lord is a God of knowledge; or as the Hebrew word is, A God of knowledges.' Through the bright mirror of his own essence, he has a full idea and cognisance
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Christian Meekness
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth Matthew 5:5 We are now got to the third step leading in the way to blessedness, Christian meekness. Blessed are the meek'. See how the Spirit of God adorns the hidden man of the heart, with multiplicity of graces! The workmanship of the Holy Ghost is not only curious, but various. It makes the heart meek, pure, peaceable etc. The graces therefore are compared to needlework, which is different and various in its flowers and colours (Psalm 45:14).
Thomas Watson—The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12

The Third Commandment
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: For the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.' Exod 20: 7. This commandment has two parts: 1. A negative expressed, that we must not take God's name in vain; that is, cast any reflections and dishonour on his name. 2. An affirmative implied. That we should take care to reverence and honour his name. Of this latter I shall speak more fully, under the first petition in the Lord's Prayer, Hallowed be thy name.' I shall
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Proverbs
Many specimens of the so-called Wisdom Literature are preserved for us in the book of Proverbs, for its contents are by no means confined to what we call proverbs. The first nine chapters constitute a continuous discourse, almost in the manner of a sermon; and of the last two chapters, ch. xxx. is largely made up of enigmas, and xxxi. is in part a description of the good housewife. All, however, are rightly subsumed under the idea of wisdom, which to the Hebrew had always moral relations. The Hebrew
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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