◄ Proverbs 15:10 ►
Discipline is harsh for him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die.
Study Bible
Discipline
The Hebrew word for "discipline" is "מוּסָר" (musar), which encompasses instruction, correction, and chastisement. In the biblical context, discipline is not merely punitive but is intended for growth and improvement. It reflects God's love and desire for His people to walk in righteousness. The concept of discipline is deeply rooted in the wisdom literature of the Bible, emphasizing that true wisdom comes from accepting correction and learning from it.

is harsh
The phrase "is harsh" translates from the Hebrew "רָעָה" (ra'ah), which can mean evil, distressing, or grievous. This indicates that discipline can be a painful process, especially for those who resist it. The harshness is not meant to harm but to bring about a necessary change. In the context of a loving God, the harshness of discipline is a tool to bring the wayward back to the right path.

for him who leaves the path
"Leaves the path" refers to those who abandon the way of righteousness and wisdom. The "path" in Hebrew thought often symbolizes a way of life or conduct. The imagery of a path is common in Proverbs, representing the journey of life and the choices one makes. Leaving the path suggests a deliberate choice to turn away from God's guidance and wisdom, leading to negative consequences.

he who hates correction
The word "hates" comes from the Hebrew "שָׂנֵא" (sane), which implies a strong aversion or rejection. "Correction" is closely related to discipline and involves the act of being set right or improved. In the biblical narrative, hating correction is equated with pride and stubbornness, traits that are often condemned. The wise person embraces correction as a means to grow closer to God and align with His will.

will die
The stark warning "will die" underscores the seriousness of rejecting discipline and correction. In the Hebrew Bible, death is often more than physical cessation; it can imply spiritual death or separation from God. This phrase serves as a sobering reminder of the ultimate consequence of a life lived in opposition to divine wisdom. It echoes the biblical theme that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and to reject His ways is to choose a path leading to destruction.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Solomon
- Traditionally regarded as the author of Proverbs, Solomon was the son of King David and known for his wisdom. His proverbs often provide practical guidance for living a life that honors God.

2. The Path
- Symbolically represents the way of righteousness and wisdom. In the context of Proverbs, it often refers to living according to God's commandments and moral principles.

3. Discipline
- Refers to the correction or instruction that is necessary for maintaining a righteous life. It is often seen as a tool used by God to guide His people back to the right path.

4. Correction
- The act of being set right or redirected. In biblical terms, it often involves repentance and a return to God's ways.

5. Death
- In this context, it can be understood both literally and spiritually, indicating the ultimate consequence of rejecting God's guidance and correction.
Teaching Points
The Necessity of Discipline
Discipline is essential for spiritual growth and maturity. It helps us stay on the path of righteousness and avoid the pitfalls of sin.

The Danger of Rejecting Correction
Rejecting correction leads to spiritual death. It is crucial to remain open to God's guidance and the counsel of wise believers.

Embracing God's Love Through Discipline
Understanding that God's discipline is an expression of His love can help us accept it more readily. It is meant for our good and His glory.

The Role of Community in Correction
Being part of a faith community provides opportunities for mutual correction and encouragement. We should be willing to both give and receive correction in love.

Long-term Consequences of Our Choices
Our response to discipline has long-term implications for our spiritual health. Choosing to heed correction leads to life, while ignoring it leads to death.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does understanding the original Hebrew word for "discipline" (musar) enhance our comprehension of this verse?

2. In what ways can we ensure that we are staying on "the path" mentioned in Proverbs 15:10?

3. How can we cultivate a heart that is receptive to correction, both from God and from others?

4. Reflect on a time when you experienced God's discipline. How did it impact your spiritual journey?

5. How can we, as a community of believers, support one another in accepting and applying correction in our lives?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Hebrews 12:5-11
- This passage discusses the Lord's discipline as a sign of His love and a means of producing righteousness in believers. It reinforces the idea that discipline, though painful, is beneficial for spiritual growth.

Proverbs 12:1
- This verse highlights the importance of loving discipline and knowledge, contrasting it with the foolishness of hating correction.

Psalm 119:67
- The psalmist acknowledges that before being disciplined, he went astray, but now he keeps God's word, illustrating the corrective power of discipline.
Sermons
The Principle of JudgmentE. Johnson Proverbs 15:10
People
Abaddon, Solomon
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Awaits, Bitter, Chastisement, Correction, Death, Die, Dieth, Discipline, Fate, Forsakes, Forsaketh, Forsaking, Grievous, Hater, Hates, Hateth, Hating, Leaves, Path, Punishment, Reproof, Severe, Stern, Teaching
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Proverbs 15:10

     4020   life, of faith
     5926   rebuke

Library
God, the All-Seeing One
A sermon (No. 177) delivered on Sabbath morning, February 14, 1858 At The Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens by C. H. Spurgeon. "Hell and destruction are before the Lord: how much more then the hearts of the children of men?" -- Proverbs 15:11. You have often smiled at the ignorance of heathens who bow themselves before gods of wood and stone. You have quoted the words of Scripture and you have said, "Eyes have they, but they see not; ears have they, but they hear not." You have therefore argued that …
C.H. Spurgeon—Sermons on Proverbs

The Hedge of Thorns and the Plain Way
A sermon (No. 1948) delivered at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington, by C. H. Spurgeon. "The way of the slothful man is as an hedge of thorns: but the way of the righteous is made plain."--Proverbs 15:19. You must have noticed how frequently godly people almost wear out their Bibles in certain places. The Psalms, the Gospel of John, and parts of the Epistles are favourite portions, and are thumbed in many an old believer's Bible till the fact is very noticeable. There are certain sheep-tracks …
C.H. Spurgeon—Sermons on Proverbs

God, the All-Seeing One
We have in our text, first of all, a great fact declared,--"Hell and destruction are before the Lord ;" we have, secondly, a great fact inferred,--"How much more then the hearts of the children of men?" I. We will begin with THE GREAT FACT WHICH IS DECLARED--a fact which furnishes us with premises from which we deduce the practical conclusion of the second sentence--"How much more then the hearts of the children of men?" The best interpretation that you can give of those two words, "hell" and "destruction," …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 4: 1858

How the Humble and the Haughty are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 18.) Differently to be admonished are the humble and the haughty. To the former it is to be insinuated how true is that excellence which they hold in hoping for it; to the latter it is to be intimated how that temporal glory is as nothing which even when embracing it they hold not. Let the humble hear how eternal are the things that they long for, how transitory the things which they despise; let the haughty hear how transitory are the things they court, how eternal the things they …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

And He had Also this Favour Granted Him. ...
66. And he had also this favour granted him. For as he was sitting alone on the mountain, if ever he was in perplexity in his meditations, this was revealed to him by Providence in prayer. And the happy man, as it is written, was taught of God [1112] . After this, when he once had a discussion with certain men who had come to him concerning the state of the soul and of what nature its place will be after this life, the following night one from above called him, saying, Antony, rise, go out and look.' …
Athanasius—Select Works and Letters or Athanasius

Epistle cxxii. To Rechared, King of the visigoths .
To Rechared, King of the Visigoths [82] . Gregory to Rechared, &c. I cannot express in words, most excellent son, how much I am delighted with thy work and thy life. For on hearing of the power of a new miracle in our days, to wit that the whole nation of the Goths has through thy Excellency been brought over from the error of Arian heresy to the firmness of a right faith, one is disposed to exclaim with the prophet, This is the change wrought by the right hand of the Most High (Ps. lxxvi. 11 [83] …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

Contention Over the Man Born Blind.
(Jerusalem.) ^D John IX. 1-41. [Some look upon the events in this and the next section as occurring at the Feast of Tabernacles in October, others think they occurred at the Feast of Dedication in December, deriving their point of time from John x. 22.] ^d 1 And as he passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. [The man probably sought to waken compassion by repeatedly stating this fact to passers-by.] 2 And his disciples asked him, saying, Rabbi, who sinned, this man, or his parents, that he should …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

"And the Life. " How Christ is the Life.
This, as the former, being spoken indefinitely, may be universally taken, as relating both to such as are yet in the state of nature, and to such as are in the state of grace, and so may be considered in reference to both, and ground three points of truth, both in reference to the one, and in reference to the other; to wit, 1. That our case is such as we stand in need of his help, as being the Life. 2. That no other way but by him, can we get that supply of life, which we stand in need of, for he …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

"Now the End of the Commandment," &C.
1 Tim. i. 5.--"Now the end of the commandment," &c. We come now, as was proposed, to observe, Thirdly,(474) That faith unfeigned is the only thing which gives the answer of a good conscience towards God. Conscience, in general, is nothing else but a practical knowledge of the rule a man should walk by, and of himself in reference to that rule. It is the laying down a man's state, and condition, and actions beside the rule of God's word, or the principles of nature's light. It is the chief piece …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

"Thou Shall Keep Him in Perfect Peace, Whose Mind is Stayed on Thee, Because He Trusteth in Thee. "
Isaiah xxvi. 3.--"Thou shall keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee, because he trusteth in thee." All men love to have privileges above others. Every one is upon the design and search after some well-being, since Adam lost that which was true happiness. We all agree upon the general notion of it, but presently men divide in the following of particulars. Here all men are united in seeking after some good; something to satisfy their souls, and satiate their desires. Nay, but they …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Authority and Utility of the Scriptures
2 Tim. iii. 16.--"All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness." We told you that there was nothing more necessary to know than what our end is, and what the way is that leads to that end. We see the most part of men walking at random,--running an uncertain race,--because they do not propose unto themselves a certain scope to aim at, and whither to direct their whole course. According to men's particular …
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

An Exposition on the First Ten Chapters of Genesis, and Part of the Eleventh
An unfinished commentary on the Bible, found among the author's papers after his death, in his own handwriting; and published in 1691, by Charles Doe, in a folio volume of the works of John Bunyan. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR Being in company with an enlightened society of Protestant dissenters of the Baptist denomination, I observed to a doctor of divinity, who was advancing towards his seventieth year, that my time had been delightfully engaged with John Bunyan's commentary on Genesis. "What," …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

I Will Pray with the Spirit and with the Understanding Also-
OR, A DISCOURSE TOUCHING PRAYER; WHEREIN IS BRIEFLY DISCOVERED, 1. WHAT PRAYER IS. 2. WHAT IT IS TO PRAY WITH THE SPIRIT. 3. WHAT IT IS TO PRAY WITH THE SPIRIT AND WITH THE UNDERSTANDING ALSO. WRITTEN IN PRISON, 1662. PUBLISHED, 1663. "For we know not what we should pray for as we ought:--the Spirit--helpeth our infirmities" (Rom 8:26). ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. There is no subject of more solemn importance to human happiness than prayer. It is the only medium of intercourse with heaven. "It is …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

How Christ is the Way in General, "I am the Way. "
We come now to speak more particularly to the words; and, first, Of his being a way. Our design being to point at the way of use-making of Christ in all our necessities, straits, and difficulties which are in our way to heaven; and particularly to point out the way how believers should make use of Christ in all their particular exigencies; and so live by faith in him, walk in him, grow up in him, advance and march forward toward glory in him. It will not be amiss to speak of this fulness of Christ …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

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

Links
Proverbs 15:10 NIV
Proverbs 15:10 NLT
Proverbs 15:10 ESV
Proverbs 15:10 NASB
Proverbs 15:10 KJV

Proverbs 15:10 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Proverbs 15:9
Top of Page
Top of Page