God & Savior

Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
Proverbs 3:5
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Study notes

Trust the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding.

Explanation

A father teaches his son to trust God completely, "with all your heart". Human understanding is not bad, but it is not something to lean on in place of God.

Original language
  • בְּטַ֣ח (be.Tach): to trust
    Hebrew · Verb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H0982 · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Trust.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 3:5, word 1

  • לִבֶּ֑ךָ (li.Be.kha): heart
    Hebrew · Noun, masculine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H3820A · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Heart.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 3:5, word 5

  • בִּֽ֝ינָתְךָ֗ (bi.na.te.kha): understanding
    Hebrew · Noun, feminine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H0998 · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    Understanding.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 3:5, word 7

  • תִּשָּׁעֵֽן (ti.sha.'En): to lean
    Hebrew · Verb, niphal, jussive, 2nd person, masculine, singular · Strong's H8172 · text: Leningrad Codex (as recorded in TAHOT)

    You lean, rely.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAHOT: Translators Amalgamated Hebrew Old Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Proverbs 3:5, word 9

Cross-references
  • Proverbs 3:6 · Surrounding passage

    He will make your paths straight.

  • Jeremiah 17:5-7 · Same theme

    Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD.

  • Psalm 37:5 · Same theme

    Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him.

Sources

Original language and places

Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.

Original language (Hebrew)

בְּטַ֣ח אֶל־יְ֭הוָה בְּכָל־לִבֶּ֑ךָ וְאֶל־בִּֽ֝ינָתְךָ֗ אַל־תִּשָּׁעֵֽן׃

  1. בְּטַ֣חbe.Tach“trust”
    Verb, qal, imperative, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from בָּטַח · “to trust” · Strong's H0982
  2. אֶל־'el-“to”
    Preposition · from אֶל · “to(wards)” · Strong's H0413
  3. יְ֭הוָהYah.weh“Yahweh”
    Noun, proper name, title · from יהוה · “LORD” · Strong's H3068G
  4. בְּכָל־be.khol“with all”
    Preposition + Noun, masculine, singular, construct · from כֹּל · “all” · Strong's H3605
  5. לִבֶּ֑ךָli.Be.kha“heart your”
    Noun, masculine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from לֵב · “heart” · Strong's H3820A
  6. וְאֶל־ve.'el-“and to”
    Conjunction + Preposition · from אֶל · “to(wards)” · Strong's H0413
  7. בִּֽ֝ינָתְךָ֗bi.na.te.kha“own understanding your”
    Noun, feminine, singular, construct + Suffix, pronominal, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from בִּינָה · “understanding” · Strong's H0998
  8. אַל־'al-“may not”
    Particle, negative · from אַל · “not” · Strong's H0408
  9. תִּשָּׁעֵֽן׃ti.sha.'En“you depend”
    Verb, niphal, jussive, 2nd person, masculine, singular · from שָׁעַן · “to lean” · Strong's H8172
  • Prepared by the God & Savior team. Not yet reviewed by an editor.
  • Hebrew and Aramaic words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)

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