Proverbs 5:13

Pro 5:13 And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!

Ver. 13. Nor inclined mine ear.] I would not so much as hear them, nmch less obey their voice. Intus existens prohibet alienum. The songs of those syrens had so enchanted him, that it was past time of day to give him counsel. If you speak against his sweet sin, and dissuade him from that, he shrinks back into the shell, and lets his hood hearken. All that is of ‘Davy Dutton’s dream,’ as the proverb is, and therefore, Surdo fabulam, he will in nowise give ear to you.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Pro_5:13

And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers.

Consequences of disobedience

Can any state be more distressing than that of an individual who has enjoyed the best opportunities of securing his own happiness and promoting that of others, totally failing in both these, and becoming the subject of bitter self-reproach?

I. There is the admission of having had the great advantage of teachers. There are scarcely any but have had some very considerable advantages and means of religious instruction. They involve you all in a serious responsibility to God and your own conscience.

1. The best, purest, most commanding instruction in the Bible.

2. The living voice of teachers, either parents or ministers, or kind friends in schools.

3. The Spirit of God unfolding the truth to your understanding and conscience; striving with your heart, and inwardly calling you to seek those things which belong to your peace.

II. There is an implied connection between instruction and obedience. The text admits the obligation resulting from such advantages. I ought to have obeyed, but I have not.

1. You are bound to obey the good instruction you have received, because it is clearly the will of God, the Being who is above all, and who holds you amenable at His tribunal.

2. By the tender and unspeakable love of the Saviour, Jesus Christ, who came forth from His Father, and became the Redeemer of men by the sacrifice of Himself.

3. By a regard to your own highest interests. Obeying the Divine precepts is the only way to secure your own peace of mind, your joy through life, your hope in death, and your immortal felicity after death.

4. By a regard to the interests of others to whom you may be related in this life. You have social relations, duties, and obligations which you ought to regard, and cannot neglect without great criminality. You ought to become yourselves, and endeavour to make them, such as God would have us all to be.

5. By the obligation which arises from your final accountableness at the bar of judgment.

III. There is a confession that instruction had not been obeyed. This text does not express the case of those who have only partially, or in some respects, failed of obedience, but have in the main been mindful of the instruction they have received. It is applied to those who have failed altogether, and in the general habits of their mind and life have disregarded the great and holy principles inculcated upon them in early life. Some of the causes of this failure are--

1. There is in our own hearts a disinclination to serve God, and an aversion to the Divine precepts.

2. There are innumerable and incessant temptations to forsake the guide of our youth.

3. There will be a direct and powerful influence of the worst kind exerted over those who give themselves to evil companions.

IV. There is an expression of penitential regret for disobedience. The text seems to be the language of remorse.

1. A perception that our misery has resulted from wilful disobedience, not from ignorance.

2. The feeling that this disobedience has been maintained against light and knowledge.

3. The consciousness that you once possessed all the means necessary to promote your happiness and secure your salvation. (The Evangelist.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers,.... Parents, tutors, masters, and ministers of the word; neither regarded the advice of parents, nor the instructions of tutors, nor the commands of masters, nor the sermons of ministers: these are all lost on some persons; they are proof against them all; these make no impressions upon them, and are of no use to them;

nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me! or to my masters, as the Targum and Vulgate Latin version; turned away the ear from them, stopped it to them, and would not hear what they had to say; at least would not receive it, and act according to it.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Of my teachers; of my parents, and friends, and ministers, who faithfully and seasonably informed me of those mischiefs and miseries which now I feel.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me. The ruined profligate admits he was not without teachers and advisers, but that he gave no heed to their warnings and reproofs. Have not obeyed the voice (lo-shama"ti b"kol). The same phrase occurs in Gen_27:13 Exo_18:19 Deu_26:14 2Sa_12:18. The verb shama is primarily "to hear," and then "to obey," "to give heed to," like the Greek akouw .

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

incline my ear to my instructors

Here the word "ear" represents the person who is listening. The writer speaks of listening attentively to someone as if it were leaning forward so that the ear is closer to the one speaking. See how you translated a similar phrase in Proverbs 4:20. AT: "listen to those who instructed me" (See: Synecdoche and Metaphor)

in the midst of the assembly, among the gathering of the people

These two phrases mean basically the same thing and refer to the person's community that has gathered together either 1) to worship God or 2) to judge him for his offense. (See: Parallelism)

translationWords

obey

teacher

assembly

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.