3:3

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

3a
Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you ;

3b
bind them around your neck,

3c
write them on the tablet of your heart.

Proverbs 3:3b and 3:3c use metaphors to restate and reinforce the meaning of 3:3a.

3:3a–c

These three parallel lines all have a similar meaning. They indicate that the son should make “loving devotion” and “faithfulness” a permanent part of his character, so that he will always demonstrate these qualities in his actions and thoughts.

3:3a

Never let loving devotion or faithfulness leave you: In Hebrew, this command is more literally “Love and faithfulness, may they not leave you.” This command is an indirect way to say that the son should not stop loving and being faithful. Another way to translate this command is:

Do not stop showing true love and loyalty.

In some languages, it may be more natural to translate this as a positive command. For example:

Always be loving and trustworthy.

loving devotion or faithfulness: The word pair loving devotion and faithfulness occurs in three other verses in Proverbs (14:22b, 16:6a, 20:28a). Most scholars agree that in all these verses loving devotion and faithfulness are qualities that people show, rather than qualities that God shows.

English versions do not specify whether people show these qualities to God or to other people. It is recommended that you maintain the same ambiguity if that is possible in your language.

If your language requires that you specify the object of love and faithfulness, then it is recommended that you specify other people. Throughout Proverbs, qualities such as love, kindness, trustworthiness, and justice are directed toward other people, especially toward those who are poor or oppressed. This interpretation also fits better with the result in 3:4, winning favor with both God and man.

loving devotion: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as loving devotion has several aspects of meaning:

(a) steadfastness, loyalty

(b) love

(c) kindness, mercy

A number of English versions translate one aspect of the meaning. For example:

love (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
loyalty (Good News Translation)
-or-
kindness (New Century Version)

The New Jerusalem Bible has two aspects:

faithful love (New Jerusalem Bible)

In some languages, it may be possible to express all three aspects. For example:

consistent/unchanging love and kindness

Translate this term in a way that fits naturally in the context.

faithfulness: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as faithfulness has two main senses. When it refers to speech, it usually means “truth” or “truthfulness,” but here it refers to the character quality of “trustworthiness” or “reliability.”

3:3b

bind them around your neck: This command is a metaphor. In this metaphor, love and faithfulness are compared to a necklace or to a signet ring that is hung on a chain around the son’s neck. A person who wears a ring or necklace has it with him wherever he goes. In the same way, the son is supposed to display these qualities in his character at all times. Some other ways to translate this metaphor are:

• Change it to a simile. For example:

Wear them like a necklace. (New Century Version)

• Change it to a simile and make one or more points of similarity explicit. For example:

Let love and loyalty always show like a necklace (Contemporary English Version)

• Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:

Make sure that these qualities/things are always part of your character.

In some cultures, a ring or necklace implies an ornament that can be taken off at any time. If that is true in your culture, it may be better to translate the meaning directly or to use a figure of speech with the correct meaning in your language.

3:3c

write them on the tablet of your heart: This is another metaphor. The person addressed should permanently keep these virtues within his heart/mind. He should make them an unchanging part of his character just as the ten commandments were permanently engraved on a stone tablet.

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