4:5

Notice the parallelism. The two positive commands and two negative commands are all similar in meaning.

5a
Get wisdom, get understanding ;

5b
do not forget my words or turn from them.

4:5a

Get wisdom, get understanding: In this context, the commands to Get wisdom and get understanding imply that the son should acquire wisdom and understanding by learning what the father teaches. Another way to translate these commands is:

Learn to be wise and develop good judgment (New Living Translation (1996))

understanding: This word last occurred in 4:1b.

4:5b

do not forget…or turn from them: The verb turn is used here in the figurative sense of turning aside from a path. This second verb has a stronger meaning than the first. The action of forgetting may be unintentional; turning aside is deliberate.

In some languages, it may not be possible to keep the figure of turning from a person’s words. Another way to translate the meaning without using the figure of speech is:

do not…ignore what I say (Good News Translation)

General Comment on 4:5a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to give the negative commands first. For example:

Do not forget or ⌊intentionally⌋ ignore my words, but rather try to become wise and to develop understanding.

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