The Meaning of Proverbs 19:18 Explained

Proverbs 19:18

KJV: Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.

YLT: Chastise thy son, for there is hope, And to put him to death lift not up thy soul.

Darby: Chasten thy son, seeing there is hope; but set not thy soul upon killing him.

ASV: Chasten thy son, seeing there is hope; nd set not thy heart on his destruction.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Chasten  thy son  while there is  hope,  and let not thy soul  spare  for his crying. 

What does Proverbs 19:18 Mean?

Verse Meaning

If a parent does not discipline his child while there is hope of correcting him, he is really, though perhaps not consciously, willing for him to die. The child"s folly will lead to his death if his parents do not curb it with discipline. [1] Some parents allow their children to go astray out of neglect. "Discipline" (Heb. yasser) includes chastisement as well as instruction.
"Better the child is corrected by a parent than by a law enforcement officer in a correctional institution." [2]

Chapter Summary: Proverbs 19

1  Life and Conduct

What do the individual words in Proverbs 19:18 mean?

Chasten your son while there is hope and on his destruction Not do set your heart
יַסֵּ֣ר בִּ֭נְךָ כִּי־ יֵ֣שׁ תִּקְוָ֑ה וְאֶל־ הֲ֝מִית֗וֹ אַל־ תִּשָּׂ֥א נַפְשֶֽׁךָ

יַסֵּ֣ר  Chasten 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: יָסַר 
Sense: to chasten, discipline, instruct, admonish.
בִּ֭נְךָ  your  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
כִּי־  while 
Parse: Conjunction
Root: כִּי 
Sense: that, for, because, when, as though, as, because that, but, then, certainly, except, surely, since.
יֵ֣שׁ  there  is 
Parse: Adverb
Root: יֵשׁ  
Sense: being, existence, substance, there is or are.
תִּקְוָ֑ה  hope 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: תִּקְוָה 
Sense: cord.
וְאֶל־  and  on 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
הֲ֝מִית֗וֹ  his  destruction 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Infinitive construct, third person masculine singular
Root: מוּת  
Sense: to die, kill, have one executed.
תִּשָּׂ֥א  do  set 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
נַפְשֶֽׁךָ  your  heart 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.