Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God.
That forsaketh the friend of her youth, And forgetteth the covenant of her God:
Who is forsaking the guide of her youth, And the covenant of her God hath forgotten.
who forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of herGod;
Proverbs — Gnomic wisdom — sayings, instructions, and the binary of wisdom vs. folly. Fear of the LORD as the integrative theme; the virtuous woman of Prov 31 as the book's closing portrait of wisdom embodied.
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread — the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
Voices4
And leaves the guide of her youth, etc. It is clear about the adulteress because she first leaves her husband and forgets the covenant of her God, evidently that which she made with her husband, with the Lord as witness, at the time of marriage, …
Bede· Commentary on Proverbs, 735patristic
Which forsaketh the guide of her youth,....
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)reformed
The guide of her youth - Better, the familiar friend (compare Pro 16:28; Pro 17:9). The friend is, of course, the husband, or the man to whom the strange woman first belonged as a recognized concubine. Compare Jer 3:4 The covenant of her God - The sin of the adulteress is not against man only but against the Law of God, against His covenant. The words point to some religious formula of espousals. Compare Mal 2:14.
Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)evangelical
Forsaketh - Her husband whom she took to be her guide and governor, in her youth. The covenant - The marriage covenant: so called because God is the author of that mutual obligation: and because God is called to be the witness and judge of that solemn promise and covenant.
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament, 1765evangelical
The verses this one reaches7
Yet you ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have broken faith, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant.
So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
For this is what the Lord GOD says: I will deal with you according to your deeds, since you have despised the oath by breaking the covenant.
Then I passed by and saw you, and you were indeed old enough for love. So I spread My cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a covenant with you, and you became Mine, declares the Lord GOD.
Have you not just called to Me, ‘My Father, You are my friend from youth.
May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth:
Wail like a virgin dressed in sackcloth, grieving for the husband of her youth.
The walk8
Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first — the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.
Through
Proverbs 5:18May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth:
leads to
Enjoy life with your beloved wife all the days of the fleeting life that God has given you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For this is your portion in life and in your…
Yet you ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have broken faith, though she is your companion and your…
Through
Ezekiel 16:8Then I passed by and saw you, and you were indeed old enough for love. So I spread My cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a…
leads to
“Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied. “Spread the corner of your garment over me, for you are a kinsman-redeemer.”
“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem that this is what the LORD says: ‘I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed Me in the wilderness,…
But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Because you are precious and honored in My sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you and nations in place of your life.
Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will…
Through
Jeremiah 3:4Have you not just called to Me, ‘My Father, You are my friend from youth.
leads to
“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem that this is what the LORD says: ‘I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed Me in the wilderness,…
The whole web at once: see the Arc.
