Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.
Chasten thy son while there is hope - of his being reformed, before that he becomes hardened in sin. Trees, while young, are tender, and are the more easily bent.
And let not thy soul spare for his crying - Hebrew, hªmiytow (H4191) [from haamah, to clamour?]. But Gejer, Grotius, and Maurer take it [from the more ordinary muwt (H4191)], 'But do not let thy soul rise to killing him.' Avoid both extremes, either the withholding of chastisement, or extreme severity in it. Cartwright takes, it, 'Let not thy soul spare him, to his destruction,' when he will be pest "hope" (Proverbs 23:13). You have your choice, either that he should feel your rod, or else the sword of avenging justice. I prefer this as forming the best antithesis to the parallel "while there is hope," (cf. margin)