My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
Proverbs 3:1-35.-The youth is admonished to keep God's law, which brings to the obedient long life and peace; not to forsake mercy and truth, which give favor in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord, and not in self, so shall He direct thee. Fear the Lord, and it shall be health to thee. Honour Him with thy substance, so shall thy stores be full (Proverbs 3:1-10). Bear chastisement from the Lord patiently, and take it as a proof of His love (Proverbs 3:1-12). General felicitation of the man who findeth wisdom: its preciousness, permanence, pleasantness; its agency in the creation of all things by the Lord (Proverbs 3:11-20). Resumption of the opening admonition: Keep sound wisdom as life to the soul, grace to the neck, safety to the feet in walking, the giver of sleep uninterrupted by fears, since the Lord shall be thy confidence. Instances of wisdom: Withhold not good from the needy; strive not: envy not: for the Lord curses the wicked, and blesses the just, gives glory to the lowly wise, and shameful scorn as the only promotion that awaits scornful fools (Proverbs 3:21-35). The address "my son" marks the divisions (Proverbs 3:1; Proverbs 3:10; Proverbs 3:21).
My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments. Solomon's advice to the young, as that of a father to his son (Proverbs 1:8). Forgetfulness of God's law is the fault of the heart, not merely of the head. When the heart keeps God's precepts as a precious treasure, the memory does not easily forget them.