1My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; 2For length of days and long life and peace they will add to you. (Prov 3:1-2)
The opening exhortation of the third chapter of Proverbs is a familiar one to the book and Scripture in general. In two ways Solomon essentially commanded his son, ‘Remember my words.’ In the first portion of verse one he said, “My son, do not forget my law” (vs.1a), and in the latter portion, “let your heart keep my commands”(vs.1b). That charge, which is not only Solomon’s counsel to his son but an extension of God’s voice through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to all of His sons and daughters, is reflective of Old and New Testament truth alike. In Proverbs we read, “For I give you good doctrine; Do not forsake my law” (4:1) and similarly in Hebrews we read, “…we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away” (Heb. 2:1). In different ways, both passages are saying, ‘Hold onto God’s truth in your heart. Don’t drift from it or forsake it; give the more earnest heed to both grip it and, at the same time, pursue it.’ This was something that Solomon, in wisdom, continually instructed his son to do:
