Start(A) children off on the way they should go,(B)
    and even when they are old they will not turn from it.(C)

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Direct your children onto the right path,
    and when they are older, they will not leave it.

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15 Folly is bound up in the heart of a child,
    but the rod of discipline will drive it far away.(A)

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15 A youngster’s heart is filled with foolishness,
    but physical discipline will drive it far away.

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Saying 13

13 Do not withhold discipline from a child;
    if you punish them with the rod, they will not die.
14 Punish them with the rod
    and save them from death.(A)

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13 Don’t fail to discipline your children.
    The rod of punishment won’t kill them.
14 Physical discipline
    may well save them from death.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 23:14 Hebrew from Sheol.

15 A rod and a reprimand impart wisdom,
    but a child left undisciplined disgraces its mother.(A)

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15 To discipline a child produces wisdom,
    but a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.

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17 Discipline your children, and they will give you peace;
    they will bring you the delights you desire.(A)

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17 Discipline your children, and they will give you peace of mind
    and will make your heart glad.

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