A new instruction begins with a singular “my son” (4:20) and a charge to pay attention in which the son is told literally to “turn your ear” to the words (cf. 2:2). An anatomy of righteousness follows, urging the son to keep the father’s words before his eyes and in his heart so they can direct the action of his mouth, lips, and feet. The heart, earlier commanded to lay hold of the grandfather’s words (4:4), is mentioned again, this time as a spring of life that is to be guarded so that the teachings that guide a person’s life are kept intact (4:23). While the instruction seems to mix metaphors by moving from a stored treasure to a flowing spring, both insist that the heart that holds onto teaching is a source of life.

Thus, the word “life” (ḥayyim) comes at the beginning of 4:22 and the end of 4:23, closely connected to the heart. Just as wisdom holds life in her hands and is a tree of life to those who hold onto her (3:16–18), so here life flows from the heart that holds onto the teaching it receives. In the view of the teachers, this source of life was maintained not by keeping bad things out of it but by putting good teachings in and keeping them there (4:20–21). The heart, the seat of intentions, thoughts, and emotions, served as the control center for the rest of human anatomy, especially the organs of speech. A guarded heart and straight speech go together (4:23–24).