3 My son, do not forget my teaching,
but let your heart keep my commandments,
2 for length of days and years of life
and peace they will add to you.
3 Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
bind them round your neck;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will find favour and good success[a]
in the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
7 Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
8 It will be healing to your flesh[b]
and refreshment[c] to your bones.
9 Honour the Lord with your wealth
and with the firstfruits of all your produce;
10 then your barns will be filled with plenty,
and your vats will be bursting with wine.
The notion of 'direction' lies at the heart of the word 'law' (torah). The law gives di- rection to our lives not so much through isolated 'texts' that 'come' into the mind, as by being absorbed over a long period of time into the very substance of our thinking. A mind, heart and life impregnated by the very atmosphere of Scripture and by its princi- ples -this is what the writer has in view. This is an important consideration in the proper understanding of the well-known words in 5 on the subject of trusting the Lord. The word 'trust' has here the force of resting one's weight upon something well able to give support, something that will never give way. The warning against relying on our own un- derstanding is no ground for abdicating the duty to think things through: to trust in God with all one's heart means a life given over (in terms of 1) to His will and His Word, and in this condition, we will not lean on our own understanding, for in such a condition our understanding will be captive to God's will and Spirit, and will not be our own. We are only likely to rely on our own understanding when we are not thus captive, and trusting in God. But a mind captive to Him still thinks; indeed, it thinks with great clarity and reliability; and the thoughts it thinks are likely to be His thoughts. This is why we must maintain that 'direction' from God is from the 'inside', from and through our own 'captive to God' thinking, rather than from the 'outside'. It is because our sanctification and development are never complete in this life that sometimes God has to intervene from the 'outside', to keep us right. But in the ordinary process of development, leading from the 'inside' is the ideal. Dependence on 'outside' guidance is a sign of immaturity, and persistence in regarding it as 'superior' is liable to lead to misleading and error. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:17, 'He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit': if this means any- thing, it means that, in vital union with Him, the thoughts we think are His thoughts.