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Proverbs 4:23
Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it is the wellspring of life.
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Interpretation

Wisdom shapes a guard heart that is embodied in work and rest. Proverbs 4:23: trace "keep" and "heart". Align guard heart in promises we keep—anchor courage in promise.

Context

Proverbs speaks here as poetry/wisdom writing, naming guard heart. Placed in ch. 4, the nearby lines set its tone. There’s a line into wisdom & worship. The nearby sentences supply the texture.

Authorship & Historical Background

Long‑standing tradition credits Proverbs to Solomon & sages. Critical study of Proverbs often concludes: Sayings gathered and edited in stages.. Scholars commonly date Proverbs Compiled across the monarchic and post‑exilic periods.. This verse leans into wisdom & worship.

More details
Traditional:Solomon & sages
Modern scholarship:Wisdom anthology compiled in stages.
Date:Monarchic to post‑exilic.
Manuscripts & Textual Witnesses
The Masoretic tradition preserves the Hebrew text, standardized c. 6th-10th centuries CE. The Dead Sea Scrolls (discovered 1947-1956) provide manuscripts 1000+ years older than medieval texts, generally confirming the Masoretic Text's reliability with only minor variations. The Septuagint (Greek translation, 3rd-2nd century BCE) offers an independent textual witness. Variations between manuscripts are typically minor: spelling differences, word order, or clarifications that do not change the overall sense. Modern translations compare all available manuscripts to reconstruct the best reflects the earliest recoverable text text.
Sources & witness notes
MT