LISTEN
NASB:
Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.
NIV:
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
Observations:
This is a piece of divinely-inspired Solomonic parenting wisdom.
As with many Proverbs, it contains a cause and an effect.
Training a child in the right way will lead to that person not departing from that way when he or she is fully grown.
Implicit in this is also the alternative. Not training a child in the right way will result in the child not being solidly rooted when he or she is fully grown.
Takeaways:
What is the way a child should go? Toward the heart of God through Jesus Christ.
That means an upbringing based on scriptural principles and modeled by parents who love Jesus and demonstrate his love will help build a firm foundation for a child for life.
