Proverbs 3:12

For the Lord disciplines ¹  those he loves, just as a father ²  disciplines ³  the son in whom he delights.

because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.

For whom the LORD loves He reproves, Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.

For the LORD corrects those he loves, just as a father corrects a child in whom he delights.

It's the child he loves that GOD corrects; a father's delight is behind all this.

For to those who are dear to him the Lord says sharp words, and makes the son in whom he has delight undergo pain.

for the LORD reproves the one he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.

For whom the LORD loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

For the Lord disciplines ¹  those he loves, just as a father ²  disciplines ³  the son in whom he delights.

¹ tn Heb “chastens.” The verb יָכַח (yakhakh) here means “to chasten; to punish” (HALOT 410 s.v. יכח 1) or “to correct; to rebuke” (BDB 407 s.v. 6). The context suggests some kind of corporeal discipline rather than mere verbal rebuke or cognitive correction. This verse is quoted in Heb 12:5-6 to show that suffering in the service of the Lord is a sign of membership in the covenant community (i.e., sonship).

² tc MT reads וּכְאָב (ukh’av, “and like a father”) but the LXX reflects the Hiphil verb וְיַכְאִב (vÿyakh’iv, “and scourges every son he receives”). Both readings fit the parallelism; however, it is unnecessary to emend MT which makes perfectly good sense. The fact that the writer of Hebrews quotes this passage from the LXX and it became part of the inspired NT text does not mean that the LXX reflects the original Hebrew reading here.

³ tn The verb “disciplines” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.