The Blessing of Musar

Correction intended to Discipline...
Proverbs 6:23

For the commandment is a lamp; and Torah is light;
and reproofs of discipline are the way of life. - Proverbs 6:23

The Hebrew noun musar denotes fatherly correction intended to impart moral discipline and character development to a child. "Hear, my child, the musar of your father, and forsake not the torah of your mother" (Prov. 6:20).  "My son, despise not the chastening (musar) of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction (tokhechah). For whom the Lord loves he corrects; even as a father the son in whom he delights" (Prov. 3:11; see also Heb. 12:5-6).
Musar

Like a human father might correct a wayward child in order to develop responsible character within the child, so the Lord corrects His children in order to form His character within them. And just as a human father gives light and insight to the way of a child, so God's revelation (i.e., His laws and commandments) gives light for the way of Life.
Serenity comes after discipline

Correction, then, is the primary means by which God reveals both His character to us and our own characters to ourselves....  It is also the instrument that leads us to godly sorrow and repentance. God tests what is within our hearts (Deut. 8:2) and thereby reveals Himself as the salvation (yeshua) from our inner condition.  By being broken, humbled, and corrected, we learn to rely on God's provision and begin to genuinely understand that "man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord" (Deut. 8:3).

Correction from the Lord is ultimately "soul building," since it enables us to be partakers of His holiness -- and is grounded in His love for us as our Heavenly Father (see Heb. 12:5-11).


Hebrew Lesson
Proverbs 6:23 Hebrew reading (click):

Proverbs 6:23 Hebrew Analysis
 



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