Bible Strands
Proverbs 2:11
Discretion will watch over you, and understanding will guard you,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The book of Proverbs addresses a student seeking wisdom, placing this promise immediately after describing how wisdom enters the heart and knowledge delights the soul.
The words — מְזִמָּה (mezi mmah) renders literally as "discretion" or "counsel," and תִנְצְרֶכָּה (tinzererkah) means "it will guard/keep you."
The thread — The protective function of wisdom reappears in Proverbs 4:6, which specifies that she preserves the one who does not forsake her and guards the one who loves her, while Ephesians 5:15 echoes the call to deliberate, wise conduct.
Why it lands — The text presents discernment as an active sentinel rather than a passive trait, requiring the reader to pursue understanding so it may function as a boundary against error.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee:
Cross-references
- Proverbs 4:6 Do not forsake wisdom, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will guard you.
- Ephesians 5:15 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
- Psalms 25:21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me, because I wait for You.
- Ecclesiastes 10:10 If the axe is dull and the blade unsharpened, more strength must be exerted, but skill produces success.
- Psalms 119:9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to Your word.
- Proverbs 6:22 When you walk, they will guide you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; when you awake, they will speak to you.
- Ecclesiastes 9:15 Now a poor wise man was found in the city, and he saved the city by his wisdom. Yet no one remembered that poor man.