'Tie My Commandments Upon Your Fingers'

The king begins with the fatherly advice:  "My Son, keep my sayings, and may you treasure up my own commandments with you. Keep my commandments and continue living, and my law like the pupil of your eyes." -Proverbs 7:1, 2.

Parents, particularly fathers, have the God-given responsibility of  teaching their children God's standards of good and bad. Moses exhorted fathers:  "These words that I am commanding you today must prove to be on your heart; and you must inculcate them in your son and speak of them when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road and when you lie down and when you get up."  (Deuteronomy 6:6, 7)  And the apostle Paul wrote: "You, fathers do not be be irritating your children,, but go bringing them up in the discipline and mental-regulating of Jehovah." (Ephesians 6:4)  Hence, a parent's instructions that are to be treasured up, or highly valued, certainly include the reminders, the commandments, and the laws found in God's Word, the Bible. 

Parental teaching may also include other regulations-family rules.  These are for the good of the family members. True, depending on  the needs, the rules may vary from one family to another. Parents, though, have the job of deciding what is best for their own family. And the rules they make are usually an expression of their genuine love and concern.  The counsel to young ones is that they abide  by these rules along with the Scriptural teaching received from their parents. Yes, there is a need to teach such instructions "like the pupil of your eyes"-guarding them with utmost care. That is the way to avoid  the deadly effect of ignoring Jehovah's standards and thus to "continue living." 

Next time: Conclusion of 'Tie My Commandments Upon Your Fingers'

From the Watchtower magazine, 2000