mu.sar denotes formative instruction to be received and kept, and also corrective or punitive chastening.

The term most often denotes instruction or training that is heard, received, kept, loved, or neglected, especially in settings of wisdom and parental teaching. It also appears as correction refused after wrongdoing and, less often, as severe chastening or rebuke imposed in judgment.

1. Formative instruction to receive and keep · dominant

   The noun names teaching that forms wise conduct: in Proverbs 1:8 the APB renders a father's instruction that a son is to hear, while Proverbs 19:20 joins listening to counsel with accepting it in order to become wise. In Proverbs 4:13, the absolute noun is something to hold firmly because it is described as life; Proverbs 8:10 and Proverbs 8:33 likewise present it as something to take and hear rather than neglect.

   Proverbs 1:8Proverbs 19:20Proverbs 4:13Proverbs 8:10Proverbs 8:33Proverbs 23:12
2. Correction that people accept or refuse · common

   The noun also occurs where a person or community is tested by whether it will receive correction. In Jeremiah 17:23 the APB renders the refusal to listen and to take it; Jeremiah 5:3 places that refusal after being struck, and Psalm 50:17 describes hating it and casting God's word behind oneself. Job 5:17 explicitly sets not rejecting it alongside God's rebuke.

   Jeremiah 17:23Jeremiah 5:3Psalm 50:17Job 5:17Zephaniah 3:2Proverbs 15:10
3. Punitive chastening or rebuke · occasional

   In several judgment contexts, the noun is associated with inflicted suffering rather than instruction received. Jeremiah 30:14 speaks of being struck with a wound and the APB renders the accompanying phrase as "cruel discipline"; Isaiah 53:5 places a construct form upon the suffering figure and renders it "the chastisement that brought us peace." Hosea 5:2 ends with the declaration that all the rebels will be disciplined.

   Jeremiah 30:14Isaiah 53:5Hosea 5:2Ezekiel 5:15

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB commonly uses "discipline" across instructional and corrective contexts, but also uses "correction," "chastisement," and "rebukes" in particular clauses. These renderings confirm each verse's setting without fixing a separate English equivalent in every occurrence.