When the concept of discipline (paideia) is examined in the biblical writings, often an interpreter makes a choice between the punitive or educative sense of the term. Does it mean correction for disobedience or does it mean the process of education or training for a task? In Heb 12:3–11, this interpretive choice becomes critically important. In particular, determining
the appropriate conceptual background that informs this concept is necessary for understanding its meaning and function in Hebrews 12. This study seeks to demonstrate the strategic significance of this passage, examine the nature of paideia, and then provide a profile of two OT contexts that likely inform the concept of discipline in Hebrews 12: the directly quoted context of the book of Proverbs and the less recognized intertextual backdrop of the book of Deuteronomy.