spare the rod and spoil the child

Idioms  

1. Discipline is necessary for good upbringing, as in She lets Richard get away with anything—spare the rod, you know. This adage appears in the Bible (Proverbs 13:24) and made its way into practically every proverb collection. It originally referred to corporal punishment. It is still quoted, often in shortened form, and today does not necessarily mean physical discipline.

---

Example Sentences

After all, as the Bible says, spare the rod and spoil the child.

From The Guardian

"Strenuous physical training and beatings by the ashans were the hallmark of Kathakali training, to some extent till the late 1970s. The basic rule was to 'not spare the rod and spoil the child'. "Absolute and unquestioning discipline was expected of students.

From BBC

We’ve all heard the adage, “Spare the rod and spoil the child.”

From Washington Times

By all means: spare the rod and spoil the child.

From Salon

As in Talbotton, there were no public schools in Columbus, so I was sent to a private school kept by an Irish master named Flynn, who did not act on the pedagogical principle, "Spare the rod and spoil the child."

From Project Gutenberg