diff --git a/lib/scheme/eval.sx b/lib/scheme/eval.sx
index a0559692..7c5c18f3 100644
--- a/lib/scheme/eval.sx
+++ b/lib/scheme/eval.sx
@@ -78,6 +78,126 @@
         (error "quote: expects exactly 1 argument"))
       (:else (first args)))))
 
+;; if — (if TEST CONSEQUENT) or (if TEST CONSEQUENT ALTERNATE).
+;; Scheme truthiness: only #f is false; everything else (incl. nil/empty
+;; list) is truthy. Match SX's `if` semantics where possible.
+(scheme-define-op! "if"
+  (fn (args env)
+    (cond
+      ((< (length args) 2)
+        (error "if: expects (test then [else])"))
+      (:else
+        (let ((test-val (scheme-eval (first args) env)))
+          (cond
+            ((not (= test-val false))
+              (scheme-eval (nth args 1) env))
+            ((>= (length args) 3)
+              (scheme-eval (nth args 2) env))
+            (:else nil)))))))
+
+;; set! — mutate an existing binding by walking the env chain.
+(scheme-define-op! "set!"
+  (fn (args env)
+    (cond
+      ((not (= (length args) 2))
+        (error "set!: expects (set! name expr)"))
+      ((not (string? (first args)))
+        (error "set!: name must be a symbol"))
+      (:else
+        (let ((name (first args))
+              (val (scheme-eval (nth args 1) env)))
+          (let ((src (refl-env-find-frame env name)))
+            (cond
+              ((nil? src)
+                (error (str "set!: unbound variable: " name)))
+              (:else
+                (dict-set! (get src :bindings) name val)
+                val))))))))
+
+;; define — top-level or internal binding. (define name expr) or
+;; (define (name . formals) body...) the latter being lambda sugar.
+(scheme-define-op! "define"
+  (fn (args env)
+    (cond
+      ((< (length args) 2)
+        (error "define: expects (define name expr) or (define (name . formals) body)"))
+      ((string? (first args))
+        ;; (define name expr)
+        (let ((val (scheme-eval (nth args 1) env)))
+          (scheme-env-bind! env (first args) val)
+          val))
+      ((list? (first args))
+        ;; (define (name . formals) body...) — sugar
+        (let ((header (first args))
+              (body (rest args)))
+          (cond
+            ((= (length header) 0)
+              (error "define: malformed function header"))
+            (:else
+              (let ((name (first header))
+                    (formals (rest header)))
+                (let ((closure (scheme-make-closure formals nil body env)))
+                  (scheme-env-bind! env name closure)
+                  closure))))))
+      (:else (error "define: malformed form")))))
+
+;; begin — evaluate each expression in sequence, return the last.
+(scheme-define-op! "begin"
+  (fn (args env)
+    (cond
+      ((or (nil? args) (= (length args) 0)) nil)
+      (:else (scheme-eval-body args env)))))
+
+(define scheme-eval-body
+  (fn (forms env)
+    (cond
+      ((= (length forms) 1) (scheme-eval (first forms) env))
+      (:else
+        (begin
+          (scheme-eval (first forms) env)
+          (scheme-eval-body (rest forms) env))))))
+
+;; lambda — (lambda formals body...) where formals is one of:
+;;   ()             — no args
+;;   (a b c)        — fixed-arity
+;;   name           — bare symbol; binds all args as a list
+;; Dotted-pair tail (a b . rest) deferred until parser support lands.
+(scheme-define-op! "lambda"
+  (fn (args env)
+    (cond
+      ((< (length args) 2)
+        (error "lambda: expects (lambda formals body...)"))
+      (:else
+        (let ((formals (first args))
+              (body (rest args)))
+          (cond
+            ;; bare symbol: collect-all-args
+            ((string? formals)
+              (scheme-make-closure (list) formals body env))
+            ;; flat list: each must be a symbol
+            ((list? formals)
+              (cond
+                ((not (scm-formals-ok? formals))
+                  (error "lambda: formals must be symbols"))
+                (:else
+                  (scheme-make-closure formals nil body env))))
+            (:else (error "lambda: invalid formals"))))))))
+
+(define scm-formals-ok?
+  (fn (formals)
+    (cond
+      ((or (nil? formals) (= (length formals) 0)) true)
+      ((string? (first formals)) (scm-formals-ok? (rest formals)))
+      (:else false))))
+
+(define scheme-make-closure
+  (fn (params rest-name body env)
+    {:scm-tag :closure
+     :params params
+     :rest rest-name
+     :body body
+     :env env}))
+
 ;; ── eval-args helper ─────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 (define
@@ -131,10 +251,35 @@
         (scheme-apply-closure proc args))
       (:else (error (str "scheme-eval: not a procedure: " proc))))))
 
-;; Stub for Phase 3 — closures land then.
-(define
-  scheme-apply-closure
-  (fn (proc args) (error "scheme-eval: closures land in Phase 3")))
+;; Apply a Scheme closure: bind formals + rest, eval body in
+;; (extend static-env), return value of last form.
+(define scheme-apply-closure
+  (fn (proc args)
+    (let ((local (scheme-extend-env (get proc :env)))
+          (params (get proc :params))
+          (rest-name (get proc :rest))
+          (body (get proc :body)))
+      (begin
+        (scm-bind-params! local params args rest-name)
+        (scheme-eval-body body local)))))
+
+(define scm-bind-params!
+  (fn (env params args rest-name)
+    (cond
+      ;; No more formals: maybe bind the rest, else check arity.
+      ((or (nil? params) (= (length params) 0))
+        (cond
+          ((not (nil? rest-name))
+            (scheme-env-bind! env rest-name args))
+          ((or (nil? args) (= (length args) 0)) nil)
+          (:else (error "lambda: too many arguments"))))
+      ;; Out of args but still have formals → arity error.
+      ((or (nil? args) (= (length args) 0))
+        (error "lambda: too few arguments"))
+      (:else
+        (begin
+          (scheme-env-bind! env (first params) (first args))
+          (scm-bind-params! env (rest params) (rest args) rest-name))))))
 
 ;; Evaluate a program (sequence of forms), returning the last value.
 (define
diff --git a/lib/scheme/tests/syntax.sx b/lib/scheme/tests/syntax.sx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3c552bcb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/scheme/tests/syntax.sx
@@ -0,0 +1,237 @@
+;; lib/scheme/tests/syntax.sx — exercises Phase 3 syntactic operators.
+
+(define scm-syn-pass 0)
+(define scm-syn-fail 0)
+(define scm-syn-fails (list))
+
+(define
+  scm-syn-test
+  (fn
+    (name actual expected)
+    (if
+      (= actual expected)
+      (set! scm-syn-pass (+ scm-syn-pass 1))
+      (begin
+        (set! scm-syn-fail (+ scm-syn-fail 1))
+        (append! scm-syn-fails {:name name :actual actual :expected expected})))))
+
+(define scm-syn-eval (fn (src env) (scheme-eval (scheme-parse src) env)))
+
+(define
+  scm-syn-eval-all
+  (fn (src env) (scheme-eval-program (scheme-parse-all src) env)))
+
+;; Test env with arithmetic primitives.
+(define
+  scm-syn-env
+  (fn
+    ()
+    (let
+      ((env (scheme-make-env)))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "+"
+        (fn (args) (+ (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "-"
+        (fn (args) (- (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "*"
+        (fn (args) (* (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "/"
+        (fn (args) (/ (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "<="
+        (fn (args) (<= (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "<"
+        (fn (args) (< (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "="
+        (fn (args) (= (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind! env "list" (fn (args) args))
+      (scheme-env-bind!
+        env
+        "cons"
+        (fn (args) (cons (first args) (nth args 1))))
+      (scheme-env-bind! env "car" (fn (args) (first (first args))))
+      (scheme-env-bind! env "cdr" (fn (args) (rest (first args))))
+      env)))
+
+;; ── if ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "if: true"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(if #t 1 2)" (scm-syn-env))
+  1)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "if: false"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(if #f 1 2)" (scm-syn-env))
+  2)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "if: predicate"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(if (<= 1 2) 99 nope)" (scm-syn-env))
+  99)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "if: no else returns nil"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(if #f 99)" (scm-syn-env))
+  nil)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "if: truthy non-#f"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(if 0 'yes 'no)" (scm-syn-env))
+  "yes")
+
+;; ── define ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "define: bind value"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval "(define x 42)" env)
+    (scm-syn-eval "x" env))
+  42)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "define: function sugar"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all "(define (double n) (+ n n)) (double 21)" env))
+  42)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "define: redefine"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all "(define x 1) (define x 2) x" env))
+  2)
+
+;; ── set! ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "set!: mutate"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all "(define x 1) (set! x 99) x" env))
+  99)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "set!: walks parent"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all "(define x 1) ((lambda () (set! x 100))) x" env))
+  100)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "set!: errors on unbound"
+  (guard
+    (e (true :raised))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all "(set! never-defined 1)" (scm-syn-env)))
+  :raised)
+
+;; ── begin ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "begin: empty returns nil"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(begin)" (scm-syn-env))
+  nil)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "begin: returns last"
+  (scm-syn-eval "(begin 1 2 3)" (scm-syn-env))
+  3)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "begin: side effects in order"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define x 0) (begin (set! x 1) (set! x 2) (set! x 3)) x"
+      env))
+  3)
+
+;; ── lambda ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "lambda: identity"
+  (scm-syn-eval "((lambda (x) x) 42)" (scm-syn-env))
+  42)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "lambda: arithmetic"
+  (scm-syn-eval "((lambda (x y) (+ x y)) 3 4)" (scm-syn-env))
+  7)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "lambda: zero args"
+  (scm-syn-eval "((lambda () 99))" (scm-syn-env))
+  99)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "lambda: multi-body"
+  (scm-syn-eval "((lambda (x) (define t (+ x 1)) (+ t t)) 5)" (scm-syn-env))
+  12)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "lambda: rest-arg as bare symbol"
+  (scm-syn-eval "((lambda args args) 1 2 3)" (scm-syn-env))
+  (list 1 2 3))
+
+;; ── closures ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "closure: captures binding"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define (make-adder n) (lambda (x) (+ x n))) ((make-adder 10) 5)"
+      env))
+  15)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "closure: counter via set!"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define (make-counter) (define n 0) (lambda () (set! n (+ n 1)) n)) (define c (make-counter)) (c) (c) (c)"
+      env))
+  3)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "closure: curried"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define curry+ (lambda (a) (lambda (b) (lambda (c) (+ a (+ b c)))))) (((curry+ 1) 2) 3)"
+      env))
+  6)
+
+;; ── recursion ────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "recursive: factorial 5"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define (fact n) (if (<= n 1) 1 (* n (fact (- n 1))))) (fact 5)"
+      env))
+  120)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "recursive: factorial 10"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define (fact n) (if (<= n 1) 1 (* n (fact (- n 1))))) (fact 10)"
+      env))
+  3628800)
+(scm-syn-test
+  "recursive: list length"
+  (let
+    ((env (scm-syn-env)))
+    (scm-syn-eval-all
+      "(define (len xs) (if (= 0 (- 0 0)) (if (= xs (quote ())) 0 (+ 1 (len (cdr xs)))) 0)) (len '(a b c d))"
+      env))
+  4)
+
+;; ── quote vs eval distinction ────────────────────────────────────
+(scm-syn-test
+  "quote: list literal"
+  (scm-syn-eval "'(1 2 3)" (scm-syn-env))
+  (list 1 2 3))
+(scm-syn-test
+  "quote: nested"
+  (scm-syn-eval "'(a (b c) d)" (scm-syn-env))
+  (list "a" (list "b" "c") "d"))
+(scm-syn-test
+  "quote: symbol vs evaluated"
+  (let ((env (scm-syn-env))) (scm-syn-eval-all "(define x 42) 'x" env))
+  "x")
+
+(define scm-syn-tests-run! (fn () {:total (+ scm-syn-pass scm-syn-fail) :passed scm-syn-pass :failed scm-syn-fail :fails scm-syn-fails}))