Amsal 3:26

3:26 for the Lord will be ¹  the source of your confidence, ² 

and he will guard your foot ³  from being caught in a trap. ⁴ 

Amsal 3:30

3:30 Do not accuse ⁵  anyone ⁶  without legitimate cause, ⁷ 

if he has not treated you wrongly.

Amsal 4:26

4:26 Make the path for your feet ⁸  level, ⁹ 

so that ¹⁰  all your ways may be established. ¹¹ 

Amsal 5:5

5:5 Her feet go down to death;

her steps lead straight to the grave. ¹² 

Amsal 5:17

5:17 Let them be for yourself ¹³  alone,

and not for strangers with you. ¹⁴ 

Amsal 6:4

6:4 Permit no sleep to your eyes ¹⁵ 

or slumber to your eyelids.

Amsal 6:6

6:6 Go to the ant, you sluggard; ¹⁶ 

observe its ways and be wise!

Amsal 6:20

6:20 My child, guard the commands of your father

and do not forsake the instruction of your mother.

Amsal 22:24

22:24 Do not make friends with an angry person, ¹⁷ 

and do not associate with a wrathful person,

Amsal 23:3

23:3 Do not crave that ruler’s ¹⁸  delicacies,

for ¹⁹  that food is deceptive. ²⁰ 

Amsal 23:15-16

23:15 My child, ²¹  if your heart is wise,

then my heart also will be glad;

23:16 my soul ²²  will rejoice

when your lips speak what is right. ²³ 

Amsal 23:32

23:32 Afterward ²⁴  it bites like a snake,

and stings like a viper.

Amsal 24:17

24:17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, ²⁵ 

and when he stumbles do not let your heart rejoice,

Amsal 24:27

24:27 Establish your work outside and get your fields ready;

afterward build ²⁶  your house. ²⁷ 

[3:26]  ¹ tn Or “the Lord will be at your side.” Assuming that the noun כֶּסֶל (kesel) is related to the root II כָסַל (“confidence”; BDB 492 s.v. כֶּסֶל 3), the preposition ב (bet) introduces the predicate noun כִּסְלֶךָ (kislekha, “your confidence”) and functions as a beth essentiae (GKC 379 §119.i) which emphasizes the quality or nature of the noun (BDB 88 s.v. בְּ 7; HALOT 104 s.v. בְּ 3): “the Lord will be your confidence.” However, if the noun is related to I כסל (“loins; side”; HALOT 489 s.v. I כֶּסֶל 2), the preposition ב (bet) would function in a locative sense: “the Lord will be at your side.” See tn on the following phrase “source of your confidence.”

[3:26]  ² tn Heb “your confidence” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV) or “at your side.” There is debate whether the term כֶּסֶל (kesel) is related to the root I כָסַל “loins; side” (so HALOT 489 s.v. I כֶּסֶל 2) or II כָסַל “confidence” (so BDB 492 s.v. כֶּסֶל 3). The Vulgate relates it to I כָסַל and offers “the Lord will be at your side (latus).” Others relate it to II כָסַל “confidence” (e.g., Job 8:14; 31:24; Ps 78:7) and take it as a metonymy (= confidence) of adjunct (= object of confidence): “the Lord will be the source [or, object] of your confidence.”

[3:26]  ³ sn The term רַגְלְךָ (raglekha, “your foot”) functions as a synecdoche of part (= your foot) for the whole person (= you). This synecdoche develops the extended comparison between the hunter’s snare and calamity that afflicts the wicked.

[3:26]  ⁴ tn Heb “from capture.” The noun לָכֶד (lakhed, “capture; snare”) occurs only here in OT (BDB 540 s.v.; HALOT 530 s.v. לֶכֶד). It is figurative for the calamity of v. 25. God will protect the wise (or, righteous) from the consequences of sin (snares) that afflict the wicked.

[3:30]  ⁵ sn The term רִיב (riv) can mean “quarrel” or “legal accusation” (BDB 936 s.v.). Both ideas would work but the more technical legal accusation fits the context better. This is a warning to not bring legal accusations against anyone without a legitimate reason.

[3:30]  ⁶ tn Heb “a man.”

[3:30]  ⁷ tn Heb “gratuitously”; NIV, TEV “for no (+ good NCV) reason.” The adverb חִנָּם (khinam) means “without cause, undeservedly,” especially of groundless hostility (HALOT 334 s.v. 3; BDB 336 s.v. c).

[4:26]  ⁸ tn Heb “path of your foot.”

[4:26]  ⁹ sn The verb is a denominative Piel from the word פֶּלֶס (peles), “balance; scale.” In addition to telling the disciple to keep focused on a righteous life, the sage tells him to keep his path level, which is figurative for living the righteous life.

[4:26]  ¹⁰ tn The vav prefixed to the beginning of this dependent clause denotes purpose/result following the preceding imperative.

[4:26]  ¹¹ tn The Niphal jussive from כּוּן (cun, “to be fixed; to be established; to be steadfast”) continues the idiom of walking and ways for the moral sense in life.

[5:5]  ¹² tn The term שְׁאוֹל (she’ol, “grave”) is paralleled to “death,” so it does not refer here to the realm of the unblessed.

[5:5]  sn The terms death and grave could be hyperbolic of a ruined life, but probably refer primarily to the mortal consequences of a life of debauchery.

[5:17]  ¹³ tn The ל (lamed) preposition denotes possession: “for you” = “yours.” The term לְבַדֶּךָ (lÿvadekha) is appositional, underscoring the possession as exclusive.

[5:17]  ¹⁴ sn The point is that what is private is not to be shared with strangers; it belongs in the home and in the marriage. The water from that cistern is not to be channeled to strangers or to the public.

[6:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “do not give sleep to your eyes.” The point is to go to the neighbor and seek release from the agreement immediately (cf. NLT “Don’t rest until you do”).

[6:6]  ¹⁶ sn The sluggard (עָצֵל, ’atsel) is the lazy or sluggish person (cf. NCV “lazy person”; NRSV, NLT “lazybones”).

[22:24]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “possessor of anger.” This expression is an idiom for “wrathful person” or “an angry person” (cf. NAB “a hotheaded man”; NLT “short-tempered people”). These are people characterized by anger, meaning the anger is not a rare occurrence with them.

[23:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the ruler mentioned in v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:3]  ¹⁹ sn The final line gives the causal clause: The impressive feast is not what it appears to be; the king is not doing you a favor, but rather wants something from you or is observing you (K&D 17:104); cf. TEV “he may be trying to trick you.”

[23:3]  ²⁰ sn Verses 1-3 form the sixth saying about being cautious before rulers (cf. Instruction of Amememope, chap. 23, 23:13-18). One should not get too familiar with rulers, for they always have ulterior motives. The Mishnah cites Gamaliel as warning that a ruler only draws someone into his court for his purpose, but in their day of trouble he will not be there to help them (m. Abot 2:3).

[23:15]  ²¹ tn Heb “my son,” although the context does not limit this exhortation to male children.

[23:16]  ²² tn Heb “my kidneys”; in biblical Hebrew the term was used for the innermost being, the soul, the central location of the passions. Cf. NASB, NIV “my inmost being.”

[23:16]  ²³ sn This twelfth saying simply observes that children bring joy to their parents when they demonstrate wisdom. The quatrain is arranged in a chiastic structure (AB:B'A'): The first line (A) speaks of wisdom in the child, and it is paired with the last line (A') which speaks of the child’s saying what is right. In between these brackets are two lines (B and B') concerning joy to the parent.

[23:32]  ²⁴ tn Heb “its end”; NASB “At the last”; TEV (interpretively) “The next morning.”

[24:17]  ²⁵ sn The saying (vv. 17, 18) warns against gloating over the misfortune of one’s enemies. The prohibition is formed with two negated jussives “do not rejoice” and “let not be glad,” the second qualified by “your heart” as the subject, signifying the inner satisfaction of such a defeat.

[24:27]  ²⁶ tn The perfect tense with vav following the imperatives takes on the force of an imperative here.

[24:27]  ²⁷ sn If the term “house” is understood literally, the proverb would mean that one should be financially secure before building a house (cf. NLT). If “house” is figurative for household (metonymy of subject: children or family), the proverb would mean that one should have financial security and provision before starting a family. Some English versions suggest the latter meaning by using the word “home” for “house” (e.g., TEV, CEV).