Amsal 5:10

5:10 lest strangers devour ¹  your strength, ² 

and your labor ³  benefit ⁴  another man’s house.

Amsal 29:3

29:3 The man ⁵  who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, ⁶ 

but whoever associates ⁷  with prostitutes wastes ⁸  his wealth. ⁹ 

Amsal 29:8

29:8 Scornful people ¹⁰  inflame ¹¹  a city, ¹² 

but those who are wise turn away wrath.

[5:10]  ¹ tn Or “are sated, satisfied.”

[5:10]  ² tn The word כֹּחַ (coakh, “strength”) refers to what laborious toil would produce (so a metonymy of cause). Everything that this person worked for could become the property for others to enjoy.

[5:10]  ³ tn “labor, painful toil.”

[5:10]  ⁴ tn The term “benefit” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

[29:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “a man.” Here “man” is retained in the translation because the second colon mentions prostitutes.

[29:3]  ⁶ tn Or “causes his father to rejoice”; NAB “makes his father glad.”

[29:3]  ⁷ tn The active participle רֹעֶה (ro’eh) is from the second root רָעָה (ra’ah), meaning “to associate with.” The verb occurs only a few times, and mostly in the book of Proverbs. It is related to רֵעֶה (re’eh, “friend; companion; fellow”). To describe someone as a “companion” or “friend” of prostitutes is somewhat euphemistic; it surely means someone who is frequently engaging the services of prostitutes.

[29:3]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew verb יְאַבֶּד (yÿ’abbed) means “destroys”; it is the Piel imperfect of the verb that means “to perish.”

[29:3]  ⁹ sn Wealth was seen as a sign of success and of God’s blessings, pretty much as it always has been. To be seen as honorable in the community meant one had acquired some substance and kept his reputation. It would be a disgrace to the family to have a son who squandered his money on prostitutes (e.g., Prov 5:10; 6:31).

[29:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “men of scorn”; NAB “Arrogant men”; ASV, NRSV “Scoffers”; NIV, NLT “Mockers.”

[29:8]  ¹¹ tn The verb means “to blow; to breathe” (BDB 806 s.v. פּוּחַ). In the Hiphil imperfect its meaning here is “to excite; to inflame” a city, as in blowing up a flame or kindling a fire. It is also used with “words” in 6:19 and 12:17 – they “puff out words.” Such scornful people make dangerous situations worse, whereas the wise calm things down (e.g., 2 Sam 20).

[29:8]  ¹² tn The term “city” is a metonymy of subject; it refers to the people in the city who can easily be set in an uproar by such scornful people.