Amsal 6:35

6:35 He will not consider ¹  any compensation; ² 

he will not be willing, even if you multiply the compensation. ³ 

Amsal 7:26

7:26 for she has brought down ⁴  many fatally wounded,

and all those she has slain are many. ⁵ 

Amsal 13:3

13:3 The one who guards his words ⁶  guards his life,

but ⁷  whoever is talkative ⁸  will come to ruin. ⁹ 

Amsal 14:3

14:3 In ¹⁰  the speech ¹¹  of a fool is a rod for his back, ¹² 

but the words ¹³  of the wise protect them.

Amsal 14:21

14:21 The one who despises his neighbor sins,

but whoever is kind to the needy is blessed.

Amsal 14:26

14:26 In the fear of the Lord one has ¹⁴  strong confidence, ¹⁵ 

and it will be a refuge ¹⁶  for his children.

Amsal 15:6

15:6 In the house ¹⁷  of the righteous is abundant wealth, ¹⁸ 

but the income of the wicked brings trouble. ¹⁹ 

Amsal 17:7

17:7 Excessive ²⁰  speech ²¹  is not becoming for a fool; ²² 

how much less are lies ²³  for a ruler! ²⁴ 

Amsal 19:10

19:10 Luxury is not appropriate ²⁵  for a fool; ²⁶ 

how much less for a servant to rule over princes! ²⁷ 

Amsal 24:5-6

24:5 A wise warrior ²⁸  is strong, ²⁹ 

and a man of knowledge makes his strength stronger;

24:6 for with guidance you wage your war,

and with numerous advisers there is victory. ³⁰ 

Amsal 26:13

26:13 The sluggard ³¹  says, “There is a lion in the road!

A lion in the streets!” ³² 

Amsal 27:13

27:13 Take a man’s ³³  garment when he has given security for a stranger,

and when he gives surety for a stranger, ³⁴  hold him in pledge. ³⁵ 

Amsal 31:10

The Wife of Noble Character ³⁶ 

31:10 Who can find ³⁷  a wife ³⁸  of noble character? ³⁹ 

For her value ⁴⁰  is far more than rubies.

[6:35]  ¹ tn Heb “lift up the face of,” meaning “regard.”

[6:35]  ² tn The word rendered “compensation” is כֹּפֶר (cofer); it is essentially a ransom price, a sum to be paid to deliver another from debt, bondage, or crime. The husband cannot accept payment as a ransom for a life, since what has happened cannot be undone so easily.

[6:35]  ³ tn BDB 1005 s.v. שֹׁחַד suggests that this term means “hush money” or “bribe” (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT). C. H. Toy takes it as legal compensation (Proverbs [ICC], 142).

[7:26]  ⁴ tn Heb “she has caused to fall.”

[7:26]  ⁵ tn Heb “numerous” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT) or “countless.”

[13:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “mouth” (so KJV, NAB). The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for speech.

[13:3]  ⁷ tn The term “but” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

[13:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “opens wide his lips.” This is an idiom meaning “to be talkative” (BDB 832 s.v. פָּשַׂק Qal). Cf. NIV “speaks rashly”; TEV “a careless talker”; CEV “talk too much.”

[13:3]  ⁹ sn Tight control over what one says prevents trouble (e.g., Prov 10:10; 17:28; Jas 3:1-12; Sir 28:25). Amenemope advises to “sleep a night before speaking” (5:15; ANET 422, n. 10). The old Arab proverb is appropriate: “Take heed that your tongue does not cut your throat” (O. Zockler, Proverbs, 134).

[14:3]  ¹⁰ tn The preposition בְּ (bet) may denote (1) exchange: “in exchange for” foolish talk there is a rod; or (2) cause: “because of” foolish talk.

[14:3]  ¹¹ sn The noun פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said (“speech, words, talk”).

[14:3]  ¹² tc The MT reads גַּאֲוָה (ga’avah, “pride”) which creates an awkward sense “in the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride” (cf. KJV, ASV). The BHS editors suggest emending the form to גֵּוֹה (“disciplining-rod”) to create tighter parallelism and irony: “in the mouth of a fool is a rod for the back” (e.g., Prov 10:13). What the fools says will bring discipline.

[14:3]  tn Heb “a rod of back.” The noun גֵּוֹה functions as a genitive of specification: “a rod for his back.” The fool is punished because of what he says.

[14:3]  ¹³ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause, meaning what they say. The wise by their speech will find protection.

[14:26]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “In the fear of the Lord [is] confidence of strength.” The phrase “one has” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

[14:26]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “confidence of strength.” This construct phrase features an attributive genitive: “strong confidence” (so most English versions; NIV “a secure fortress”).

[14:26]  ¹⁶ sn The fear of the Lord will not only provide security for the parent but will also be a refuge for children. The line recalls Exod 20:5-6 where children will reap the benefits of the righteous parents. The line could also be read as “he [= God] will be a refuge for the children.”

[15:6]  ¹⁷ tn The term בֵּית (bet, “house”) functions as an adverbial accusative of location.

[15:6]  ¹⁸ sn The Hebrew noun חֹסֶן (khosen) means “wealth; treasure.” Prosperity is the reward for righteousness. This is true only in so far as a proverb can be carried in its application, allowing for exceptions. The Greek text for this verse has no reference for wealth, but talks about amassing righteousness.

[15:6]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “will be troubled.” The function of the Niphal participle may be understood in two ways: (1) substantival use: abstract noun meaning “disturbance, calamity” (BDB 747 s.v. עָכַר) or passive noun meaning “thing troubled,” or (2) verbal use: “will be troubled” (HALOT 824 s.v. עכר nif).

[17:7]  ²⁰ tn The word יֶתֶר (yeter) could be rendered either “arrogant” (cf. NIV) or “excellent” (cf. KJV, NASB; NLT “eloquent”) because the basic idea of the word is “remainder; excess,” from the verb “be left over.” It describes “lofty” speech (arrogant or excellent) that is not suited for the fool. The Greek version, using pista, seems to support the idea of “excellent,” and makes a contrast: “words that are excellent do not fit a fool.” The idea of arrogance (NIV) fits if it is taken in the sense of lofty, heightened, or excessive language.

[17:7]  ²¹ tn “a lip of excess.” The term “lip” is a metonymy for what is said.

[17:7]  ²² sn The “fool” proper, described by the term נָבָל (naval), occurs only here, in v. 21, and in 30:22 in the book. It describes someone who is godless and immoral in an overbearing way (e.g., 1 Sam 25:25; Ps 14:1). A fool should restrain his words lest his foolishness spew out.

[17:7]  ²³ tn Heb “speech of falsehood”; NRSV “false speech.”

[17:7]  ²⁴ sn This “ruler” (KJV, NASB “prince”; NAB “noble”) is a gentleman with a code of honor, to whom truthfulness is second nature (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 507). The word describes one as “inclined, generous, noble” (BDB 622 s.v. נָדִיב). It is cognate to the word for the “free will offering.” So for such a noble person lies are not suited. The argument is from the lesser to the greater – if fools shouldn’t speak lofty things, then honorable people should not lie (or, lofty people should not speak base things).

[19:10]  ²⁵ tn The form נָאוֶה (na’veh) is an adjective meaning “seemly; comely” in the older English versions like KJV, ASV, “fitting” in more recent ones (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV). The verbal root נוֹה only occurs in the Pilel stem; but it also has the basic meaning of “being fitting; being comely.” In this sentence the form is a predicate adjective.

[19:10]  ²⁶ sn The verse is simply observing two things that are misfits. It is not concerned with a fool who changes and can handle wealth, or a servant who changes to become a nobleman. It is focused on things that are incongruous.

[19:10]  ²⁷ sn In the ancient world the prince would be trained for his rule (hence, one of the original purposes of Proverbs). A slave ruling over princes would be arrogant and cruel, or foolish and unwise. For other unbearable things, e.g., 11:22; 17:7; 26:1; and 30:21-23.

[24:5]  ²⁸ sn The twenty-first saying seems to be concerned with the need for wisdom in warfare. In line with that, the word used here is גֶּבֶר (gever), “mighty man; hero; warrior.”

[24:5]  ²⁹ tn The expression בַּעוֹז (ba’oz) employs a beth essentiae, meaning he “is strong,” not “in strength.”

[24:6]  ³⁰ sn The point of the saying is that wise counsel is necessary in war. Victory, strategy, and counsel are more important than mere military strength – many great armies have been destroyed because of their unwise leaders. See on this theme 11:14; 20:18; and 21:22.

[26:13]  ³¹ sn The Book of Fools covered vv. 1-12. This marks the beginning of what may be called the Book of Sluggards (vv. 13-16).

[26:13]  ³² tn Heb “in the broad plazas”; NAB, NASB “in the square.” This proverb makes the same point as 22:13, namely, that the sluggard uses absurd excuses to get out of work. D. Kidner notes that in this situation the sluggard has probably convinced himself that he is a realist and not a lazy person (Proverbs [TOTC], 163).

[27:13]  ³³ tn Heb “his garment.”

[27:13]  ³⁴ tn Or “for a strange (= adulterous) woman.” Cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NLT; NIV “a wayward woman.”

[27:13]  ³⁵ tn This proverb is virtually identical to 20:16.

[31:10]  ³⁶ sn The book of Proverbs comes to a close with this poem about the noble wife. A careful reading of the poem will show that it is extolling godly wisdom that is beneficial to the family and the society. Traditionally it has been interpreted as a paradigm for godly women. And while that is valid in part, there is much more here. The poem captures all the themes of wisdom that have been presented in the book and arranges them in this portrait of the ideal woman (Claudia V. Camp, Wisdom and the Feminine in the Book of Proverbs, 92-93). Any careful reading of the passage would have to conclude that if it were merely a paradigm for women what it portrays may well be out of reach – she is a wealthy aristocrat who runs an estate with servants and conducts business affairs of real estate, vineyards, and merchandising, and also takes care of domestic matters and is involved with charity. Moreover, it says nothing about the woman’s personal relationship with her husband, her intellectual and emotional strengths, or her religious activities (E. Jacob, “Sagesse et Alphabet: Pr. 31:10-31,” Hommages à A. Dont-Sommer, 287-95). In general, it appears that the “woman” of Proverbs 31 is a symbol of all that wisdom represents. The poem, then, plays an important part in the personification of wisdom so common in the ancient Near East. But rather than deify Wisdom as the other ANE cultures did, Proverbs simply describes wisdom as a woman. Several features will stand out in the study of this passage. First, it is an alphabetic arrangement of the virtues of wisdom (an acrostic poem). Such an acrostic was a way of organizing the thoughts and making them more memorable (M. H. Lichtenstein, “Chiasm and Symmetry in Proverbs 31,” CBQ 44 [1982]: 202-11). Second, the passage is similar to hymns, but this one extols wisdom. A comparison with Psalm 111 will illustrate the similarities. Third, the passage has similarities with heroic literature. The vocabulary and the expressions often sound more like an ode to a champion than to a domestic scene. Putting these features together, one would conclude that Proverbs 31:10-31 is a hymn to Lady Wisdom, written in the heroic mode. Using this arrangement allows the sage to make all the lessons of wisdom in the book concrete and practical, it provides a polemic against the culture that saw women as merely decorative, and it depicts the greater heroism as moral and domestic rather than only exploits on the battlefield. The poem certainly presents a pattern for women to follow. But it also presents a pattern for men to follow as well, for this is the message of the book of Proverbs in summary.

[31:10]  ³⁷ sn The poem begins with a rhetorical question (a figure of speech known as erotesis). This is intended to establish the point that such a noble wife is rare. As with wisdom in the book of Proverbs, she has to be found.

[31:10]  ³⁸ tn The first word in the Hebrew text (אֵשֶׁת, ’eshet) begins with א (alef), the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

[31:10]  ³⁹ tn Heb “a woman of valor.” This is the same expression used to describe Ruth (e.g., Ruth 3:11). The term חַיִל (khayil) here means “moral worth” (BDB 298 s.v.); cf. KJV “a virtuous woman.” Elsewhere the term is used of physical valor in battle, e.g., “mighty man of valor,” the land-owning aristocrat who could champion the needs of his people in times of peace or war (e.g., Judg 6:12). Here the title indicates that the woman possesses all the virtues, honor, and strength to do the things that the poem will set forth.

[31:10]  ⁴⁰ sn This line expresses that her value (Heb “her price”), like wisdom, is worth more than rubies (e.g., 3:15; 8:11).