Amsal 5:20

5:20 But why should you be captivated, ¹  my son, by an adulteress,

and embrace the bosom of a different woman? ² 

Amsal 15:24

15:24 The path of life is upward ³  for the wise person, ⁴ 

to ⁵  keep him from going downward to Sheol. ⁶ 

Amsal 19:24

19:24 The sluggard plunges ⁷  his hand in the dish,

and he will not even bring it back to his mouth! ⁸ 

Amsal 21:18

21:18 The wicked become ⁹  a ransom ¹⁰  for the righteous,

and the faithless ¹¹  are taken ¹²  in the place of the upright.

Amsal 26:15

26:15 The sluggard plunges ¹³  his hand in the dish;

he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. ¹⁴ 

Amsal 30:2

30:2 Surely ¹⁵  I am more brutish ¹⁶  than any other human being, ¹⁷ 

and I do not have human understanding; ¹⁸ 

Amsal 30:29

30:29 There are three things that are magnificent ¹⁹  in their step,

four things that move about magnificently: ²⁰ 

[5:20]  ¹ tn In the interrogative clause the imperfect has a deliberative nuance.

[5:20]  ² tn Heb “foreigner” (so ASV, NASB), but this does not mean that the woman is non-Israelite. This term describes a woman who is outside the moral boundaries of the covenant community – she is another man’s wife, but since she acts with moral abandonment she is called “foreign.”

[15:24]  ³ tn There is disagreement over the meaning of the term translated “upward.” The verse is usually taken to mean that “upward” is a reference to physical life and well-being (cf. NCV), and “going down to Sheol” is a reference to physical death, that is, the grave, because the concept of immortality is said not to appear in the book of Proverbs. The proverb then would mean that the wise live long and healthy lives. But W. McKane argues (correctly) that “upwards” in contrast to Sheol, does not fit the ways of describing the worldly pattern of conduct and that it is only intelligible if taken as a reference to immortality (Proverbs [OTL], 480). The translations “upwards” and “downwards” are not found in the LXX. This has led some commentators to speculate that these terms were not found in the original, but were added later, after the idea of immortality became prominent. However, this is mere speculation.

[15:24]  ⁴ tn Heb “to the wise [man],” because the form is masculine.

[15:24]  ⁵ tn The term לְמַעַן (lema’an, “in order to”) introduces a purpose clause; the path leads upward in order to turn the wise away from Sheol.

[15:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “to turn from Sheol downward”; cf. NAB “the nether world below.”

[19:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “buries” (so many English versions); KJV “hideth”; NAB “loses.”

[19:24]  ⁸ sn This humorous portrayal is an exaggeration; but the point is that laziness can overcome hunger. It would have a wider application for anyone who would start a project and then lack the interest or energy to finish it (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 111). Ibn Ezra proposes that the dish was empty, because the sluggard was too lazy to provide for himself.

[21:18]  ⁹ tn The term “become” is supplied in the translation.

[21:18]  ¹⁰ sn The Hebrew word translated “ransom” (כֹּפֶר, kofer) normally refers to the price paid to free a prisoner. R. N. Whybray (Proverbs [CBC], 121) gives options for the meaning of the verse: (1) If it means that the wicked obtain good things that should go to the righteous, it is then a despairing plea for justice (which would be unusual in the book of Proverbs); but if (2) it is taken to mean that the wicked suffers the evil he has prepared for the righteous, then it harmonizes with Proverbs elsewhere (e.g., 11:8). The ideal this proverb presents – and the future reality – is that in calamity the righteous escape and the wicked suffer in their place (e.g., Haman in the book of Esther).

[21:18]  ¹¹ tn Or “treacherous” (so ASV, NASB, NLT); NIV “the unfaithful.”

[21:18]  ¹² tn The phrase “are taken” does not appear in the Hebrew but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[26:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “buries” (so many English versions); KJV “hideth”; NAB “loses.”

[26:15]  ¹⁴ sn The proverb is stating that the sluggard is too lazy to eat; this is essentially the same point made in 19:24 (see the note there).

[30:2]  ¹⁵ tn The particle כִּי (ki) functions in an asseverative sense, “surely; indeed; truly” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §449).

[30:2]  ¹⁶ tn The noun בַּעַר (ba’ar) means “brutishness”; here it functions as a predicate adjective. It is followed by מֵאִישׁ (me’ish) expressing comparative degree: “more than a man” or “more than any man,” with “man” used in a generic sense. He is saying that he has fallen beneath the level of mankind. Cf. NRSV “I am too stupid to be human.”

[30:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “than man.” The verse is using hyperbole; this individual feels as if he has no intelligence at all, that he is more brutish than any other human. Of course this is not true, or he would not be able to speculate on the God of the universe at all.

[30:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “the understanding of a man,” with “man” used attributively here.

[30:29]  ¹⁹ tn The form מֵיטִיבֵי (metibe) is the Hiphil participle, plural construct. It has the idea of “doing good [in] their step.” They move about well, i.e., magnificently. The genitive would be a genitive of specification.

[30:29]  ²⁰ tn The construction uses the Hiphil participle again (as in the previous line) followed by the infinitive construct of הָלַךְ (halakh). This forms a verbal hendiadys, the infinitive becoming the main verb and the participle before it the adverb.