Amsal 12:22

12:22 The Lord ¹  abhors a person who lies, ² 

but those who deal truthfully ³  are his delight. ⁴ 

Amsal 14:5

14:5 A truthful witness ⁵  does not lie,

but a false witness ⁶  breathes out lies. ⁷ 

Amsal 26:28

26:28 A lying tongue ⁸  hates those crushed by it,

and a flattering mouth works ruin. ⁹ 

[12:22]  ¹ tn Heb “an abomination of the Lord.” The term יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”) is a subjective genitive.

[12:22]  ² tn Heb “lips of lying.” The genitive שָׁקֶר (shaqer, “lying”) functions as an attributive genitive: “lying lips.” The term “lips” functions as a synecdoche of part (= lips) for the whole (= person): “a liar.”

[12:22]  ³ tn Heb “but doers of truthfulness.” The term “truthfulness” is an objective genitive, meaning: “those who practice truth” or “those who act in good faith.” Their words and works are reliable.

[12:22]  ⁴ sn The contrast between “delight/pleasure” and “abomination” is emphatic. What pleases the Lord is acting truthfully or faithfully.

[14:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “a witness of faithfulness.” The genitive functions in an attributive sense: “faithful witness” (so KJV, NRSV); TEV “reliable witness.”

[14:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “a witness of falsehood.” The genitive functions in an attributive sense: “false witness.”

[14:5]  ⁷ sn This saying addresses the problem of legal testimony: A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness does lie – naturally. The first colon uses the verb כָּזַב (kazav, “to lie”) and the second colon uses the noun כָּזָב (kazav, “lie; falsehood”).

[26:28]  ⁸ tn Heb “the tongue of deception.” The subject matter of this proverb is deceptive speech. The “tongue of deception” (using a metonymy of cause with an attributive genitive) means that what is said is false. Likewise the “smooth mouth” means that what is said is smooth, flattering.

[26:28]  ⁹ sn The verse makes it clear that only pain and ruin can come from deception. The statement that the lying tongue “hates those crushed by it” suggests that the sentiments of hatred help the deceiver justify what he says about people. The ruin that he brings is probably on other people, but it could also be taken to include his own ruin.