Amsal 1:18

1:18 but these men lie in wait for their own blood, ¹ 

they ambush their own lives! ² 

Amsal 6:14-15

6:14 he plots evil with perverse thoughts ³  in his heart,

he spreads contention ⁴  at all times.

6:15 Therefore, his disaster will come suddenly;

in an instant ⁵  he will be broken, and there will be no remedy.

Amsal 10:14

10:14 Those who are wise ⁶  store up ⁷  knowledge,

but foolish speech ⁸  leads to imminent ⁹  destruction.

Amsal 13:6

13:6 Righteousness ¹⁰  guards the one who lives with integrity, ¹¹ 

but wickedness ¹²  overthrows the sinner.

Amsal 13:15

13:15 Keen insight ¹³  wins ¹⁴  favor,

but the conduct ¹⁵  of the unfaithful is harsh. ¹⁶ 

Amsal 15:15

15:15 All the days ¹⁷  of the afflicted ¹⁸  are bad, ¹⁹ 

but one with ²⁰  a cheerful heart has a continual feast. ²¹ 

Amsal 16:27-28

16:27 A wicked scoundrel ²²  digs up ²³  evil,

and his slander ²⁴  is like a scorching fire. ²⁵ 

16:28 A perverse person ²⁶  spreads dissension,

and a gossip separates the closest friends. ²⁷ 

Amsal 17:4

17:4 One who acts wickedly ²⁸  pays attention to evil counsel; ²⁹ 

a liar listens ³⁰  to a malicious tongue. ³¹ 

Amsal 19:23

19:23 Fearing the Lord ³²  leads ³³  to life, ³⁴ 

and one who does so will live ³⁵  satisfied; he will not be afflicted ³⁶  by calamity.

Amsal 19:28

19:28 A crooked witness ³⁷  scorns justice,

and the mouth of the wicked devours ³⁸  iniquity.

Amsal 20:2

20:2 The king’s terrifying anger ³⁹  is like the roar of a lion;

whoever provokes him ⁴⁰  sins against himself. ⁴¹ 

Amsal 21:12

21:12 The Righteous One ⁴²  considers ⁴³  the house ⁴⁴  of the wicked;

he overthrows the wicked to their ruin. ⁴⁵ 

[1:18]  ¹ sn They think that they are going to shed innocent blood, but in their blindness they do not realize that it is their own blood they shed. Their greed will lead to their destruction. This is an example of ironic poetic justice. They do not intend to destroy themselves; but this is what they accomplish.

[1:18]  ² tn Heb “their own souls.” The term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”) is used as a metonymy (= soul) of association (= life). The noun נֶפֶשׁ often refers to physical “life” (Exod 21:23; Num 17:3; Judg 5:18; Prov 12:10; BDB 659 s.v. 3.c).

[6:14]  ³ tn The noun is an adverbial accusative of manner, explaining the circumstances that inform his evil plans.

[6:14]  ⁴ tn The word “contention” is from the root דִּין (din); the noun means “strife, contention, quarrel.” The normal plural form is represented by the Qere, and the contracted form by the Kethib.

[6:15]  ⁵ tn This word is a substantive that is used here as an adverbial accusative – with suddenness, at an instant.

[10:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “wise men.”

[10:14]  ⁷ sn The verb צָפַן (tsafan, “to store up; to treasure”) may mean (1) the wise acquire and do not lose wisdom (cf. NAB, NIV, TEV), or (2) they do not tell all that they know (cf. NCV), that is, they treasure it up for a time when they will need it. The fool, by contrast, talks without thinking.

[10:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “the mouth of foolishness”; cf. NRSV, NLT “the babbling of a fool.” The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for speech. The genitive אֶוִיל (’evil, “foolishness”) functions as an attributive adjective: “a foolish mouth” = foolish speech.

[10:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “near destruction.” The words of the fool that are uttered without wise forethought may invite imminent ruin (e.g., James 3:13-18). See also Ptah-hotep and Amenemope in ANET 414 and 423.

[13:6]  ¹⁰ sn Righteousness refers to that which conforms to law and order. One who behaves with integrity will be safe from consequences of sin.

[13:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “blameless of way.” The term דָּרֶךְ (darekh) is a genitive of specification: “blameless in respect to his way.” This means living above reproach in their course of life. Cf. NASB “whose way is blameless”; NAB “who walks honestly.”

[13:6]  ¹² sn Righteousness and wickedness are personified in this proverb to make the point of security and insecurity for the two courses of life.

[13:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “good insight.” The expression שֵׂכֶל־טוֹב (sekhel-tov) describes a person who has good sense, sound judgment, or wise opinions (BDB 968 s.v. שֵׂכֶל).

[13:15]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “gives”; NASB “produces.”

[13:15]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “way,” frequently for conduct, behavior, or lifestyle.

[13:15]  ¹⁶ tc The MT reads אֵיתָן (’etan, “enduring; permanent; perennial”; BDB 450 s.v. יתן 1). Several scholars suggest that the text here is corrupt and the reading should be “harsh; hard; firm; rugged” (BDB 450 s.v. 2). G. R. Driver suggested that לֹא (lo’, “not”) was dropped before the word by haplography and so the meaning would have been not “enduring” but “passing away” (“Problems in the Hebrew Text of Proverbs,” Bib 32 [1951]: 181). The LXX, Syriac, and Tg. Prov 13:15 reflect a Hebrew Vorlage of תֹאבֵד (to’ved) “are destroyed.” The BHS editors suggest emending the text to אֵידָם (’edam) “their calamity” from אֵיד (’ed, “calamity, distress”; BDB 15 s.v.): “the way of the faithless [leads to] their calamity.” The idea of “harsh” or “hard” could also be drawn from a meaning of the word in the MT meaning “firm,” that is, enduring.

[15:15]  ¹⁷ sn The “days” represent what happens on those days (metonymy of subject).

[15:15]  ¹⁸ tn The contrast is between the “afflicted” and the “good of heart” (a genitive of specification, “cheerful/healthy heart/spirit/attitude”).

[15:15]  sn The parallelism suggests that the afflicted is one afflicted within his spirit, for the proverb is promoting a healthy frame of mind.

[15:15]  ¹⁹ tn Or “evil”; or “catastrophic.”

[15:15]  ²⁰ tn “one with” is supplied.

[15:15]  ²¹ sn The image of a continual feast signifies the enjoyment of what life offers (cf. TEV “happy people…enjoy life”). The figure is a hypocatastasis; among its several implications are joy, fulfillment, abundance, pleasure.

[16:27]  ²² tn Heb “a man of belial.” This phrase means “wicked scoundrel.” Some translate “worthless” (so ASV, NASB, CEV), but the phrase includes deep depravity and wickedness (C. H. Toy, Proverbs [ICC], 125-26).

[16:27]  ²³ tn Heb “digs up” (so NASB). The “wicked scoundrel” finds out about evil and brings it to the surface (Prov 26:27; Jer 18:20). What he digs up he spreads by speech.

[16:27]  ²⁴ tn Heb “on his lips” (so NAB) The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause. To say that “evil” is on his lips means that he talks about the evil he has dug up.

[16:27]  ²⁵ sn The simile stresses the devastating way that slander hurts people. W. McKane says that this one “digs for scandal and…propagates it with words which are ablaze with misanthropy” (Proverbs [OTL], 494).

[16:28]  ²⁶ tn Heb “a man of perverse things”; NAB “an intriguer.” This refers to someone who destroys lives. The parallelism suggests that he is a “slanderer” or “gossip” – one who whispers and murmurs (18:8; 26:20, 22).

[16:28]  ²⁷ tn The term אַלּוּף (’aluf) refers to a “friend” or “an intimate associate.” The word has other possible translations, including “tame” or “docile” when used of animals. Rashi, a Jewish scholar who lived a.d. 1040-1105, took it in the later sense of “prince,” saying that such speech alienates the Prince, namely God. But that is a forced interpretation of the line.

[17:4]  ²⁸ tn The Hiphil participle מֵרַע (mera’) indicates one who is a doer of evil. The line affirms that a person of this nature will eagerly listen to evil talk – it is part of his nature.

[17:4]  ²⁹ tn Heb “to the lip of evil”; ASV, NAB, NASB, NRSV “wicked lips.” The term “lip” is a metonymy of cause for speech (what is said); the term “evil” is an attributive genitive. The same will be true in the parallel line where the expression “to the tongue of destruction” (NASB “a destructive tongue”) means things that are said that destroy others.

[17:4]  ³⁰ tc The verb מֵזִין (mezin) is from זִין (zir, “to feed”); therefore, the suggested emendation is to take it from אֹזֶן (’ozen, “ear”) as a denominative verb, “to give ear; to listen to.” Two Hebrew mss have this variant.

[17:4]  ³¹ sn Wicked, self-serving people find destructive speech appealing. They should be rebuked and not tolerated (Lev 19:17).

[19:23]  ³² tn Heb “the fear of the Lord.” This expression features an objective genitive: “fearing the Lord.”

[19:23]  ³³ tn The term “leads” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and style.

[19:23]  ³⁴ tn Here “life” is probably a metonymy of subject for “blessings and prosperity in life.” The plural form often covers a person’s “lifetime.”

[19:23]  ³⁵ tn The subject of this verb is probably the one who fears the Lord and enjoys life. So the proverb uses synthetic parallelism; the second half tells what this life is like – it is an abiding contentment that is not threatened by calamity (cf. NCV “unbothered by trouble”).

[19:23]  ³⁶ tn Heb “he will not be visited” (so KJV, ASV). The verb פָּקַד (paqad) is often translated “visit.” It describes intervention that will change the destiny. If God “visits” it means he intervenes to bless or to curse. To be “visited by trouble” means that calamity will interfere with the course of life and change the direction or the destiny. Therefore this is not referring to a minor trouble that one might briefly experience. A life in the Lord cannot be disrupted by such major catastrophes that would alter one’s destiny.

[19:28]  ³⁷ tn Heb “a witness who is worthless and wicked” (עֵד בְּלִיַּעַל, ’ed beliyya’al). Cf. KJV “an ungodly witness”; NAB “an unprincipled witness”; NCV “an evil witness”; NASB “a rascally witness.”

[19:28]  sn These are crooked or corrupt witnesses who willfully distort the facts and make a mockery of the whole legal process.

[19:28]  ³⁸ tn The parallel line says the mouth of the wicked “gulps down” or “swallows” (יְבַלַּע, yÿvala’) iniquity. The verb does not seem to fit the line (or the proverb) very well. Some have emended the text to יַבִּיעַ (yavia’, “gushes”) as in 15:28 (cf. NAB “pours out”). Driver followed an Arabic balaga to get “enunciates,” which works well with the idea of a false witness (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 529). As it stands, however, the line indicates that in what he says the wicked person accepts evil – and that could describe a false witness.

[20:2]  ³⁹ tn Heb “the terror of a king” (so ASV, NASB); The term “terror” is a metonymy of effect for cause: the anger of a king that causes terror among the people. The term “king” functions as a possessive genitive: “a king’s anger” (cf. NIV “A king’s wrath”; NLT “The king’s fury”).

[20:2]  ⁴⁰ tn The verb מִתְעַבְּרוֹ (mit’abbÿro) is problematic; in the MT the form is the Hitpael participle with a pronominal suffix, which is unusual, for the direct object of this verb usually takes a preposition first: “is angry with.” The LXX rendered it “angers [or, irritates].”

[20:2]  ⁴¹ sn The expression “sins against himself” has been taken by some to mean “forfeits his life” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) or “endangers his life” (cf. NCV, NLT). That may be the implication of getting oneself in trouble with an angry king (cf. TEV “making him angry is suicide”).

[21:12]  ⁴² tn In the book of Proverbs, the Hebrew term צַּדִּיק (ysadiq) normally refers to a human being, and that is a possible translation here (cf. KJV, ASV, NAB), although it would have to refer to a righteous person who was a judge or a ruler with the right to destroy the wicked. Many commentators and English versions simply interpret this as a reference to God (cf. NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT).

[21:12]  ⁴³ tn The form מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is now used with the meaning “to consider; to give attention to; to ponder.” It is the careful scrutiny that is given to the household of the wicked before judgment is poured out on them.

[21:12]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “house.” This term probably means “household” here – the family. One way to read the line is that the righteous judge (human or divine) takes into consideration the wicked person’s family before judging the wicked person. The other – and more plausible – interpretation is that the judge considers the household of the wicked and then on the basis of what was observed judges them.

[21:12]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “to evil” (i.e., catastrophe); cf. NLT “to disaster.”