Amsal 7:20

7:20 He has taken a bag of money with him; ¹ 

he will not return until ²  the end of the month.” ³ 

Amsal 14:28

14:28 A king’s glory is ⁴  the abundance of people,

but the lack of subjects ⁵  is the ruin ⁶  of a ruler.

[7:20]  ¹ tn Heb “in his hand.”

[7:20]  ² tn Heb “he will come back at.”

[7:20]  ³ tn Heb “new moon.” Judging from the fact that the husband took a purse of money and was staying away until the next full moon, the woman implies that they would be safe in their escapade. If v. 9 and v. 20 are any clue, he could be gone for about two weeks – until the moon is full again.

[14:28]  ⁴ tn The preposition serves as the beth essentiae – the glory is the abundant population, not in it.

[14:28]  ⁵ tn Heb “people.” Cf. NLT “a dwindling nation.”

[14:28]  ⁶ sn The word means “ruin; destruction,” but in this context it could be a metonymy of effect, the cause being an attack by more numerous people that will bring ruin to the ruler. The proverb is purely a practical and secular saying, unlike some of the faith teachings in salvation history passages.