Mazmur 112:10

112:10 When the wicked ¹  see this, they will worry;

they will grind their teeth in frustration ²  and melt away;

the desire of the wicked will perish. ³ 

Mazmur 146:9

146:9 The Lord protects those residing outside their native land;

he lifts up the fatherless and the widow, ⁴ 

but he opposes the wicked. ⁵ 

Amsal 14:12

14:12 There is a way that seems right to a person, ⁶ 

but its end is the way that leads to death. ⁷ 

Amsal 15:9

15:9 The Lord abhors ⁸  the way of the wicked,

but he loves those ⁹  who pursue ¹⁰  righteousness.

Matius 7:13

The Narrow Gate

7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate, because the gate is wide and the way is spacious that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it.

Matius 7:2

7:2 For by the standard you judge you will be judged, and the measure you use will be the measure you receive. ¹¹ 

Pengkhotbah 2:12

Wisdom is Better than Folly

2:12 Next, I decided to consider ¹²  wisdom, as well as foolish behavior and ideas. ¹³ 

For what more can the king’s successor do than what the king ¹⁴  has already done?

[112:10]  ¹ tn The Hebrew text uses the singular; the representative wicked individual is in view as typifying the group (note the use of the plural form in v. 10).

[112:10]  ² tn Heb “his teeth he will gnash.” In Pss 35:16 and 37:12 this action is associated with a vicious attack.

[112:10]  ³ tn This could mean that the desires of the wicked will go unfulfilled. Another possibility is that “desire” refers by metonymy to the object desired and acquired. In this case the point is that the wicked will lose what they desired so badly and acquired by evil means (see Ps 10:3).

[146:9]  ⁴ sn God is depicted here as a just ruler. In the ancient Near Eastern world a king was responsible for promoting justice, including caring for the weak and vulnerable, epitomized by resident aliens, the fatherless, and widows.

[146:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “he makes the way of the wicked twisted.” The “way of the wicked” probably refers to their course of life (see Prov 4:19; Jer 12:1). God makes their path tortuous in the sense that he makes them pay the harmful consequences of their actions.

[14:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “which is straight before a man.”

[14:12]  sn The proverb recalls the ways of the adulterous woman in chapters 1-9, and so the translation of “man” is retained. The first line does not say that the “way” that seems right is “vice,” but the second line clarifies that. The individual can rationalize all he wants, but the result is still the same. The proverb warns that any evil activity can take any number of ways (plural) to destruction.

[14:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “the ways of death” (so KJV, ASV). This construct phrase features a genitive of destiny: “ways that lead to [or, end in] death.” Here death means ruin (e.g., Prov 7:27; 16:25). The LXX adds “Hades,” but the verse seems to be concerned with events of this life.

[15:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “an abomination of the Lord.” The term יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”) functions as a subjective genitive: “the Lord abhors.”

[15:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “the one who” (so NRSV).

[15:9]  ¹⁰ sn God hates the way of the wicked, that is, their lifestyle and things they do. God loves those who pursue righteousness, the Piel verb signifying a persistent pursuit. W. G. Plaut says, “He who loves God will be moved to an active, persistent, and even dangerous search for justice” (Proverbs, 170).

[7:2]  ¹¹ tn Grk “by [the measure] with which you measure it will be measured to you.”

[2:12]  ¹² tn Heb “and I turned to see.”

[2:12]  ¹³ sn See 1:17 for the same expression. Throughout 2:1-11, Qoheleth evaluated the merits of merrymaking (2:1-3), accomplishing grand things (2:4-6), amassing great wealth (2:7-8), and secular acquisitions and accomplishments (2:9-10). Now, he reflects on the benefit in life in living wisely and not giving oneself over to frivolous self-indulgence.

[2:12]  ¹⁴ tc The Hebrew text reads עָשׂוּהוּ (’asuhu, “they have done it”; Qal perfect 3rd person masculine plural from עָשַׂה [’asah] + 3rd person masculine singular suffix). However, many medieval Hebrew mss read עָשָׂהוּ (’asahu, “he has done”; Qal perfect 3rd person masculine singular from עָשַׂה), reflected in the LXX and Syriac. The error was caused by dittography (ו, vav, written twice) or by orthographic confusion between ו and ה (hey) in הוו (confused as והוו) at the end of 2:12 and beginning of 2:13. The 3rd person masculine singular referent of עָשׂוּהוּ “what he has done” is the king, that is, Qoheleth himself. The referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.