Amsal 12:3

12:3 No one ¹  can be established ²  through wickedness,

but a righteous root ³  cannot be moved.

Amsal 12:7

12:7 The wicked are overthrown ⁴  and perish, ⁵ 

but the righteous household ⁶  will stand.

Matius 7:24-27

Hearing and Doing

7:24 “Everyone ⁷  who hears these words of mine and does them is like ⁸  a wise man ⁹  who built his house on rock. 7:25 The rain fell, the flood ¹⁰  came, and the winds beat against that house, but it did not collapse because it had been founded on rock. 7:26 Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 7:27 The rain fell, the flood came, and the winds beat against that house, and it collapsed; it was utterly destroyed!” ¹¹ 

[12:3]  ¹ tn Heb “a man cannot be.”

[12:3]  ² tn The Niphal imperfect of כּוּן (cun, “to be established”) refers to finding permanent “security” (so NRSV, TEV, CEV) before God. Only righteousness can do that.

[12:3]  ³ tn Heb “a root of righteousness.” The genitive צַדִּיקִים (tsadiqim, “righteousness”) functions as an attributive adjective. The figure “root” (שֹׁרֶשׁ, shoresh) stresses the security of the righteous; they are firmly planted and cannot be uprooted (cf. NLT “the godly have deep roots”). The righteous are often compared to a tree (e.g., 11:30; Ps 1:3; 92:13).

[12:7]  ⁴ sn This proverb is about the stability of the righteous in times of trouble. The term “overthrown” might allude to Gen 19:21.

[12:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “and they are not.”

[12:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “the house of the righteous.” The genitive צַדִּיקִים (tsadiqim) functions as an attributive adjective: “righteous house.” The noun בֵּית (bet, “house”) functions as a synecdoche of container (= house) for the contents (= family, household; perhaps household possessions). Cf. NCV “a good person’s family”; NLT “the children of the godly.”

[7:24]  ⁷ tn Grk “Therefore everyone.” Here οὖν (oun) has not been translated.

[7:24]  ⁸ tn Grk “will be like.” The same phrase occurs in v. 26.

[7:24]  ⁹ tn Here and in v. 26 the Greek text reads ἀνήρ (anhr), while the parallel account in Luke 6:47-49 uses ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") in vv. 48 and 49.

[7:25]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “the rivers.”

[7:27]  ¹¹ tn Grk “and great was its fall.”