Amsal 9:9

9:9 Give instruction ¹  to a wise person, ²  and he will become wiser still;

teach ³  a righteous person and he will add to his ⁴  learning.

Amsal 25:11-12

25:11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver, ⁵ 

so is a word skillfully spoken. ⁶ 

25:12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, ⁷ 

so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens. ⁸ 

[9:9]  ¹ tn The noun “instruction” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation.

[9:9]  ² sn The parallelism shows what Proverbs will repeatedly stress, that the wise person is the righteous person.

[9:9]  ³ tn The Hiphil verb normally means “to cause to know, make known”; but here the context suggests “to teach” (so many English versions).

[9:9]  ⁴ tn The term “his” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for the sake of smoothness and clarity.

[25:11]  ⁵ sn The verse uses emblematic parallelism, stating the simile in the first part and the point in the second. The meaning of the simile is not entirely clear, but it does speak of beauty, value, and artistry. The “apples of gold” (possibly citrons, quinces, oranges, or apricots) may refer to carvings of fruit in gold on columns.

[25:11]  ⁶ tn Heb “on its wheels.” This expression means “aptly, fittingly.” The point is obviously about the immense value and memorable beauty of words used skillfully (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 148). Noting the meaning of the term and the dual form of the word, W. McKane suggests that the expression is metaphorical for the balancing halves of a Hebrew parallel wisdom saying: “The stichos is a wheel, and the sentence consisting of two wheels is a ‘well-turned’ expression” (Proverbs [OTL], 584). The line then would be describing a balanced, well-turned saying, a proverb; it is skillfully constructed, beautifully written, and of lasting value.

[25:12]  ⁷ sn This saying is another example of emblematic parallelism; the first half is the simile, and the second half makes the point from it: A wise rebuke that is properly received is of lasting value. The rebuke in the ear of an obedient student is like ornaments of fine jewelry.

[25:12]  ⁸ tn The “ear of the listener” refers to the obedient disciple, the one who complies with the reproof he hears. Cf. KJV, ASV, NAB “an obedient ear.”