Amsal 1:29

1:29 Because ¹  they hated moral knowledge, ² 

and did not choose to fear the Lord, ³ 

Amsal 2:19

2:19 None who go in to her will return, ⁴ 

nor will they reach the paths of life. ⁵ 

Amsal 5:6

5:6 Lest ⁶  she should make level the path leading to life, ⁷ 

her paths are unstable ⁸  but she does not know it. ⁹ 

Amsal 5:13

5:13 For ¹⁰  I did not obey my teachers ¹¹ 

and I did not heed ¹²  my instructors. ¹³ 

Amsal 10:2

10:2 Treasures gained by wickedness ¹⁴  do not profit,

but righteousness ¹⁵  delivers from mortal danger. ¹⁶ 

Amsal 10:30

10:30 The righteous will never be moved,

but the wicked will not inhabit the land. ¹⁷ 

Amsal 15:12

15:12 The scorner does not love ¹⁸  one who corrects him; ¹⁹ 

he will not go to ²⁰  the wise.

Amsal 17:16

17:16 Of what ²¹  use is money in the hand of a fool, ²² 

since he has no intention ²³  of acquiring wisdom? ²⁴ 

Amsal 19:2

19:2 It is dangerous ²⁵  to have zeal ²⁶  without knowledge,

and the one who acts hastily ²⁷  makes poor choices. ²⁸ 

Amsal 19:10

19:10 Luxury is not appropriate ²⁹  for a fool; ³⁰ 

how much less for a servant to rule over princes! ³¹ 

[1:29]  ¹ tn The causal particle תַּחַת כִּי (takhat ki, “for the reason that”) introduces a second accusation of sin and reason for punishment.

[1:29]  ² tn Heb “knowledge.” The noun דָעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) refers to moral knowledge. See note on 1:7.

[1:29]  ³ tn Heb “the fear of the Lord.” The noun is an objective genitive; the Lord is to be the object of fear. See note on 1:7.

[2:19]  ⁴ tn Heb “all who go in to her will not return.”

[2:19]  ⁵ sn The phrase “reach the paths of life” is a figurative expression for experiencing joy and fullness of blessing (BDB 673 s.v. נָשַׂג 2.a).

[5:6]  ⁶ tn The particle פֶּן (pen) means “lest” (probably from “for the aversion of”). It occurs this once, unusually, preceding the principal clause (BDB 814 s.v.). It means that some action has been taken to avert or avoid what follows. She avoids the path of life, albeit ignorantly.

[5:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “the path of life.” The noun חַיִּים (khayyim, “of life”) functions as a genitive of direction (“leading to”).

[5:6]  ⁸ sn The verb נוּעַ (nua’) means “to quiver; to wave; to waver; to tremble”; cf. KJV “her ways are moveable”; NAB “her paths will ramble”; NLT “She staggers down a crooked trail.” The ways of the adulterous woman are unstable (BDB 631 s.v.).

[5:6]  ⁹ sn The sadder part of the description is that this woman does not know how unstable her life is, or how uneven. However, Thomas suggests that it means, “she is not tranquil.” See D. W. Thomas, “A Note on לא תדע in Proverbs v 6,” JTS 37 (1936): 59.

[5:13]  ¹⁰ tn The vav that introduces this clause functions in an explanatory sense.

[5:13]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew term מוֹרַי (moray) is the nominal form based on the Hiphil plural participle with a suffix, from the root יָרָה (yarah). The verb is “to teach,” the common noun is “instruction, law [torah],” and this participle form is teacher (“my teachers”).

[5:13]  ¹² sn The idioms are vivid: This expression is “incline the ear”; earlier in the first line is “listen to the voice,” meaning “obey.” Such detailed description emphasizes the importance of the material.

[5:13]  ¹³ tn The form is the Piel plural participle of לָמַד (lamad) used substantivally.

[10:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “treasures of wickedness” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “Ill-gotten gains”; TEV “Wealth that you get by dishonesty.”

[10:2]  ¹⁵ sn The term “righteousness” here means honesty (cf. TEV). Wealth has limited value even if gained honestly; but honesty delivers from mortal danger.

[10:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “death.” This could refer to literal death, but it is probably figurative here for mortal danger or ruin.

[10:30]  ¹⁷ sn This proverb concerns the enjoyment of covenant blessings – dwelling in the land of Israel. It is promised to the righteous for an eternal inheritance, and so the wicked cannot expect to settle there – they will be exiled.

[15:12]  ¹⁸ sn This is an understatement, the opposite being intended (a figure called tapeinosis). A scorner rejects any efforts to reform him.

[15:12]  ¹⁹ tn The form הוֹכֵחַ (hokheakh) is a Hiphil infinitive absolute. It could function as the object of the verb (cf. NIV, NRSV) or as a finite verb (cf. KJV, NASB, NLT). The latter has been chosen here because of the prepositional phrase following it, although that is not a conclusive argument.

[15:12]  ²⁰ tc The MT has אֶל (’el, “to [the wise]”), suggesting seeking the advice of the wise. The LXX, however, has “with the wise,” suggesting אֶת (’et).

[17:16]  ²¹ tn Heb “why this?” The term זֶּה (zeh) is an enclitic use of the demonstrative pronoun for emphasis: “why ever” would this happen?

[17:16]  ²² sn The sense seems to be “What good is money” since what the fool needs cannot be bought? The verse is a rhetorical question stating that money would be wasted on a fool.

[17:16]  ²³ tn Heb “there is no heart”; NASB “he has no (+ common TEV) sense”; NLT “has no heart for wisdom.”

[17:16]  ²⁴ sn W. McKane envisions a situation where the fool comes to a sage with a fee in hand, supposing that he can acquire a career as a sage, and this gives rise to the biting comment here: Why does the fool have money in his hands? To buy wisdom when he has no brains? (Proverbs [OTL], 505).

[19:2]  ²⁵ tn Heb “not good.” This is a figure known as tapeinosis (a deliberate understatement to emphasize a worst-case scenario): “it is dangerous!”

[19:2]  ²⁶ tn The interpretation of this line depends largely on the meaning of נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) which has a broad range of meanings: (1) the breathing substance of man, (2) living being, (3) life, (4) person, (5) seat of the appetites, (6) seat of emotions and passions, (7) activities of intellect, emotion and will, (8) moral character, etc. (BDB 659-61 s.v.). In light of the synonymous parallelism, the most likely nuance here is “zeal, passion” (HALOT 713 s.v. 8). NIV takes the word in the sense of “vitality” and “drive” – “it is not good to have zeal without knowledge” (cf. NCV, TEV, and NLT which are all similar).

[19:2]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he who is hasty with his feet.” The verb אוּץ (’uts) means “to be pressed; to press; to make haste.” The verb is followed by the preposition בְּ (bet) which indicates that with which one hastens – his feet. The word “feet” is a synecdoche of part for the whole person – body and mind working together (cf. NLT “a person who moves too quickly”).

[19:2]  ²⁸ tn Heb “misses the goal.” The participle חוֹטֵא (khote’) can be translated “sins” (cf. KJV, ASV), but in this context it refers only to actions without knowledge, which could lead to sin, or could lead simply to making poor choices (cf. NAB “blunders”; NASB “errs”; NCV “might make a mistake”).

[19:2]  sn The basic meaning of the verb is “to miss a goal or the way.” D. Kidner says, “How negative is the achievement of a man who wants tangible and quick rewards” – he will miss the way (Proverbs [TOTC], 132).

[19:10]  ²⁹ tn The form נָאוֶה (na’veh) is an adjective meaning “seemly; comely” in the older English versions like KJV, ASV, “fitting” in more recent ones (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV). The verbal root נוֹה only occurs in the Pilel stem; but it also has the basic meaning of “being fitting; being comely.” In this sentence the form is a predicate adjective.

[19:10]  ³⁰ sn The verse is simply observing two things that are misfits. It is not concerned with a fool who changes and can handle wealth, or a servant who changes to become a nobleman. It is focused on things that are incongruous.

[19:10]  ³¹ sn In the ancient world the prince would be trained for his rule (hence, one of the original purposes of Proverbs). A slave ruling over princes would be arrogant and cruel, or foolish and unwise. For other unbearable things, e.g., 11:22; 17:7; 26:1; and 30:21-23.