Amsal 11:12

11:12 The one who denounces ¹  his neighbor lacks wisdom, ² 

but the one who has discernment ³  keeps silent. ⁴ 

Amsal 9:4

9:4 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,”

she says ⁵  to those ⁶  who lack understanding. ⁷ 

Amsal 10:13

10:13 Wisdom is found in the words ⁸  of the discerning person, ⁹ 

but the one who lacks wisdom ¹⁰  will be disciplined. ¹¹ 

Amsal 15:21

15:21 Folly is a joy to one who lacks sense, ¹² 

but one who has understanding ¹³  follows an upright course. ¹⁴ 

Amsal 9:16

9:16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here,”

she says to those who lack understanding. ¹⁵ 

Amsal 10:21

10:21 The teaching ¹⁶  of the righteous feeds ¹⁷  many,

but fools die ¹⁸  for lack of wisdom. ¹⁹ 

[11:12]  ¹ tn Heb “despises” (so NASB) or “belittles” (so NRSV). The participle בָּז (baz, from בּוּז, buz) means “to despise; to show contempt for” someone. It reflects an attitude of pride and judgmentalism. In view of the parallel line, in this situation it would reflect perhaps some public denunciation of another person.

[11:12]  sn According to Proverbs (and the Bible as a whole) how one treats a neighbor is an important part of righteousness. One was expected to be a good neighbor, and to protect and safeguard the life and reputation of a neighbor.

[11:12]  ² tn Heb “heart.” The noun לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a metonymy of association for wisdom, since the heart is often associated with knowledge and wisdom (BDB 524 s.v. 3.a).

[11:12]  ³ tn Heb “a man of discernment.”

[11:12]  ⁴ sn The verb translated “keeps silence” (יַחֲרִישׁ, yakharish) means “holds his peace.” Rather than publicly denouncing another person’s mistake or folly, a wise person will keep quiet about it (e.g., 1 Sam 10:27). A discerning person realizes that the neighbor may become an opponent and someday retaliate.

[9:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “lacking of heart she says to him.” The pronominal suffix is a resumptive pronoun, meaning, “she says to the lacking of heart.”

[9:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “him.”

[9:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “heart”; cf. NIV “to those who lack judgment.”

[10:13]  ⁸ tn Heb “on the lips” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause for the words spoken by the lips.

[10:13]  ⁹ tn Heb “the one who is discerning.” The term “discerning” describes someone who is critically perceptive and has understanding. He can be relied on to say things that are wise.

[10:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the one lacking of heart.” The noun לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a genitive of specification: “lacking in respect to heart.” The term לֵב functions in a figurative sense (metonymy of association) for wisdom because the heart is viewed as the seat of common sense (BDB 524 s.v. 3.a).

[10:13]  ¹¹ tn Heb “a rod is for the back of the one lacking heart.” The term שֵׁבֶט (shevet, “rod”) functions figuratively: synecdoche of specific (= rod of discipline) for general (= discipline in general). The term גֵו (gev, “back”) is a synecdoche of part (= back) for the whole (= person as a whole). The back is emphasized because it was the object of physical corporeal discipline. This proverb is not limited in its application to physical corporeal punishment because the consequences of foolishness may come in many forms, physical corporeal discipline being only one form.

[15:21]  ¹² tn The Hebrew text reads לַחֲסַר־לֵב (lakhasar-lev, “to one who lacks heart”). The Hebrew term “heart” represents the mind, the place where proper decisions are made (cf. NIV “judgment”). The one who has not developed this ability to make proper choices finds great delight in folly.

[15:21]  ¹³ tn Heb “a man of understanding” (so KJV, NIV); NLT “a sensible person.”

[15:21]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew construction is יְיַשֶּׁר־לָכֶת (yÿyasher-lakhet, “makes straight [to] go”). This is a verbal hendiadys, in which the first verb, the Piel imperfect, becomes adverbial, and the second form, the infinitive construct of הָלַךְ, halakh, becomes the main verb: “goes straight ahead” (cf. NRSV).

[9:16]  ¹⁵ tn This expression is almost identical to v. 4, with the exception of the addition of conjunctions in the second colon: “and the lacking of understanding and she says to him.” The parallel is deliberate, of course, showing the competing appeals for those passing by.

[10:21]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said (or in this case taught).

[10:21]  ¹⁷ tn The verb רָעָה (ra’ah) means “to feed” or “to shepherd” (e.g., Gen 48:15). What they say will meet the needs of many.

[10:21]  ¹⁸ tn In what sense the fool “dies” is unclear. Fools ruin their lives and the lives of others by their lack of discipline and knowledge. The contrast is between enhancing life and ruining life.

[10:21]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “heart.” The term לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a metonymy of association for wisdom and knowledge (BDB 524 s.v. 3.a).