Amsal 16:20

16:20 The one who deals wisely ¹  in a matter ²  will find success, ³ 

and blessed ⁴  is the one who trusts in the Lord. ⁵ 

Amsal 28:26

28:26 The one who trusts in his own heart ⁶  is a fool,

but the one who walks in wisdom ⁷  will escape. ⁸ 

[16:20]  ¹ tn Heb “he who is prudent” or “he who deals wisely” (cf. KJV). The proverb seems to be referring to wise business concerns and the reward for the righteous. One who deals wisely in a matter will find good results. R. N. Whybray sees a contrast here: “The shrewd man of business will succeed well, but the happy man is he who trusts the Lord” (Proverbs [CBC], 92). Synonymous parallelism is more appropriate.

[16:20]  ² tn Or “he who gives heed to a word,” that is, “who listens to instruction” (cf. NIV, NLT).

[16:20]  ³ tn Heb “good” (so KJV, ASV).

[16:20]  ⁴ tn Although traditionally this word is translated “happy” (cf. KJV, ASV, NAB, NRSV, NLT), such a translation can be misleading because the word means far more than that. It describes the heavenly bliss that comes from knowing one is right with God and following God’s precepts. The “blessed” could be at odds with the world (Ps 1:1-3).

[16:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “and the one who trusts in the Lord – blessed is he.”

[28:26]  ⁶ sn The idea of “trusting in one’s own heart” is a way of describing one who is self-reliant. C. H. Toy says it means to follow the untrained suggestions of the mind or to rely on one’s own mental resources (Proverbs [ICC], 505). It is arrogant to take no counsel but to rely only on one’s own intelligence.

[28:26]  ⁷ sn The idiom of “walking in wisdom” means to live life according to the acquired skill and knowledge passed on from the sages. It is the wisdom from above that the book of Proverbs presents, not the undisciplined and uninformed wit and wisdom from below.

[28:26]  ⁸ tn The verb form יִמָּלֵט (yimmalet) is the Niphal imperfect; the form means “to escape.” In this context one would conclude that it means “to escape from trouble,” because the one who lives in this life by wisdom will escape trouble, and the one who trusts in himself will not.