Amsal 2:10

2:10 For wisdom will enter your heart, ¹ 

and moral knowledge ²  will be attractive ³  to you. ⁴ 

Amsal 3:15-16

3:15 She is more precious than rubies,

and none of the things ⁵  you desire ⁶  can compare ⁷  with her. ⁸ 

3:16 Long life ⁹  is in her right hand;

in her left hand are riches and honor.

Amsal 9:11

9:11 For because ¹⁰  of me your days will be many,

and years will be added ¹¹  to your life.

Amsal 10:31

10:31 The speech ¹²  of the righteous bears the fruit of wisdom, ¹³ 

but the one who speaks perversion ¹⁴  will be destroyed. ¹⁵ 

Amsal 19:20

19:20 Listen to advice ¹⁶  and receive discipline,

that ¹⁷  you may become wise ¹⁸  by the end of your life. ¹⁹ 

Amsal 31:26

31:26 She opens her mouth ²⁰  with wisdom,

and loving instruction ²¹  is on her tongue.

[2:10]  ¹ tn The noun לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a metonymy of association for “mind” and “thoughts” (BDB 524 s.v. 3). It represents the center of the inner life where the volition and emotions join to bring about actions. It is used here in parallelism with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”), for which see note.

[2:10]  ² tn Heb “knowledge.” For the noun דַּעַת (da’at), see the note on 1:7.

[2:10]  ³ tn Heb “pleasant.” The verb יִנְעָם (yin’am, “to be pleasant”) describes what is attractive. It is used of being physically attracted to one’s lover (Song 7:7) or to a close friendship (2 Sam 1:26). Here wisdom becomes attractive to the righteous, that is, the righteous desires to acquire it.

[2:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “your soul.” The term נַפְשְׁךָ (nafshÿkha, “your soul”) functions as a synecdoche of part (= soul) for the whole person (= you); see BDB 660 s.v. 4.a.2. It also might function as a metonymy of association for emotions and passions (BDB 660 s.v. 6) or mental cognition (BDB 660 s.v. 7).

[3:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “all of your desires cannot compare with her.”

[3:15]  ⁶ tn Heb “your desires.” The 2nd person masculine singular suffix on the noun probably functions as subjective genitive.

[3:15]  ⁷ tn The imperfect tense verb יָסַד (yasad, “to establish be like; to resemble”) has a potential nuance here: “can be compared with.”

[3:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “All of your desires do not compare with her.”

[3:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “length of days” (so KJV, ASV).

[9:11]  ¹⁰ tn The preposition בּ (bet) here may have the causal sense (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 45, §247), although it could also be means (Williams, 44, §243).

[9:11]  ¹¹ tn The verb וְיוֹסִיפוּ (vÿyosifu) is the Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural; but because there is no expressed subject the verb may be taken as a passive.

[10:31]  ¹² tn Heb “the mouth.” The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for speech.

[10:31]  ¹³ tn Heb “bears wisdom.” The verb נוּב (nuv) means “to bear fruit.” It is used figuratively of the righteous; they produce wisdom and righteousness. The term חָכְמָה (khokhmah, “wisdom”) represents the “fruit” that the righteous bear: “they bear the fruit of wisdom” (BDB 626 s.v.).

[10:31]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the tongue of perversions.” The noun תַּהְפֻּכוֹת (tahpukhot, “perversions”) functions as a genitive of content; it refers to what the tongue says – perverse things. The plural form depicts a plural of character. The term לָשׁוֹן (lashon, “tongue”) functions as a synecdoche of part (= tongue) for the whole person (= the speaker). The tongue is emphasized because this person is characterized by perverse speech. The term תַּהְפֻּכוֹת (“perversions”) refers to those who turn things upside down, overthrow, or pervert what is right.

[10:31]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “will be cut off” (so NAB, NRSV, NLT); cf. KJV, NASB, NIV “cut out.” Their tongue will be cut off, a hyperbole meaning to bring to an end the evil that they speak.

[19:20]  ¹⁶ sn The advice refers in all probability to the teachings of the sages that will make one wise.

[19:20]  ¹⁷ tn The proverb is one continuous thought, but the second half of the verse provides the purpose for the imperatives of the first half.

[19:20]  ¹⁸ tn The imperfect tense has the nuance of a final imperfect in a purpose clause, and so is translated “that you may become wise” (cf. NAB, NRSV).

[19:20]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “become wise in your latter end” (cf. KJV, ASV) which could obviously be misunderstood.

[31:26]  ²⁰ tn The first word of the seventeenth line begins with פּ (pe), the seventeenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

[31:26]  sn The words “mouth” (“opens her mouth”) and “tongue” (“on her tongue”) here are also metonymies of cause, referring to her speaking.

[31:26]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew phrase תּוֹרַת־חֶסֶד (torat-khesed) is open to different interpretations. (1) The word “law” could here refer to “teaching” as it does frequently in the book of Proverbs, and the word “love,” which means “loyal, covenant love,” could have the emphasis on faithfulness, yielding the idea of “faithful teaching” to parallel “wisdom” (cf. NIV). (2) The word “love” should probably have more of the emphasis on its basic meaning of “loyal love, lovingkindness.” It also would be an attributive genitive, but its force would be that of “loving instruction” or “teaching with kindness.”