Amsal 6:20

6:20 My child, guard the commands of your father

and do not forsake the instruction of your mother.

Amsal 20:7

20:7 The righteous person ¹  behaves in integrity; ² 

blessed are his children after him. ³ 

Amsal 23:25

23:25 May your father and your mother have joy;

may she who bore you rejoice. ⁴ 

[20:7]  ¹ sn Two terms describe the subject of this proverb: “righteous” and “integrity.” The first describes the person as a member of the covenant community who strives to live according to God’s standards; the second emphasizes that his lifestyle is blameless.

[20:7]  ² tn Heb “walks in his integrity” (so NASB); cf. NIV “leads a blameless life.” The Hitpael participle of הָלַךְ (halakh) means “to walk about; to walk to and fro.” The idiom of walking representing living is intensified here in this stem. This verbal stem is used in scripture to describe people “walking with” God.

[20:7]  ³ sn The nature and the actions of parents have an effect on children (e.g., Exod 20:4-6); if the parents are righteous, the children will enjoy a blessing – the respect and the happiness which the parent reflects on them.

[23:25]  ⁴ tn The form תָגֵל (tagel) is clearly a short form and therefore a jussive (“may she…rejoice”); if this second verb is a jussive, then the parallel יִשְׂמַח (yismakh) should be a jussive also (“may your father and your mother have joy”).