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Text -- Proverbs 22:1-27 (NET)
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Strongs On/Off
Context
22:1 A good name is to be chosen rather than great wealth , good favor more than silver or gold .
22:2 The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the creator of them both .
22:3 A shrewd person sees danger and hides himself, but the naive keep right on going and suffer for it.
22:4 The reward for humility and fearing the Lord is riches and honor and life .
22:5 Thorns and snares are in the path of the perverse , but the one who guards himself keeps far from them .
22:6 Train a child in the way that he should go , and when he is old he will not turn from it.
22:7 The rich rule over the poor , and the borrower is servant to the lender .
22:8 The one who sows iniquity will reap trouble, and the rod of his fury will end .
22:9 A generous person will be blessed , for he gives some of his food to the poor .
22:10 Drive out the scorner and contention will leave; strife and insults will cease .
22:11 The one who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious – the king will be his friend .
22:12 The eyes of the Lord guard knowledge , but he overthrows the words of the faithless person .
22:13 The sluggard says , “There is a lion outside ! I will be killed in the middle of the streets !”
22:14 The mouth of an adulteress is like a deep pit ; the one against whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.
22:15 Folly is bound up in the heart of a child , but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him.
22:16 The one who oppresses the poor to increase his own gain and the one who gives to the rich – both end up only in poverty .
The Sayings of the Wise
22:17 Incline your ear and listen to the words of the wise , and apply your heart to my instruction .
22:18 For it is pleasing if you keep these sayings within you, and they are ready on your lips .
22:19 So that your confidence may be in the Lord , I am making them known to you today – even you .
22:20 Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge ,
22:21 to show you true and reliable words , so that you may give accurate answers to those who sent you?
22:22 Do not exploit a poor person because he is poor and do not crush the needy in court ,
22:23 for the Lord will plead their case and will rob those who are robbing them.
22:24 Do not make friends with an angry person , and do not associate with a wrathful person ,
22:25 lest you learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare .
22:26 Do not be one who strikes hands in pledge or who puts up security for debts .
22:27 If you do not have enough to pay , your bed will be taken right out from under you!
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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Dictionary Themes and Topics:
Wisdom |
Poor |
PROVERBS, BOOK OF |
Instruction |
Friendship |
Associations |
Prudence |
PROVERBS, THE BOOK OF |
Surety |
Creditor |
Anger |
Lion |
God |
Influence |
Oppression |
Parents |
Heart |
Children |
Example |
Wicked |
more
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Pro 22:1; Pro 22:1; Pro 22:1; Pro 22:2; Pro 22:2; Pro 22:3; Pro 22:3; Pro 22:3; Pro 22:3; Pro 22:4; Pro 22:4; Pro 22:4; Pro 22:5; Pro 22:5; Pro 22:6; Pro 22:6; Pro 22:6; Pro 22:6; Pro 22:7; Pro 22:7; Pro 22:8; Pro 22:8; Pro 22:9; Pro 22:9; Pro 22:9; Pro 22:10; Pro 22:10; Pro 22:11; Pro 22:11; Pro 22:11; Pro 22:11; Pro 22:12; Pro 22:12; Pro 22:12; Pro 22:12; Pro 22:13; Pro 22:13; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:14; Pro 22:15; Pro 22:15; Pro 22:15; Pro 22:16; Pro 22:17; Pro 22:17; Pro 22:17; Pro 22:18; Pro 22:18; Pro 22:18; Pro 22:18; Pro 22:19; Pro 22:19; Pro 22:20; Pro 22:20; Pro 22:21; Pro 22:21; Pro 22:22; Pro 22:22; Pro 22:22; Pro 22:23; Pro 22:23; Pro 22:24; Pro 22:25; Pro 22:25; Pro 22:27; Pro 22:27; Pro 22:27
NET Notes: Pro 22:1 Heb “favor of goodness.” This is a somewhat difficult expression. Some English versions render the phrase “favor is better than silv...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:2 Heb “all.” The Lord is sovereign over both groups, that is, he has had the final say whether a person is rich or poor. People would do wel...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:3 The verb עָנַשׁ (’anash) means “to fine” specifically. In the Niphal stem it means “to be ...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:4 Heb “the fear of the Lord.” This is an objective genitive; the Lord is the object of the fear.
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NET Notes: Pro 22:5 “Thorns and snares” represent the dangers and threats to life. They would be implied comparisons (hypocatastasis): As a path strewn with t...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:6 The expected consequence of such training is that it will last throughout life. The sages were confident of the character-forming quality of their tra...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:7 Or “slave” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV, TEV, CEV). This may refer to the practice in Israel of people selling themselves into slavery to pay off d...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:8 There is a variant reading in the LXX; instead of “the rod of his wrath” it reads “the punishment of his deeds.” C. H. Toy wis...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:9 It is from his own food that he gives to the poor. Of the many observations that could be made, it is worth noting that in blessing this kind of perso...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:10 The LXX freely adds “when he sits in council (ἐν συνεδρίῳ, ejn sunedriw), he insults everyon...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:11 The syntax of the line is somewhat difficult, because “grace of his lips” seems to be intruding on the point of the verse with little expl...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:12 The proverb affirms that God in safeguarding true knowledge will frustrate deception from faithless people – what they say will not have its int...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:13 The LXX changes the phrase to read “murderers in the street” to form a better parallelism, possibly because the verb רָצ...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:14 The proverb is saying that the Lord will use the seductive, deceptive words of the adulteress to bring about the downfall of one who is inclined to su...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:15 The word “rod” is a metonymy of adjunct; it represents physical chastening for direction or punishment, to suppress folly and develop pote...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:16 Heb “oppressing the poor, it is gain; giving to the rich, it is loss.” The Hebrew is cryptic, but two sins are mentioned here that will be...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:17 Heb “knowledge” (so KJV, NASB); in this context it refers to the knowledge that is spoken by the wise, hence “instruction.”
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NET Notes: Pro 22:18 If the teachings are preserved in the heart/mind of the disciple, then that individual will always be ready to speak what was retained.
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NET Notes: Pro 22:19 Heb “I cause you to know.” The term “today” indicates that the verb should have the instantaneous nuance, and so an English pr...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:20 The term “sayings” does not appear in the Hebrew text but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
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NET Notes: Pro 22:22 Heb “in the gate” (so KJV); NAB, NASB, NRSV “at the gate.” The “gate” of the city was the center of activity, the ...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:23 The verb קָבַע (qava’, “to rob; to spoil; to plunder”) is used here in both places to reflect the prin...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:24 Heb “possessor of anger.” This expression is an idiom for “wrathful person” or “an angry person” (cf. NAB “a...
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NET Notes: Pro 22:25 The warning in this proverb is to avoid associating with a hothead because his influence could be fatal (a similar idea is found in the Instruction of...
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