Deuteronomy 5:16

5:16 Honor ¹  your father and your mother just as the Lord your God has commanded you to do, so that your days may be extended and that it may go well with you in the land that he ²  is about to give you.

Deuteronomy 25:15

25:15 You must have an accurate and correct ³  stone weight and an accurate and correct measuring container, so that your life may be extended in the land the Lord your God is about to give you.

Psalms 21:4

21:4 He asked you to sustain his life, ⁴ 

and you have granted him long life and an enduring dynasty. ⁵ 

Psalms 91:16

91:16 I will satisfy him with long life, ⁶ 

and will let him see my salvation.

Proverbs 3:2

3:2 for they will provide ⁷  a long and full life, ⁸ 

and they will add well-being ⁹  to you.

Proverbs 3:16

3:16 Long life ¹⁰  is in her right hand;

in her left hand are riches and honor.

Proverbs 3:1

Exhortations to Seek Wisdom and Walk with the Lord ¹¹ 

3:1 My child, ¹²  do not forget my teaching,

but let your heart keep ¹³  my commandments,

Proverbs 4:8

4:8 Esteem her highly ¹⁴  and she will exalt you;

she will honor you if you embrace her.

¹ tn The imperative here means, literally, “regard as heavy” (כַּבֵּד, kabbed). The meaning is that great importance must be ascribed to parents by their children.

² tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “He” in 5:3.

³ tn Or “just”; Heb “righteous.”

⁴ tn Heb “life he asked from you.” Another option is to translate the perfect verbal forms in v. 4 with the present tense, “he asks…you grant.”

⁵ tn Heb “you have granted him length of days forever and ever.” The phrase “length of days,” when used of human beings, usually refers to a lengthy period of time (such as one’s lifetime). See, for example, Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20. The additional phrase “forever and ever” is hyperbolic. While it seems to attribute eternal life to the king (see Pss 61:6-7; 72:5 as well), the underlying reality is the king’s enduring dynasty. He will live on, as it were, through his descendants, who will continue to rule over his kingdom long after he has passed off the scene.

⁶ tn Heb “length of days.”

⁷ tn The phrase “they will provide” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

⁸ tn Heb “length of days and years of life” (so NASB, NRSV). The idiom “length of days” refers to a prolonged life and “years of life” signifies a long time full of life, a life worth living (T. T. Perowne, Proverbs, 51). The term “life” refers to earthly felicity combined with spiritual blessedness (BDB 313 s.v. חַיִּים).

⁹ tn The noun שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) here means “welfare, health, prosperity” (BDB 1022 s.v. 3). It can be used of physical health and personal well-being. It is the experience of positive blessing and freedom from negative harm and catastrophe.

¹⁰ tn Heb “length of days” (so KJV, ASV).

¹¹ sn The chapter begins with an introductory exhortation (1-4), followed by an admonition to be faithful to the Lord (5-12). Wisdom is commended as the most valuable possession (13-18), essential to creation (19-20), and the way to a long and safe life (21-26). There then follows a warning to avoid unneighborliness (27-30) and emulating the wicked (31-35).

¹² tn Heb “my son” (likewise in vv. 11, 21).

¹³ tn The verb יִצֹּר (yitsor) is a Qal jussive and the noun לִבֶּךָ (libbekha, “your heart”) functions as the subject: “let your heart keep my commandments.”

¹⁴ tn The verb is the Pilpel imperative from סָלַל (salal, “to lift up; to cast up”). So the imperative means “exalt her; esteem her highly; prize her.”