7:22 For you know in your own heart 1
that you also have cursed others many times.
10:10 If an iron axhead 2 is blunt and a workman 3 does not sharpen 4 its edge, 5
he must exert a great deal of effort; 6
so wisdom has the advantage of giving success.
10:20 Do not curse a king even in your thoughts,
and do not curse the rich 7 while in your bedroom; 8
for a bird 9 might report what you are thinking, 10
or some winged creature 11 might repeat your 12 words. 13
7:21 Also, do not pay attention to everything that people 14 say;
otherwise, 15 you might even hear 16 your servant cursing you.
1 tn Heb “your heart knows.”
2 tn The term “ax head” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity. The preceding noun “iron” functions as a metonymy of material (i.e., iron) for the object with which it is associated (i.e., ax head).
3 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the workman) is implied, and has been specified in the translation for clarity
4 tn The verb קלל in the Pilpel means “to sharpen; to make a blade sharp” (HALOT 1104 s.v. קלל 1).This denominative verb is derived from the rare noun II קָלַל “smooth; shiny” (referring to bronze; Ezek 1:7; Dan 10:6; HALOT 1105 s.v.). Sharpening the blade or head of a bronze ax will make it smooth and shiny. It is not derived from I קָלַל (qalal) “to treat light” or the noun I קְלָלָה (qÿlalah) “curse.” Nor is it related to I קָלַל “to shake” (Ezek 21:26); cf. HALOT 1104. BDB 886 s.v. קָלַל 2 erroneously relates it to I קָלַל, suggesting “to whet” or “to move quickly to and fro.”
5 tn Heb “face.”
6 tn Heb “strength.” The term וַחֲיָלִים (vakhayalim, conjunction + plural noun from חַיִל, khayil, “strength; efficiency”) is an example of a plural of intensification (GKC 397-98 §124.e). The point is that it is a waste of a great deal of strength and energy. If a person is not smart, he will have to use a lot of energy and waste his efficiency.
3 tn Perhaps the referent is people who are in authority because of their wealth.
4 tn Heb “in chambers of your bedroom.”
5 tn Heb “a bird of the air.”
6 tn Heb “might carry the voice.” The article is used here with the force of a possessive pronoun.
7 tn The Hebrew phrase בַּעַל הַכְּנָפַיִם (ba’al hakkÿnafayim, “possessor of wings”) is an idiom for a winged creature, that is, a bird (e.g., Prov 1:17; see HALOT 143 s.v. בַּעַל A.6; BDB 127 s.v. בַּעַל 5.a). The term בַּעַל (“master; possessor”) is the construct governing the attributive genitive הַכְּנָפַיִם (“wings”); see IBHS 149-51 §9.5.3b.
8 tn The term “your” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.
9 tn Heb “tell the matter.”
4 tn Heb “they”; the referent (people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 tn Heb “so that you do not hear…”; or “lest you hear….”
6 tn The imperfect tense verb תִשְׁמַע (tishma’; from שָׁמַע [shama’, “to hear”]) functions in a modal sense, denoting possibility: “you might hear” (see IBHS 508 §31.4e).