33:6 He is your constant source of stability; 1
he abundantly provides safety and great wisdom; 2
he gives all this to those who fear him. 3
2:5 then you will understand 4 how to fear the Lord, 5
and you will discover 6 knowledge 7 about God. 8
2:9 Then you will understand 9 righteousness and justice
and equity – every 10 good 11 way. 12
2:52 And Jesus increased 13 in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and with people.
1 tn Heb “and he is the stability of your times.”
2 tn Heb “a rich store of deliverance, wisdom, and knowledge.”
3 tn Heb “the fear of the Lord, it is his treasure.”
4 tn The verb בִּין (bin, “to perceive; to understand; to discern”) refers to ability to grasp, discern or be sensitive to what it means to fear the
5 tn Heb “the fear of the
6 tn Heb “find” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
7 tn The term דַּעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) goes beyond cognition; it is often used metonymically (cause) for obedience (effect); see, e.g., Prov 3:6, “in all your ways acknowledge him,” and BDB 395 s.v. This means that the disciple will follow God’s moral code; for to know God is to react ethically and spiritually to his will (e.g., J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 18).
8 tn Heb “knowledge of God.” The noun is an objective genitive.
9 tn Heb “discern.” See preceding note on בִּין (bin) in 2:5.
10 tn The phrase “every good way” functions appositionally to the preceding triad of righteous attributes, further explaining and defining them.
11 tn Heb “every way of good.” The term טוֹב (tov, “good”) functions as an attributive genitive: “good way.”
12 tn Heb “track”; KJV, NIV, NRSV “path.” The noun מַעְגַּל (ma’gal) is used (1) literally of “wagon-wheel track; firm path” and (2) figuratively (as a metaphor) to describe the course of life (Pss 17:5; 23:3; 140:6; Prov 2:9, 15, 18; 4:11, 26; 5:6, 21; Isa 26:7; 59:8; see BDB 722-23 s.v. 2; KBL 2:609). It is related to the feminine noun עֲגָלָה (’agalah, “cart”) and the verb עָגַל (’agal) “to be round” (Qal) and “to roll” (Niphal). As a wagon-wheel cuts a deep track in a much traversed dirt road, so a person falls into routines and habits that reveal his moral character. In Proverbs the “paths” of the righteous are characterized by uprightness and integrity.
13 tn Or “kept increasing.” The imperfect tense suggests something of a progressive force to the verb.