17:5 The Lord says,
“I will put a curse on people
who trust in mere human beings,
who depend on mere flesh and blood for their strength, 2
and whose hearts 3 have turned away from the Lord.
17:6 They will be like a shrub 4 in the desert.
They will not experience good things even when they happen.
It will be as though they were growing in the desert,
in a salt land where no one can live.
21:30 There is no wisdom and there is no understanding,
and there is no counsel against 5 the Lord. 6
30:1 “The rebellious 7 children are as good as dead,” 8 says the Lord,
“those who make plans without consulting me, 9
who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, 10
and thereby compound their sin. 11
30:2 They travel down to Egypt
without seeking my will, 12
seeking Pharaoh’s protection,
and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. 13
30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,
and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.
30:4 Though his 14 officials are in Zoan
and his messengers arrive at Hanes, 15
30:5 all will be put to shame 16
because of a nation that cannot help them,
who cannot give them aid or help,
but only shame and disgrace.”
30:6 This is a message 17 about the animals in the Negev:
Through a land of distress and danger,
inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, 18
by snakes and darting adders, 19
they transport 20 their wealth on the backs of donkeys,
their riches on the humps of camels,
to a nation that cannot help them. 21
31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, 22
those who rely on war horses,
and trust in Egypt’s many chariots 23
and in their many, many horsemen. 24
But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel 25
and do not seek help from the Lord.
31:2 Yet he too is wise 26 and he will bring disaster;
he does not retract his decree. 27
He will attack the wicked nation, 28
and the nation that helps 29 those who commit sin. 30
31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;
their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.
The Lord will strike with 31 his hand;
the one who helps will stumble
and the one being helped will fall.
Together they will perish. 32
ע (Ayin)
4:17 Our eyes continually failed us
as we looked in vain for help. 33
From our watchtowers we watched
for a nation that could not rescue us.
29:6 Then all those living in Egypt will know that I am the Lord
because they were a reed staff 35 for the house of Israel;
29:7 when they grasped you with their hand, 36 you broke and tore 37 their shoulders,
and when they leaned on you, you splintered and caused their legs to be unsteady. 38
1 sn Verses 5-11 are a collection of wisdom-like sayings (cf. Ps 1) which set forth the theme of the two ways and their consequences. It has as its background the blessings and the curses of Deut 28 and the challenge to faith in Deut 29-30 which climaxes in Deut 30:15-20. The nation is sinful and God is weary of showing them patience. However, there is hope for individuals within the nation if they will trust in him.
2 tn Heb “who make flesh their arm.” The “arm” is the symbol of strength and the flesh is the symbol of mortal man in relation to the omnipotent God. The translation “mere flesh and blood” reflects this.
3 sn In the psychology of ancient Hebrew thought the heart was the center not only of the emotions but of the thoughts and motivations. It was also the seat of moral conduct (cf. its placement in the middle of the discussion of moral conduct in Prov 4:20-27, i.e., in v. 23).
4 tn This word occurs only here and in Jer 48:6. It has been identified as a kind of juniper, which is a short shrub with minute leaves that look like scales. For a picture and more discussion see Fauna and Flora of the Bible, 131.
5 tn The form לְנֶגֶד (lÿneged) means “against; over against; in opposition to.” The line indicates they cannot in reality be in opposition, for human wisdom is nothing in comparison to the wisdom of God (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 232).
6 sn The verse uses a single sentence to state that all wisdom, understanding, and advice must be in conformity to the will of God to be successful. It states it negatively – these things cannot be in defiance of God (e.g., Job 5:12-13; Isa 40:13-14).
7 tn Or “stubborn” (NCV); cf. NIV “obstinate.”
8 tn Heb “Woe [to] rebellious children.”
9 tn Heb “making a plan, but not from me.”
10 tn Heb “and pouring out a libation, but not [from] my spirit.” This translation assumes that the verb נָסַךְ (nasakh) means “pour out,” and that the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה (massekhah) means “libation.” In this case “pouring out a libation” alludes to a ceremony that formally ratifies an alliance. Another option is to understand the verb נָסַךְ as a homonym meaning “weave,” and the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה as a homonym meaning “covering.” In this case forming an alliance is likened to weaving a garment.
11 tn Heb “consequently adding sin to sin.”
12 tn Heb “those who go to descend to Egypt, but [of] my mouth they do not inquire.”
13 tn Heb “to seek protection in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek refuge in the shade of Egypt.”
14 sn This probably refers to Judah’s officials and messengers.
15 sn Zoan was located in the Egyptian delta in the north; Hanes was located somewhere in southern region of lower Egypt, south of Memphis; the exact location is debated.
16 tn The present translation follows the marginal (Qere) reading of the Hebrew text; the consonantal text (Kethib) has “made to stink, decay.”
17 tn Traditionally, “burden” (so KJV, ASV); NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “oracle.”
18 tc Heb “[a land of] a lioness and a lion, from them.” Some emend מֵהֶם (mehem, “from them”) to מֵהֵם (mehem), an otherwise unattested Hiphil participle from הָמַם (hamam, “move noisily”). Perhaps it would be better to take the initial mem (מ) as enclitic and emend the form to הֹמֶה (homeh), a Qal active participle from הָמָה (hamah, “to make a noise”); cf. J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:542, n. 9.
19 tn Heb “flying fiery one.” See the note at 14:29.
20 tn Or “carry” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
21 sn This verse describes messengers from Judah transporting wealth to Egypt in order to buy Pharaoh’s protection through a treaty.
22 tn Heb “Woe [to] those who go down to Egypt for help.”
23 tn Heb “and trust in chariots for they are many.”
24 tn Heb “and in horsemen for they are very strong [or “numerous”].”
25 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
26 sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.
27 tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”
28 tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”
29 sn That is, Egypt.
30 tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”
31 tn Heb “will extend”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV “stretch out.”
32 tn Heb “together all of them will come to an end.”
33 tn Heb “Our eyes failed in vain for help.”
34 tn Heb “deal with” or “work with.”
35 sn Compare Isa 36:6.
36 tn The Hebrew consonantal text (Kethib) has “by your hand,” but the marginal reading (Qere) has simply “by the hand.” The LXX reads “with their hand.”
37 tn Or perhaps “dislocated.”
38 tn Heb “you caused to stand for them all their hips.” An emendation which switches two letters but is supported by the LXX yields the reading “you caused all their hips to shake.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:103. In 2 Kgs 18:21 and Isa 36:6 trusting in the Pharaoh is compared to leaning on a staff. The oracle may reflect Hophra’s attempt to aid Jerusalem (Jer 37:5-8).
39 tn Heb “reminding of iniquity when they turned after them.”