12:1 The one who loves discipline loves knowledge, 1
but the one who hates reproof is stupid. 2
12:2 A good person obtains favor from the Lord,
but the Lord 3 condemns a person with wicked schemes. 4
12:3 No one 5 can be established 6 through wickedness,
but a righteous root 7 cannot be moved.
12:4 A noble wife 8 is the crown 9 of her husband,
but the wife 10 who acts shamefully is like rottenness in his bones. 11
12:5 The plans 12 of the righteous are just;
the counsels of the wicked are deceitful. 13
12:6 The words of the wicked lie in wait 14 to shed innocent blood, 15
but the words 16 of the upright will deliver them.
1 sn Those who wish to improve themselves must learn to accept correction; the fool hates/rejects any correction.
2 sn The word בָּעַר (ba’ar, “brutish; stupid”) normally describes dumb animals that lack intellectual sense. Here, it describes the moral fool who is not willing to learn from correction. He is like a dumb animal (so the term here functions as a hypocatastasis: implied comparison).
3 tn Heb “but he condemns”; the referent (the
4 tn Heb “a man of wicked plans.” The noun מְזִמּוֹת (mÿzimmot, “evil plans”) functions as an attributive genitive: “an evil-scheming man.” Cf. NASB “a man who devises evil”; NAB “the schemer.”
5 tn Heb “a man cannot be.”
6 tn The Niphal imperfect of כּוּן (cun, “to be established”) refers to finding permanent “security” (so NRSV, TEV, CEV) before God. Only righteousness can do that.
7 tn Heb “a root of righteousness.” The genitive צַדִּיקִים (tsadiqim, “righteousness”) functions as an attributive adjective. The figure “root” (שֹׁרֶשׁ, shoresh) stresses the security of the righteous; they are firmly planted and cannot be uprooted (cf. NLT “the godly have deep roots”). The righteous are often compared to a tree (e.g., 11:30; Ps 1:3; 92:13).
8 tn Heb “a wife of virtue”; NAB, NLT “a worthy wife.” This noble woman (אֵשֶׁת־חַיִל, ’shet-khayil) is the subject of Prov 31. She is a “virtuous woman” (cf. KJV), a capable woman of noble character. She is contrasted with the woman who is disgraceful (מְבִישָׁה, mÿvishah; “one who causes shame”) or who lowers his standing in the community.
9 sn The metaphor of the “crown” emphasizes that such a wife is a symbol of honor and glory.
10 tn Heb “she”; the referent (the wife) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 sn The simile means that the shameful acts of such a woman will eat away her husband’s strength and influence and destroy his happiness.
12 tn Heb “thoughts.” This term refers not just to random thoughts, however, but to what is planned or devised.
13 sn The plans of good people are directed toward what is right. Advice from the wicked, however, is deceitful and can only lead to trouble.
14 tn The infinitive construct אֱרָב (’erav, “to lie in wait”) expresses the purpose of their conversations. The idea of “lying in wait for blood” is an implied comparison (hypocatastasis): Their words are like an ambush intended to destroy (cf. NAB, NRSV “are a deadly ambush”). The words of the wicked are here personified.
15 tn Heb “for blood.” The term “blood” is a metonymy of effect, the cause being the person that they will attack and whose blood they will shed. After the construct “blood” is also an objective genitive.
16 tn Heb “mouth.” The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) is a metonymy of cause, signifying what the righteous say. The righteous can make a skillful defense against false accusations that are intended to destroy. The righteous, who have gained wisdom, can escape the traps set by the words of the wicked.