22:14 The mouth 1 of an adulteress is like 2 a deep pit; 3
the one against whom the Lord is angry 4 will fall into it. 5
1 sn The word “mouth” is a metonymy of cause; it refers to the seductive speech of the strange woman (e.g., 2:16-22; and chs. 5, 7).
2 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.
3 sn The point of the metaphor is that what the adulteress says is like a deep pit. The pit is like the hunter’s snare; it is a trap that is difficult to escape. So to succumb to the adulteress – or to any other folly this represents – is to get oneself into a difficulty that has no easy escape.
4 tn Heb “the one who is cursed by the
5 tn Heb “will fall there.” The “falling” could refer to the curse itself or to the result of the curse.