23:15 My child, 1 if your heart is wise,
then my heart also will be glad;
23:16 my soul 2 will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right. 3
1 tn Heb “my son,” although the context does not limit this exhortation to male children.
2 tn Heb “my kidneys”; in biblical Hebrew the term was used for the innermost being, the soul, the central location of the passions. Cf. NASB, NIV “my inmost being.”
3 sn This twelfth saying simply observes that children bring joy to their parents when they demonstrate wisdom. The quatrain is arranged in a chiastic structure (AB:B'A'): The first line (A) speaks of wisdom in the child, and it is paired with the last line (A') which speaks of the child’s saying what is right. In between these brackets are two lines (B and B') concerning joy to the parent.