3:2 for they will provide 1 a long and full life, 2
and they will add well-being 3 to you.
3:16 Long life 4 is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor.
9:11 For because 5 of me your days will be many,
and years will be added 6 to your life.
21:4 He asked you to sustain his life, 7
and you have granted him long life and an enduring dynasty. 8
34:11 Come children! Listen to me!
I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord. 9
34:12 Do you want to really live? 10
Would you love to live a long, happy life? 11
34:13 Then make sure you don’t speak evil words 12
or use deceptive speech! 13
91:16 I will satisfy him with long life, 14
and will let him see my salvation.
1 tn The phrase “they will provide” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.
2 tn Heb “length of days and years of life” (so NASB, NRSV). The idiom “length of days” refers to a prolonged life and “years of life” signifies a long time full of life, a life worth living (T. T. Perowne, Proverbs, 51). The term “life” refers to earthly felicity combined with spiritual blessedness (BDB 313 s.v. חַיִּים).
3 tn The noun שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) here means “welfare, health, prosperity” (BDB 1022 s.v. 3). It can be used of physical health and personal well-being. It is the experience of positive blessing and freedom from negative harm and catastrophe.
4 tn Heb “length of days” (so KJV, ASV).
5 tn The preposition בּ (bet) here may have the causal sense (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 45, §247), although it could also be means (Williams, 44, §243).
6 tn The verb וְיוֹסִיפוּ (vÿyosifu) is the Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural; but because there is no expressed subject the verb may be taken as a passive.
7 tn Heb “life he asked from you.” Another option is to translate the perfect verbal forms in v. 4 with the present tense, “he asks…you grant.”
8 tn Heb “you have granted him length of days forever and ever.” The phrase “length of days,” when used of human beings, usually refers to a lengthy period of time (such as one’s lifetime). See, for example, Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20. The additional phrase “forever and ever” is hyperbolic. While it seems to attribute eternal life to the king (see Pss 61:6-7; 72:5 as well), the underlying reality is the king’s enduring dynasty. He will live on, as it were, through his descendants, who will continue to rule over his kingdom long after he has passed off the scene.
9 tn Heb “the fear of the
10 tn Heb “Who is the man who desires life?” The rhetorical question is used to grab the audience’s attention. “Life” probably refers here to quality of life, not just physical existence or even duration of life. See the following line.
11 tn Heb “[Who] loves days to see good?”
12 tn Heb “guard your tongue from evil.”
13 tn Heb “and your lips from speaking deception.”
14 tn Heb “length of days.”