6:35 He will not consider 1 any compensation; 2
he will not be willing, even if you multiply the compensation. 3
8:27 When he established the heavens, I was there;
when he marked out the horizon 4 over the face of the deep,
8:30 then I was 5 beside him as a master craftsman, 6
and I was his delight 7 day by day,
rejoicing before him at all times,
17:18 The one who lacks wisdom 8 strikes hands in pledge, 9
and puts up financial security 10 for his neighbor. 11
21:29 A wicked person 12 shows boldness with his face, 13
but as for the upright, 14 he discerns 15 his ways.
23:1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
consider carefully 16 what 17 is before you,
24:31 I saw 18 that thorns had grown up all over it,
the ground 19 was covered with weeds,
and its stone wall was broken down.
25:7 for it is better for him 20 to say to you, “Come up here,” 21
than to put you lower 22 before a prince,
whom your eyes have seen. 23
28:21 To show partiality 24 is terrible, 25
for a person will transgress over the smallest piece of bread. 26
1 tn Heb “lift up the face of,” meaning “regard.”
2 tn The word rendered “compensation” is כֹּפֶר (cofer); it is essentially a ransom price, a sum to be paid to deliver another from debt, bondage, or crime. The husband cannot accept payment as a ransom for a life, since what has happened cannot be undone so easily.
3 tn BDB 1005 s.v. שֹׁחַד suggests that this term means “hush money” or “bribe” (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT). C. H. Toy takes it as legal compensation (Proverbs [ICC], 142).
4 sn The infinitive construct בְּחוּקוֹ (bÿkhuqo, “to cut; to engrave; to mark”) and the noun חוּג (khug, “horizon; circle”) form a paronomasia in the line.
7 tn The verb form is a preterite with vav consecutive, although it has not been apocopated. It provides the concluding statement for the temporal clauses as well as the parallel to v. 27.
8 tn Critical to the interpretation of this line is the meaning of אָמוֹן (’amon). Several suggestions have been made: “master craftsman” (cf. ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV), “nursing child” (cf. NCV), “foster father.” R. B. Y. Scott chooses “faithful” – a binding or living link (“Wisdom in Creation: The ‘Amon of Proverbs 8:30,” VT 10 [1960]: 213-23). The image of a child is consistent with the previous figure of being “given birth to” (vv. 24, 25). However, “craftsman” has the most support (LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, Tg. Prov 8:30, Song 7:1; Jer 52:15; also P. W. Skehan, “Structures in Poems on Wisdom: Proverbs 8 and Sirach 24,” CBQ 41 [1979]: 365-79).
9 tn The word is a plural of intensification for “delight”; it describes wisdom as the object of delight. The LXX has the suffix; the Hebrew does not.
10 tn Heb “heart”; KJV, ASV “a man void of understanding”; NIV “a man lacking in judgment.”
11 tn The phrase “in pledge” is supplied for the sake of clarification.
12 tn The line uses the participle עֹרֵב (’orev) with its cognate accusative עֲרֻבָּה (’arubah), “who pledges a pledge.”
13 sn It is foolish to pledge security for someone’s loans (e.g., Prov 6:1-5).
13 tn Heb “a wicked man.”
14 tn Heb “he hardens his face.” To make the face firm or hard means to show boldness (BDB 738 s.v. עָזַז Hiph); cf. NRSV “put on a bold face.”
15 tn The “upright” is an independent nominative absolute; the pronoun becomes the formal (emphatic) subject of the verb.
16 tc The Kethib is the imperfect of כּוּן (kun), “he establishes.” This reading has the support of the Syriac, Latin, and Tg. Prov 21:29, and is followed by ASV. The Qere is the imperfect tense of בִּין (bin), “he understands; he discerns.” It has the support of the LXX and is followed by NIV, NCV, NRSV, NLT. The difficulty is that both make good sense in the passage and both have support. The contrast is between the wicked who shows a bold face (reflecting a hardened heart) and the upright who either gives thought to his ways (or solidifies his ways). The sense of the Qere may form a slightly better contrast, one between the outer appearance of boldness and the inner discernment of action.
16 tn The construction uses the imperfect tense of instruction with the infinitive absolute to emphasize the careful discernment required on such occasions. Cf. NIV “note well”; NLT “pay attention.”
17 tn Or “who,” referring to the ruler (so ASV, NAB, TEV).
19 tn The Hebrew term וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh, traditionally “and, lo” [KJV, ASV]) is a deictic particle that calls attention to what comes next. “And look” is too abrupt here; “I saw” calls attention to the field that was noticed.
20 tn Heb “its face” (so KJV, ASV).
22 tn The phrase “for him” is supplied in the translation for clarity.
23 sn This proverb, covering the two verses, is teaching that it is wiser to be promoted than to risk demotion by self-promotion. The point is clear: Trying to promote oneself could bring on public humiliation; but it would be an honor to have everyone in court hear the promotion by the king.
24 tn The two infinitives construct form the contrast in this “better” sayings; each serves as the subject of its respective clause.
25 tc Most modern commentators either omit this last line or attach it to the next verse. But it is in the text of the MT as well as the LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and most modern English versions (although some of them do connect it to the following verse, e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
25 tn The construction uses the Hiphil infinitive הַכֵּר (hakken) as the subject of the sentence: “to have respect for [or, recognize] persons is not good” (e.g., 24:23; 18:5; Deut 1:17; Lev 19:15). Such favoritism is “not good”; instead, it is a miscarriage of justice and is to be avoided.
26 tn Heb “not good.” This is a figure of speech known as tapeinosis – a deliberate understatement to emphasize a worst-case scenario: “it is terrible!”
27 tn The meaning and connection of the line is not readily clear. It could be taken in one of two ways: (1) a person can steal even a small piece of bread if hungry, and so the court should show some compassion, or it should show no partiality even in such a pathetic case; (2) a person could be bribed for a very small price (a small piece of bread being the figure representing this). This second view harmonizes best with the law.