2 Chronicles 25:15-16

25:15 The Lord was angry at Amaziah and sent a prophet to him, who said, “Why are you following ¹  these gods ²  that could not deliver their own people from your power?” ³  25:16 While he was speaking, Amaziah ⁴  said to him, “Did we appoint you to be a royal counselor? Stop prophesying or else you will be killed!” ⁵  So the prophet stopped, but added, “I know that the Lord has decided ⁶  to destroy you, because you have done this thing and refused to listen to my advice.”

2 Chronicles 25:2

25:2 He did what the Lord approved, ⁷  but not with wholehearted devotion. ⁸ 

2 Chronicles 17:14

17:14 These were their divisions by families:

There were a thousand officers from Judah. ⁹  Adnah the commander led 300,000 skilled warriors,

Proverbs 1:25

1:25 because ¹⁰  you neglected ¹¹  all my advice,

and did not comply ¹²  with my rebuke,

Proverbs 9:9

9:9 Give instruction ¹³  to a wise person, ¹⁴  and he will become wiser still;

teach ¹⁵  a righteous person and he will add to his ¹⁶  learning.

Proverbs 19:20

19:20 Listen to advice ¹⁷  and receive discipline,

that ¹⁸  you may become wise ¹⁹  by the end of your life. ²⁰ 

Proverbs 25:12

25:12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, ²¹ 

so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens. ²² 

Ecclesiastes 10:2-3

Wisdom Can Be Nullified By the Caprice of Rulers

10:2 A wise person’s good sense protects him, ²³ 

but a fool’s lack of sense leaves him vulnerable. ²⁴ 

10:3 Even when a fool walks along the road he lacks sense, ²⁵ 

and shows ²⁶  everyone what a fool he is. ²⁷ 

Ecclesiastes 10:16

The Problem with Foolish Rulers

10:16 Woe to you, O land, when your king is childish, ²⁸ 

and your princes feast in the morning!

Isaiah 30:1

Egypt Will Prove Unreliable

30:1 “The rebellious ²⁹  children are as good as dead,” ³⁰  says the Lord,

“those who make plans without consulting me, ³¹ 

who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, ³² 

and thereby compound their sin. ³³ 

[25:15]  ¹ tn Heb “seeking,” perhaps in the sense of “consulting [an oracle from].”

[25:15]  ² tn Heb “the gods of the people.”

[25:15]  ³ tn Heb “hand.”

[25:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Amaziah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[25:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “Stop yourself! Why should they strike you down?”

[25:16]  ⁶ tn The verb יָעַץ (ya’ats, “has decided”) is from the same root as יוֹעֵץ (yo’ets, “counselor”) in v. 16 and עֵצָה (’etsah, “advice”) later in v. 16. The wordplay highlights the appropriate nature of the divine punishment. Amaziah rejected the counsel of God’s prophet; now he would be the victim of God’s “counsel.”

[25:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the Lord.”

[25:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “a complete heart.”

[17:14]  ⁹ tn Or perhaps “from Judah, commanders of the thousands.”

[1:25]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and.”

[1:25]  ¹¹ tn The verb III פָּרַע means “to let go; to let alone” (BDB 828 s.v.). It can refer to unkempt hair of the head (Lev 10:6) or lack of moral restraint: “to let things run free” (Exod 32:25; Prov 28:19). Here it means “to avoid, neglect” the offer of wisdom (BDB 829 s.v. 2).

[1:25]  ¹² tn The verbs are characteristic perfects or indefinite pasts. For the word “comply, consent,” see 1:20.

[9:9]  ¹³ tn The noun “instruction” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation.

[9:9]  ¹⁴ sn The parallelism shows what Proverbs will repeatedly stress, that the wise person is the righteous person.

[9:9]  ¹⁵ tn The Hiphil verb normally means “to cause to know, make known”; but here the context suggests “to teach” (so many English versions).

[9:9]  ¹⁶ tn The term “his” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for the sake of smoothness and clarity.

[19:20]  ¹⁷ sn The advice refers in all probability to the teachings of the sages that will make one wise.

[19:20]  ¹⁸ tn The proverb is one continuous thought, but the second half of the verse provides the purpose for the imperatives of the first half.

[19:20]  ¹⁹ tn The imperfect tense has the nuance of a final imperfect in a purpose clause, and so is translated “that you may become wise” (cf. NAB, NRSV).

[19:20]  ²⁰ tn Heb “become wise in your latter end” (cf. KJV, ASV) which could obviously be misunderstood.

[25:12]  ²¹ sn This saying is another example of emblematic parallelism; the first half is the simile, and the second half makes the point from it: A wise rebuke that is properly received is of lasting value. The rebuke in the ear of an obedient student is like ornaments of fine jewelry.

[25:12]  ²² tn The “ear of the listener” refers to the obedient disciple, the one who complies with the reproof he hears. Cf. KJV, ASV, NAB “an obedient ear.”

[10:2]  ²³ tn Heb “a wise man’s heart is at his right hand.” The phrase “right hand” is a Hebrew idiom for the place of protection (e.g., Pss 16:8; 110:5; 121:5). In ancient warfare, the shield of the warrior on one’s right-hand side protected one’s right hand. Qoheleth’s point is that wisdom provides protection (e.g., Eccl 7:12).

[10:2]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and the heart of a fool is at his left hand.” The fool lacks the protection of wisdom which is at the right-hand side of the wise man (see note on “right hand” in the previous line). The wise man’s heart (i.e., good sense) protects him, but the fool is always getting into trouble.

[10:3]  ²⁵ tn Heb “he lacks his heart.”

[10:3]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he tells everyone.”

[10:3]  ²⁷ sn A fool’s lack of wisdom is obvious to everyone, even when he is engaged in the simple, ordinary actions of life.

[10:16]  ²⁸ tn Or “a child”; or “a servant.” The term נַעַר (na’ar) has a wide range of meanings (HALOT 707 s.v. נַעַר; BDB 654–55 s.v. II נַעַר). Used in reference to age, it may refer to an infant (Exod 2:6; Judg 13:5; 1 Sam 1:22; 4:21; 2 Sam 12:16), a child just weaned (1 Sam 1:24), an adolescent in puberty (1 Sam 16:11), or a young man of marriageable age (Gen 34:19; 2 Sam 14:21; 18:5, 12). Its technical or titular use denotes “servant” (Num 22:22; Judg 7:10-11; 19:3; 1 Sam 3:9; 2 Sam 16:1; 2 Kgs 4:12, 25; 19:6), “retainer; attendant; follower” (Gen 14:24; 1 Sam 25:5; 2 Sam 2:14; 2 Kgs 19:6; Isa 37:6; Job 1:15-17; Neh 4:10, 17) and “soldier” (1 Kgs 20:15-16). The parallel Ugaritic term is used in reference to physical age (lad; son; youth) and in a technical sense (guild members; servitors; soldiers); see UT 19.445. The LXX rendered it with νεώτερος (newteros, “youthful”). The English versions vary: “child,” (KJV, ASV, NASB, MLB, RSV, NRSV margin, NIV margin); “childish” (NIV margin); “servant” or “slave” (NEB, NAB, ASV margin, NRSV, NIV); and “lackey” (NJPS). When used in reference to rulers, it emphasizes incompetence, naiveté, inexperience, and immaturity (Isa 3:4, 9; 1 Kgs 3:7). This use must be understood in the light of the parallel antonym: “son of freemen” (בֶּן־חוֹרִים, ben-khorim). This suggests “servant,” that is, one who was not well trained and prepared by noble birth to ascend to the throne.

[30:1]  ²⁹ tn Or “stubborn” (NCV); cf. NIV “obstinate.”

[30:1]  ³⁰ tn Heb “Woe [to] rebellious children.”

[30:1]  ³¹ tn Heb “making a plan, but not from me.”

[30:1]  ³² tn Heb “and pouring out a libation, but not [from] my spirit.” This translation assumes that the verb נָסַךְ (nasakh) means “pour out,” and that the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה (massekhah) means “libation.” In this case “pouring out a libation” alludes to a ceremony that formally ratifies an alliance. Another option is to understand the verb נָסַךְ as a homonym meaning “weave,” and the cognate noun מַסֵּכָה as a homonym meaning “covering.” In this case forming an alliance is likened to weaving a garment.

[30:1]  ³³ tn Heb “consequently adding sin to sin.”