Colossians 3:16

3:16 Let the word of Christ ¹  dwell in you richly, teaching and exhorting one another with all wisdom, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, all with grace ²  in your hearts to God.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

Exhortation to Teach the Covenant Principles

6:6 These words I am commanding you today must be kept in mind, 6:7 and you must teach ³  them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, ⁴  as you lie down, and as you get up.

Deuteronomy 11:19

11:19 Teach them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, ⁵  as you lie down, and as you get up.

Deuteronomy 11:1

Reiteration of the Call to Obedience

11:1 You must love the Lord your God and do what he requires; keep his statutes, ordinances, and commandments ⁶  at all times.

Deuteronomy 16:1

The Passover-Unleavened Bread Festival

16:1 Observe the month Abib ⁷  and keep the Passover to the Lord your God, for in that month ⁸  he ⁹  brought you out of Egypt by night.

Psalms 37:30-31

37:30 The godly speak wise words

and promote justice. ¹⁰ 

37:31 The law of their God controls their thinking; ¹¹ 

their ¹²  feet do not slip.

Psalms 40:9-10

40:9 I have told the great assembly ¹³  about your justice. ¹⁴ 

Look! I spare no words! ¹⁵ 

O Lord, you know this is true.

40:10 I have not failed to tell about your justice; ¹⁶ 

I spoke about your reliability and deliverance;

I have not neglected to tell the great assembly about your loyal love and faithfulness. ¹⁷ 

Psalms 45:2

45:2 You are the most handsome of all men! ¹⁸ 

You speak in an impressive and fitting manner! ¹⁹ 

For this reason ²⁰  God grants you continual blessings. ²¹ 

Psalms 66:16

66:16 Come! Listen, all you who are loyal to God! ²² 

I will declare what he has done for me.

Psalms 71:15-18

71:15 I will tell about your justice,

and all day long proclaim your salvation, ²³ 

though I cannot fathom its full extent. ²⁴ 

71:16 I will come and tell about ²⁵  the mighty acts of the sovereign Lord.

I will proclaim your justice – yours alone.

71:17 O God, you have taught me since I was young,

and I am still declaring ²⁶  your amazing deeds.

71:18 Even when I am old and gray, ²⁷ 

O God, do not abandon me,

until I tell the next generation about your strength,

and those coming after me about your power. ²⁸ 

Psalms 71:23-24

71:23 My lips will shout for joy! Yes, ²⁹  I will sing your praises!

I will praise you when you rescue me! ³⁰ 

71:24 All day long my tongue will also tell about your justice,

for those who want to harm me ³¹  will be embarrassed and ashamed. ³² 

Psalms 78:3-4

78:3 What we have heard and learned ³³  –

that which our ancestors ³⁴  have told us –

78:4 we will not hide from their ³⁵  descendants.

We will tell the next generation

about the Lord’s praiseworthy acts, ³⁶ 

about his strength and the amazing things he has done.

Psalms 105:2

105:2 Sing to him!

Make music to him!

Tell about all his miraculous deeds!

Psalms 119:13

119:13 With my lips I proclaim

all the regulations you have revealed. ³⁷ 

Psalms 119:46

119:46 I will speak ³⁸  about your regulations before kings

and not be ashamed.

Proverbs 10:21

10:21 The teaching ³⁹  of the righteous feeds ⁴⁰  many,

but fools die ⁴¹  for lack of wisdom. ⁴² 

Proverbs 15:4

15:4 Speech ⁴³  that heals ⁴⁴  is like ⁴⁵  a life-giving tree, ⁴⁶ 

but a perverse tongue ⁴⁷  breaks the spirit.

Proverbs 15:7

15:7 The lips of the wise spread ⁴⁸  knowledge,

but not so the heart of fools. ⁴⁹ 

Proverbs 16:21-24

16:21 The one who is wise in heart ⁵⁰  is called ⁵¹  discerning,

and kind speech ⁵²  increases persuasiveness. ⁵³ 

16:22 Insight ⁵⁴  is like ⁵⁵  a life-giving fountain ⁵⁶  to the one who possesses it,

but folly leads to the discipline of fools. ⁵⁷ 

16:23 A wise person’s heart ⁵⁸  makes his speech wise ⁵⁹ 

and it adds persuasiveness ⁶⁰  to his words. ⁶¹ 

16:24 Pleasant words are like ⁶²  a honeycomb, ⁶³ 

sweet to the soul and healing ⁶⁴  to the bones.

Proverbs 22:17-18

The Sayings of the Wise ⁶⁵ 

22:17 Incline your ear ⁶⁶  and listen to the words of the wise,

and apply your heart to my instruction. ⁶⁷ 

22:18 For it is pleasing if ⁶⁸  you keep these sayings ⁶⁹  within you,

and ⁷⁰  they are ready on your lips. ⁷¹ 

Proverbs 25:11-12

25:11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver, ⁷² 

so is a word skillfully spoken. ⁷³ 

25:12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold, ⁷⁴ 

so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens. ⁷⁵ 

Ecclesiastes 10:12

Words and Works of Wise Men and Fools

10:12 The words of a wise person ⁷⁶  win him ⁷⁷  favor, ⁷⁸ 

but the words ⁷⁹  of a fool are self-destructive. ⁸⁰ 

Malachi 3:16-18

3:16 Then those who respected ⁸¹  the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord took notice. ⁸²  A scroll ⁸³  was prepared before him in which were recorded the names of those who respected the Lord and honored his name. 3:17 “They will belong to me,” says the Lord who rules over all, “in the day when I prepare my own special property. ⁸⁴  I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. 3:18 Then once more you will see that I make a distinction between ⁸⁵  the righteous and the wicked, between the one who serves God and the one who does not.

Matthew 12:34-35

12:34 Offspring of vipers! How are you able to say anything good, since you are evil? For the mouth speaks from what fills the heart. 12:35 The good person ⁸⁶  brings good things out of his ⁸⁷  good treasury, ⁸⁸  and the evil person brings evil things out of his evil treasury.

Luke 4:22

4:22 All ⁸⁹  were speaking well of him, and were amazed at the gracious words coming out of his mouth. They ⁹⁰  said, “Isn’t this ⁹¹  Joseph’s son?”

Ephesians 4:29

4:29 You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, ⁹²  that it may give grace to those who hear.

[3:16]  ¹ tc Since “the word of Christ” occurs nowhere else in the NT, two predictable variants arose: “word of God” and “word of the Lord.” Even though some of the witnesses for these variants are impressive (κυρίου [kuriou, “of the Lord”] in א* I 1175 pc bo; θεοῦ [qeou, “of God”] in A C* 33 104 323 945 al), the reading Χριστοῦ (Cristou, “of Christ”) is read by an excellent cross-section of witnesses (Ì⁴⁶ א² B C² D F G Ψ 075 1739 1881 Ï lat sa). On both internal and external grounds, Χριστοῦ is strongly preferred.

[3:16]  ² tn Grk “with grace”; “all” is supplied as it is implicitly related to all the previous instructions in the verse.

[6:7]  ³ tn Heb “repeat” (so NLT). If from the root I שָׁנַן (shanan), the verb means essentially to “engrave,” that is, “to teach incisively” (Piel); note NAB “Drill them into your children.” Cf. BDB 1041-42 s.v.

[6:7]  ⁴ tn Or “as you are away on a journey” (cf. NRSV, TEV, NLT); NAB “at home and abroad.”

[11:19]  ⁵ tn Or “as you are away on a journey” (cf. NRSV, TEV, NLT); NAB “at home and abroad.”

[11:1]  ⁶ tn This collocation of technical terms for elements of the covenant text lends support to its importance and also signals a new section of paraenesis in which Moses will exhort Israel to covenant obedience. The Hebrew term מִשְׁמָרוֹת (mishmarot, “obligations”) sums up the three terms that follow – חֻקֹּת (khuqot), מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishppatim), and מִצְוֹת (mitsot).

[16:1]  ⁷ sn The month Abib, later called Nisan (Neh 2:1; Esth 3:7), corresponds to March-April in the modern calendar.

[16:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “in the month Abib.” The demonstrative “that” has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[16:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

[37:30]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “The mouth of the godly [one] utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.” The singular form is used in a representative sense; the typical godly individual is in view. The imperfect verbal forms draw attention to the characteristic behavior of the godly.

[37:31]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the law of his God [is] in his heart.” The “heart” is here the seat of one’s thoughts and motives.

[37:31]  ¹² tn Heb “his.” The pronoun has been translated as plural to agree with the representative or typical “godly” in v. 30.

[40:9]  ¹³ sn The great assembly is also mentioned in Pss 22:25 and 35:18.

[40:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “I proclaim justice in the great assembly.” Though “justice” appears without a pronoun here, the Lord’s just acts are in view (see v. 10). His “justice” (צֶדֶק, tsedeq) is here the deliverance that originates in his justice; he protects and vindicates the one whose cause is just.

[40:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Look! My lips I do not restrain.”

[40:10]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “your justice I have not hidden in the midst of my heart.”

[40:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “I have not hidden your loyal love and reliability.”

[45:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “you are handsome from the sons of man.” The preposition “from” is used in a comparative (“more than”) sense. The peculiar verb form יָפְיָפִיתָ (yafyafita) is probably the result of dittography of yod-pe (יפ) and should be emended to יָפִיתָ (yafita). See GKC 152 §55.e.

[45:2]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “favor is poured out on your lips.” “Lips” probably stands by metonymy for the king’s speech. Some interpret the Hebrew term חֵן (khen) as referring here to “gracious (i.e., kind and polite) speech”, but the word probably refers more generally to “attractive” speech that is impressively articulated and fitting for the occasion. For other instances of the term being used of speech, see Prov 22:11 and Eccl 10:12.

[45:2]  ²⁰ tn Or “this demonstrates.” The construction עַל־כֵּן (’al-ken, “therefore”) usually indicates what logically follows from a preceding statement. However, here it may infer the cause from the effect, indicating the underlying basis or reason for what precedes (see BDB 487 s.v. I כֵּן 3.f; C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs, Psalms [ICC], 1:386).

[45:2]  ²¹ tn Or “blesses you forever.” Here “bless” means to “endue with the power and skill to rule effectively,” as the following verses indicate.

[66:16]  ²² tn Heb “all of the fearers of God.”

[71:15]  ²³ tn Heb “my mouth declares your vindication, all the day your deliverance.”

[71:15]  ²⁴ tn Heb “though I do not know [the] numbers,” that is, the tally of God’s just and saving acts. HALOT 768 s.v. סְפֹרוֹת understands the plural noun to mean “the art of writing.”

[71:16]  ²⁵ tn Heb “I will come with.”

[71:17]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and until now I am declaring.”

[71:18]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and even unto old age and gray hair.”

[71:18]  ²⁸ tn Heb “until I declare your arm to a generation, to everyone who comes your power.” God’s “arm” here is an anthropomorphism that symbolizes his great strength.

[71:23]  ²⁹ tn Or “when.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) has an emphasizing (asseverative) function here.

[71:23]  ³⁰ tn Heb “and my life [or “soul”] which you will have redeemed.” The perfect verbal form functions here as a future perfect. The psalmist anticipates praising God, for God will have rescued him by that time.

[71:24]  ³¹ tn Heb “those who seek my harm.”

[71:24]  ³² tn Heb “will have become embarrassed and ashamed.” The perfect verbal forms function here as future perfects, indicating future actions which will precede chronologically the action expressed by the main verb in the preceding line.

[78:3]  ³³ tn Or “known.”

[78:3]  ³⁴ tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 5, 8, 12, 57).

[78:4]  ³⁵ tn The pronominal suffix refers back to the “fathers” (“our ancestors,” v. 3).

[78:4]  ³⁶ tn Heb “to a following generation telling the praises of the Lord.” “Praises” stand by metonymy for the mighty acts that prompt worship. Cf. Ps 9:14.

[119:13]  ³⁷ tn Heb “of your mouth.”

[119:46]  ³⁸ tn The series of four cohortatives with prefixed vav (ו) conjunctive in vv. 46-48 list further consequences of the anticipated positive divine response to the request made in v. 43.

[10:21]  ³⁹ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said (or in this case taught).

[10:21]  ⁴⁰ tn The verb רָעָה (ra’ah) means “to feed” or “to shepherd” (e.g., Gen 48:15). What they say will meet the needs of many.

[10:21]  ⁴¹ tn In what sense the fool “dies” is unclear. Fools ruin their lives and the lives of others by their lack of discipline and knowledge. The contrast is between enhancing life and ruining life.

[10:21]  ⁴² tn Heb “heart.” The term לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a metonymy of association for wisdom and knowledge (BDB 524 s.v. 3.a).

[15:4]  ⁴³ tn Heb “a tongue.” The term “tongue” is a metonymy of cause for what is produced: speech.

[15:4]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “a tongue of healing.” A healing tongue refers to speech that is therapeutic or soothing. It is a source of vitality.

[15:4]  ⁴⁵ 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.

[15:4]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “tree of life.”

[15:4]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “perversion in it.” The referent must be the tongue, so this has been supplied in the translation for clarity. A tongue that is twisted, perverse, or deceitful is a way of describing deceitful speech. Such words will crush the spirit (e.g., Isa 65:14).

[15:7]  ⁴⁸ tc The verb of the first colon is difficult because it does not fit the second very well – a heart does not “scatter” or “spread” knowledge. On the basis of the LXX, C. H. Toy (Proverbs [ICC], 305) suggests a change to יִצְּרוּ (yitsÿru, “they preserve”). The Greek evidence, however, is not strong. For the second line the LXX has “hearts of fools are not safe,” apparently taking לֹא־כֵן (lo’-khen) as “unstable” instead of “not so.” So it seems futile to use the Greek version to modify the first colon to make a better parallel, when the Greek has such a different reading in the second colon anyway.

[15:7]  ⁴⁹ sn The phrase “the heart of fools” emphasizes that fools do not comprehend knowledge. Cf. NCV “there is no knowledge in the thoughts of fools.”

[16:21]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “wise of heart” (so NRSV).

[16:21]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “to the wise of heart it will be called discerning.” This means that the wise of heart, those who make wise decisions (“heart” being the metonymy), will gain a reputation of being the discerning ones.

[16:21]  ⁵² tn Heb “sweetness of lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause, meaning what is said. It is a genitive of specification. The idea of “sweetness” must be gracious and friendly words. The teaching will be well-received because it is both delightful and persuasive (cf. NIV “pleasant words promote instruction”).

[16:21]  ⁵³ tn Heb “teaching” or “receptivity”; KJV “learning”; NIV “instruction.”

[16:22]  ⁵⁴ tn The Hebrew noun שֵׂכֵל (sekhel, “prudence; insight”; cf. KJV, NASB, NIV “understanding”; NAB, CEV “good sense”) is related to the verb that means “to have insight; to give attention to; to act circumspectly [or, prudently],” as well as “to prosper; to have success.” These words all describe the kind of wise action that will be successful.

[16:22]  ⁵⁵ 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.

[16:22]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “fountain of life.” The point of the metaphor is that like a fountain this wisdom will be a constant provision for living in this world.

[16:22]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “the discipline of fools [is] folly.” The “discipline” (מוּסָר, musar) in this proverb is essentially a requital for sin (hence “punishment,” so NIV, NCV, NRSV); discipline which is intended to correct is normally rejected and despised by fools. So the line is saying that there is very little that can be done for or with the fool (cf. NLT “discipline is wasted on fools”).

[16:23]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “mind” (cf. NCV, NRSV, NLT).

[16:23]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “makes wise his mouth,” with “mouth” being a metonymy of cause for what is said: “speech.”

[16:23]  ⁶⁰ sn Those who are wise say wise things. The proverb uses synthetic parallelism: The first line asserts that the wise heart ensures that what is said is wise, and the second line adds that such a person increases the reception of what is said.

[16:23]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “to his lips.” The term “lips” functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said.

[16:24]  ⁶² tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[16:24]  ⁶³ sn The metaphor of honey or the honeycomb is used elsewhere in scripture, notably Ps 19:10 [11]. Honey was used in Israel as a symbol of the delightful and healthy products of the land – “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Deut 6:3).

[16:24]  ⁶⁴ sn Two predicates are added to qualify the metaphor: The pleasant words are “sweet” and “healing.” “Soul” includes in it the appetites, physical and spiritual; and so sweet to the “soul” would summarize all the ways pleasant words give pleasure. “Bones” is a metonymy of subject, the boney framework representing the whole person, body and soul. Pleasant words, like honey, will enliven and encourage the whole person. One might recall, in line with the imagery here, how Jonathan’s eyes brightened when he ate from the honeycomb (1 Sam 14:27).

[22:17]  ⁶⁵ sn A new collection of sayings begins here, forming the fourth section of the book of Proverbs. This collection is not like that of 1:1–9:18; here the introductory material is more personal than 1:1-7, and the style differs, showing great similarity to the Instruction of Amenemope in Egypt (especially the thirty precepts of the sages in 22:17–24:22). Verses 17-21 form the introduction, and then the sayings begin in v. 22. After the thirty sayings are given, there are further sayings in 24:23-34. There is much literature on this material: see W. K. Simpson, ed., Literature of Ancient Egypt; ANET 412-425; and A. Cody, “Notes on Proverbs 22:21 and 22:23b,” Bib 61 (1980): 418-26.

[22:17]  ⁶⁶ sn To “incline the ear” means to “listen carefully” (cf. NCV); the expression is metonymical in that the ear is the instrument for hearing. It is like telling someone to lean over to hear better.

[22:17]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “knowledge” (so KJV, NASB); in this context it refers to the knowledge that is spoken by the wise, hence “instruction.”

[22:18]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “when” (so NIV).

[22:18]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “keep them,” referring to the words of the wise expressed in these sayings. The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:18]  ⁷⁰ tn The term “and” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation.

[22:18]  ⁷¹ sn If the teachings are preserved in the heart/mind of the disciple, then that individual will always be ready to speak what was retained.

[25:11]  ⁷² sn The verse uses emblematic parallelism, stating the simile in the first part and the point in the second. The meaning of the simile is not entirely clear, but it does speak of beauty, value, and artistry. The “apples of gold” (possibly citrons, quinces, oranges, or apricots) may refer to carvings of fruit in gold on columns.

[25:11]  ⁷³ tn Heb “on its wheels.” This expression means “aptly, fittingly.” The point is obviously about the immense value and memorable beauty of words used skillfully (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 148). Noting the meaning of the term and the dual form of the word, W. McKane suggests that the expression is metaphorical for the balancing halves of a Hebrew parallel wisdom saying: “The stichos is a wheel, and the sentence consisting of two wheels is a ‘well-turned’ expression” (Proverbs [OTL], 584). The line then would be describing a balanced, well-turned saying, a proverb; it is skillfully constructed, beautifully written, and of lasting value.

[25:12]  ⁷⁴ 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]  ⁷⁵ 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.”

[10:12]  ⁷⁶ tn Heb “of a wise man’s mouth.”

[10:12]  ⁷⁷ tn The phrase “win him” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:12]  ⁷⁸ tn Or “are gracious.” The antithetical parallelism suggests that חֵן (khen) does not denote “gracious character” but “[gain] favor” (e.g., Gen 39:21; Exod 3:21; 11:3; 12:36; Prov 3:4, 34; 13:15; 22:1; 28:23; Eccl 9:11); cf. HALOT 332 s.v. חֵן 2; BDB 336 s.v. חֵן 2. The LXX, on the other hand, rendered חֶן with χάρις (caris, “gracious”). The English versions are divided: “are gracious” (KJV, YLT, ASV, NASB, NIV) and “win him favor” (NEB, RSV, NRSV, NAB, MLB, NJPS, Moffatt).

[10:12]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “lips.”

[10:12]  ⁸⁰ tn Heb “consume him”; or “engulf him.” The verb I בלע (“to swallow”) creates a striking wordplay on the homonymic root II בלע (“to speak eloquently”; HALOT 134-35 s.v בלע). Rather than speaking eloquently (II בלע, “to speak eloquently”), the fool utters words that are self-destructive (I בלע, “to swallow, engulf”).

[3:16]  ⁸¹ tn Or “fear” (so NAB); NRSV “revered”; NCV “honored.”

[3:16]  ⁸² tn Heb “heard and listened”; NAB “listened attentively.”

[3:16]  ⁸³ sn The scroll mentioned here is a “memory book” (סֵפֶר זִכָּרוֹן, sefer zikkaron) in which the Lord keeps an ongoing record of the names of all the redeemed (see Exod 32:32; Isa 4:3; Dan 12:1; Rev 20:12-15).

[3:17]  ⁸⁴ sn The Hebrew word סְגֻלָּה (sÿgullah, “special property”) is a technical term referring to all the recipients of God’s redemptive grace, especially Israel (Exod 19:5; Deut 7:6; 14:2; 26:18). The Lord says here that he will not forget even one individual in the day of judgment and reward.

[3:18]  ⁸⁵ tn Heb “you will see between.” Cf. NRSV, TEV, NLT “see the difference.”

[12:35]  ⁸⁶ tn The Greek text reads here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos). The term is generic referring to any person.

[12:35]  ⁸⁷ tn Grk “the”; the Greek article has been translated here and in the following clause (“his evil treasury”) as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[12:35]  ⁸⁸ sn The treasury here is a metaphorical reference to a person’s heart (cf. BDAG 456 s.v. θησαυρός 1.b and the parallel passage in Luke 6:45).

[4:22]  ⁸⁹ tn Grk “And all.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:22]  ⁹⁰ tn Grk “And they.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[4:22]  ⁹¹ sn The form of the question assumes a positive reply. It really amounts to an objection, as Jesus’ response in the next verses shows. Jesus spoke smoothly and impressively. He made a wonderful declaration, but could a local carpenter’s son make such an offer? That was their real question.

[4:29]  ⁹² tn Grk “but if something good for the building up of the need.” The final genitive τῆς χρείας (th" creia") may refer to “the need of the moment” or it may refer to the need of a particular person or group of people as the next phrase “give grace to those who hear” indicates.