Genesis 19:14

19:14 Then Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law who were going to marry his daughters. ¹  He said, “Quick, get out of this place because the Lord is about to destroy ²  the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was ridiculing them. ³ 

Genesis 25:34

25:34 Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and lentil stew; Esau ate and drank, then got up and went out. ⁴  So Esau despised his birthright. ⁵ 

Psalms 106:24-25

106:24 They rejected the fruitful land; ⁶ 

they did not believe his promise. ⁷ 

106:25 They grumbled in their tents; ⁸ 

they did not obey ⁹  the Lord.

Proverbs 1:7

Introduction to the Theme of the Book

1:7 Fearing the Lord ¹⁰  is the beginning ¹¹  of moral knowledge, ¹² 

but ¹³  fools ¹⁴  despise ¹⁵  wisdom and instruction. ¹⁶ 

Proverbs 1:24-25

1:24 However, ¹⁷  because ¹⁸  I called but you refused to listen, ¹⁹ 

because ²⁰  I stretched out my hand ²¹  but no one paid attention,

1:25 because ²²  you neglected ²³  all my advice,

and did not comply ²⁴  with my rebuke,

Acts 2:13

2:13 But others jeered at the speakers, ²⁵  saying, “They are drunk on new wine!” ²⁶ 

Acts 24:25

24:25 While Paul ²⁷  was discussing ²⁸  righteousness, self-control, ²⁹  and the coming judgment, Felix ³⁰  became ³¹  frightened and said, “Go away for now, and when I have an opportunity, ³²  I will send for you.”

Romans 2:4

2:4 Or do you have contempt for the wealth of his kindness, forbearance, and patience, and yet do not know ³³  that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?

Hebrews 2:3

2:3 how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was first communicated through the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him,

[19:14]  ¹ sn The language has to be interpreted in the light of the context and the social customs. The men are called “sons-in-law” (literally “the takers of his daughters”), but the daughters had not yet had sex with a man. It is better to translate the phrase “who were going to marry his daughters.” Since formal marriage contracts were binding, the husbands-to-be could already be called sons-in-law.

[19:14]  ² tn The Hebrew active participle expresses an imminent action.

[19:14]  ³ tn Heb “and he was like one taunting in the eyes of his sons-in-law.” These men mistakenly thought Lot was ridiculing them and their lifestyle. Their response illustrates how morally insensitive they had become.

[25:34]  ⁴ sn The style here is typical of Hebrew narrative; after the tension is resolved with the dialogue, the working out of it is recorded in a rapid sequence of verbs (“gave”; “ate”; “drank”; “got up”; “went out”). See also Gen 3:1-7 for another example.

[25:34]  ⁵ sn So Esau despised his birthright. This clause, which concludes the episode, is a summary statement which reveals the underlying significance of Esau’s actions. “To despise” means to treat something as worthless or with contempt. Esau’s willingness to sell his birthright was evidence that he considered it to be unimportant.

[106:24]  ⁶ tn Heb “a land of delight” (see also Jer 3:19; Zech 7:14).

[106:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “his word.”

[106:25]  ⁸ sn They grumbled in their tents. See Deut 1:27.

[106:25]  ⁹ tn Heb “did not listen to the voice of.”

[1:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “fear of the Lord.” The expression יְהוָה יִרְאַת (yir’at yÿhvah, “fear of Yahweh”) is a genitive-construct in which יְהוָה (“the Lord”) functions as an objective genitive: He is the object of fear. The term יָרַא (yara’) is the common word for fear in the OT and has a basic three-fold range of meanings: (1) “dread; terror” (Deut 1:29; Jonah 1:10), (2) “to stand in awe” (1 Kgs 3:28), (3) “to revere; to respect” (Lev 19:3). With the Lord as the object, it captures the polar opposites of shrinking back in fear and drawing close in awe and adoration. Both categories of meaning appear in Exod 20:20 (where the Lord descended upon Sinai amidst geophysical convulsions); Moses encouraged the Israelites to not be afraid of God arbitrarily striking them dead for no reason (“Do not fear!”) but informed the people that the Lord revealed himself in such a terrifying manner to scare them from sinning (“God has come only to test you and to put the fear of him in you so that you do not sin”). The fear of the Lord is expressed in reverential submission to his will – the characteristic of true worship. The fear of the Lord is the foundation for wisdom (9:10) and the discipline leading to wisdom (15:33). It is expressed in hatred of evil (8:13) and avoidance of sin (16:6), and so results in prolonged life (10:27; 19:23).

[1:7]  ¹¹ tn The noun רֵאשִׁית (re’shit) has a two-fold range of meaning (BDB 912 s.v.): (1) “beginning” = first step in a course of action (e.g., Ps 111:10; Prov 17:14; Mic 1:13) or (2) “chief thing” as the principal aspect of something (e.g., Prov 4:7). So fearing the Lord is either (1) the first step in acquiring moral knowledge or (2) the most important aspect of moral knowledge. The first option is preferred because 1:2-6 focuses on the acquisition of wisdom.

[1:7]  ¹² tn Heb “knowledge.” The noun דָּעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) refers to experiential knowledge, not just cognitive knowledge, including the intellectual assimilation and practical application (BDB 394 s.v.). It is used in parallelism to מוּסָר (musar, “instruction, discipline”) and חָכְמָה (khokhmah, “wisdom, moral skill”).

[1:7]  ¹³ tn The conjunction “but” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the antithetical parallelism. It is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:7]  ¹⁴ tn The term אֱוִיל (’evil, “fool”) refers to a person characterized by moral folly (BDB 17 s.v.). Fools lack understanding (10:21), do not store up knowledge (10:14), fail to attain wisdom (24:7), and refuse correction (15:5; 27:22). They are arrogant (26:5), talk loosely (14:3) and are contentious (20:3). They might have mental intelligence but they are morally foolish. In sum, they are stubborn and “thick-brained” (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 6).

[1:7]  ¹⁵ tn The verb of בָּזָה (bazah, “despise”) means to treat things of value with contempt, as if they were worthless (BDB 102 s.v.). The classic example is Esau who despised his birthright and sold it for lentil stew (Gen 25:34). The perfect tense of this verb may be classified as characteristic perfect (what they have done and currently do) or gnomic perfect (what they always do in past, present and future). The latter is preferred; this describes a trait of fools, and elsewhere the book says that fools do not change.

[1:7]  ¹⁶ sn Hebrew word order is emphatic here. Normal word order is: verb + subject + direct object. Here it is: direct object + subject + verb (“wisdom and instruction fools despise”).

[1:24]  ¹⁷ tn The term “however” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the contrast between the offer in 1:23 and the accusation in 1:24-25. It is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[1:24]  ¹⁸ tn The particle יַעַן (ya’an, “because”) introduces a causal clause which forms part of an extended protasis; the apodosis is 1:26.

[1:24]  ¹⁹ tn The phrase “to listen” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[1:24]  ²⁰ tn The term “because” does not appear in this line but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.

[1:24]  ²¹ sn This expression is a metonymy of adjunct; it is a gesture that goes with the appeal for some to approach.

[1:25]  ²² tn Heb “and.”

[1:25]  ²³ 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]  ²⁴ tn The verbs are characteristic perfects or indefinite pasts. For the word “comply, consent,” see 1:20.

[2:13]  ²⁵ tn The words “the speakers” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[2:13]  ²⁶ tn Grk “They are full of new wine!”

[24:25]  ²⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:25]  ²⁸ tn Or “speaking about.”

[24:25]  ²⁹ tn Grk “and self-control.” This καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[24:25]  ³⁰ sn See the note on Felix in 23:26.

[24:25]  ³¹ tn Grk “becoming.” The participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[24:25]  ³² tn Or “when I find time.” BDAG 639 s.v. μεταλαμβάνω 2 has “καιρὸν μ. have an opportunity = find time…Ac 24:25.”

[2:4]  ³³ tn Grk “being unaware.”