Micah 3:12

3:12 Therefore, because of you, ¹  Zion will be plowed up like ²  a field,

Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins,

and the Temple Mount ³  will become a hill overgrown with brush! ⁴ 

Job 4:8

4:8 Even as I have seen, ⁵  those who plow ⁶  iniquity ⁷ 

and those who sow trouble reap the same. ⁸ 

Proverbs 1:31

1:31 Therefore ⁹  they will eat from the fruit ¹⁰  of their way, ¹¹ 

and they will be stuffed full ¹²  of their own counsel.

Proverbs 5:22

5:22 The wicked ¹³  will be captured by his ¹⁴  own iniquities, ¹⁵ 

and he will be held ¹⁶  by the cords of his own sin. ¹⁷ 

Proverbs 31:31

31:31 Give ¹⁸  her credit for what she has accomplished, ¹⁹ 

and let her works praise her ²⁰  in the city gates. ²¹ 

Isaiah 3:10-11

3:10 Tell the innocent ²²  it will go well with them, ²³ 

for they will be rewarded for what they have done. ²⁴ 

3:11 Too bad for the wicked sinners!

For they will get exactly what they deserve. ²⁵ 

Jeremiah 17:10

17:10 I, the Lord, probe into people’s minds.

I examine people’s hearts. ²⁶ 

I deal with each person according to how he has behaved.

I give them what they deserve based on what they have done.

Jeremiah 21:14

21:14 But I will punish you as your deeds deserve,’

says the Lord. ²⁷ 

‘I will set fire to your palace;

it will burn up everything around it.’” ²⁸ 

Jeremiah 32:19

32:19 You plan great things and you do mighty deeds. ²⁹  You see everything people do. ³⁰  You reward each of them for the way they live and for the things they do. ³¹ 

Galatians 6:7-8

6:7 Do not be deceived. God will not be made a fool. ³²  For a person ³³  will reap what he sows, 6:8 because the person who sows to his own flesh ³⁴  will reap corruption ³⁵  from the flesh, ³⁶  but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.

[3:12]  ¹ tn The plural pronoun refers to the leaders, priests, and prophets mentioned in the preceding verse.

[3:12]  ² tn Or “into” (an adverbial accusative of result).

[3:12]  ³ tn Heb “the mountain of the house” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV).

[3:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “a high place of overgrowth.”

[4:8]  ⁵ tn The perfect verb here represents the indefinite past. It has no specific sighting in mind, but refers to each time he has seen the wicked do this.

[4:8]  ⁶ sn The figure is an implied metaphor. Plowing suggests the idea of deliberately preparing (or cultivating) life for evil. This describes those who are fundamentally wicked.

[4:8]  ⁷ tn The LXX renders this with a plural “barren places.”

[4:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “reap it.”

[1:31]  ⁹ tn The vav (ו) prefixed to the verb וְיֹאכְלוּ (vÿyo’khÿlu) functions in a consecutive logical sense: “therefore.”

[1:31]  ¹⁰ sn The expression “eat the fruit of” is a figurative expression (hypocatastasis) that compares the consequences of sin to agricultural growth that culminates in produce. They will suffer the consequences of their sinful actions, that is, they will “reap” what they “sow.”

[1:31]  ¹¹ sn The words “way” (דֶּרֶךְ, derekh) and “counsel” (מוֹעֵצָה, mo’etsah) stand in strong contrast to the instruction of wisdom which gave counsel and rebuke to encourage a better way. They will bear the consequences of the course they follow and the advice they take (for that wrong advice, e.g., Ps 1:1).

[1:31]  ¹² tn Heb “to eat to one’s fill.” The verb שָׂבֵעַ (savea’) means (1) positive: “to eat one’s fill” so that one’s appetite is satisfied and (2) negative: “to eat in excess” as a glutton to the point of sickness and revulsion (BDB 959 s.v.). Fools will not only “eat” the fruit of their own way (v. 31a), they will be force-fed this revolting “menu” which will make them want to vomit (v. 31b) and eventually kill them (v. 32).

[5:22]  ¹³ tn The suffix on the verb is the direct object suffix; “the wicked” is a second object by apposition: They capture him, the wicked. Since “the wicked” is not found in the LXX, it could be an old scribal error; or the Greek translator may have simply smoothed out the sentence. C. H. Toy suggests turning the sentence into a passive idea: “The wicked will be caught in his iniquities” (Proverbs [ICC], 117).

[5:22]  ¹⁴ tn The word is the subject of the clause, but the pronominal suffix has no clear referent. The suffix is proleptic, referring to the wicked.

[5:22]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “his own iniquities will capture the wicked.” The translation shifts the syntax for the sake of smoothness and readability.

[5:22]  ¹⁶ sn The lack of discipline and control in the area of sexual gratification is destructive. The one who plays with this kind of sin will become ensnared by it and led to ruin.

[5:22]  ¹⁷ tn The Hebrew is structured chiastically: “his own iniquities will capture the wicked, by the cords of his own sin will he be held.”

[31:31]  ¹⁸ tn The first word of the twenty-second line begins with ת (tav), the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

[31:31]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Give her from the fruit of her hands.” The expression “the fruit of her hands” employs two figures. The word “fruit” is a figure known as hypocatastasis, an implied comparison, meaning “what she produces.” The word “hand” is a metonymy of cause, meaning her efforts to produce things. So the line is saying essentially “give her her due.” This would either mean give her credit for what she has done (the option followed by the present translation; cf. TEV) or reward her for what she has done (cf. NAB, NIV, NLT).

[31:31]  ²⁰ sn Psalm 111 began with the imperative יָה הָלְלוּ (halÿlu yah, “praise the Lord”), and this poem ends with the jussive וִיהָלְלוּהָּ (vihalÿluha, “and let [her works] praise her”). Psalm 111:2 speaks of God’s works, and this verse of the woman’s (or wisdom’s) works that deserve praise.

[31:31]  ²¹ tn “Gates” is a metonymy of subject. It refers to the people and the activity that occurs in the gates – business dealings, legal transactions, and social meetings. The term “city” is supplied in the translation for clarity. One is reminded of the acclaim given to Ruth by Boaz: “for all the gate of my people knows that you are a noble woman [אֵשֶׁת חַיִל, ’eshet khayil]” (Ruth 3:11).

[3:10]  ²² tn Or “the righteous” (KJV, NASB, NIV, TEV); NLT “those who are godly.”

[3:10]  ²³ tn Heb “that it is good.”

[3:10]  ²⁴ tn Heb “for the fruit of their deeds they will eat.”

[3:11]  ²⁵ tn Heb “for the work of his hands will be done to him.”

[17:10]  ²⁶ tn The term rendered “mind” here and in the previous verse is actually the Hebrew word for “heart.” However, in combination with the word rendered “heart” in the next line, which is the Hebrew for “kidneys,” it is best rendered “mind” because the “heart” was considered the center of intellect, conscience, and will and the “kidneys” the center of emotions.

[21:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[21:14]  ²⁸ tn Heb “I will set fire in its forest and it will devour its surroundings.” The pronouns are actually third feminine singular going back to the participle “you who sit enthroned above the valley.” However, this is another example of those rapid shifts in pronouns typical of the biblical Hebrew style which are uncommon in English. They have regularly been leveled to the same person throughout in the translation to avoid possible confusion for the English reader.

[32:19]  ²⁹ tn Heb “[you are] great in counsel and mighty in deed.”

[32:19]  ³⁰ tn Heb “your eyes are open to the ways of the sons of men.”

[32:19]  ³¹ tn Heb “giving to each according to his way [= behavior/conduct] and according to the fruit of his deeds.”

[6:7]  ³² tn Or “is not mocked,” “will not be ridiculed” (L&N 33.409). BDAG 660 s.v. μυκτηρίζω has “of God οὐ μ. he is not to be mocked, treated w. contempt, perh. outwitted Gal 6:7.”

[6:7]  ³³ tn Here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense, referring to both men and women.

[6:8]  ³⁴ tn BDAG 915 s.v. σάρξ 2.c.α states: “In Paul’s thought esp., all parts of the body constitute a totality known as σ. or flesh, which is dominated by sin to such a degree that wherever flesh is, all forms of sin are likew. present, and no good thing can live in the σάρξ…Gal 5:13, 24;…Opp. τὸ πνεῦμα…Gal 3:3; 5:16, 17ab; 6:8ab.”

[6:8]  ³⁵ tn Or “destruction.”

[6:8]  ³⁶ tn See the note on the previous occurrence of the word “flesh” in this verse.