Numbers 22:32

22:32 The angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? Look, I came out to oppose you because what you are doing ¹  is perverse before me. ² 

Job 33:27

33:27 That person sings ³  to others, ⁴  saying:

‘I have sinned and falsified what is right,

but I was not punished according to what I deserved. ⁵ 

Proverbs 10:9

10:9 The one who conducts himself ⁶  in integrity ⁷  will live ⁸  securely,

but the one who behaves perversely ⁹  will be found out.

Proverbs 19:3

19:3 A person’s folly ¹⁰  subverts ¹¹  his way,

and ¹²  his heart rages ¹³  against the Lord.

Micah 3:9

3:9 Listen to this, you leaders of the family ¹⁴  of Jacob,

you rulers of the nation ¹⁵  of Israel!

You ¹⁶  hate justice

and pervert all that is right.

[22:32]  ¹ tn Heb “your way.”

[22:32]  ² tn The verb יָרַט (yarat) occurs only here and in Job 16:11. Balaam is embarking on a foolish mission with base motives. The old rendering “perverse” is still acceptable.

[33:27]  ³ tc The verb יָשֹׁר (yashor) is unusual. The typical view is to change it to יָשִׁיר (yashir, “he sings”), but that may seem out of harmony with a confession. Dhorme suggests a root שׁוּר (shur, “to repeat”), but this is a doubtful root. J. Reider reads it יָשֵׁיר (yasher) and links it to an Arabic word “confesses” (ZAW 24 [1953]: 275).

[33:27]  ⁴ tn Heb “to men.”

[33:27]  ⁵ tn The verb שָׁוָה (shavah) has the impersonal meaning here, “it has not been requited to me.” The meaning is that the sinner has not been treated in accordance with his deeds: “I was not punished according to what I deserved.”

[10:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “he who walks.” The idiom is used widely in both OT and NT for conduct, behavior, or lifestyle.

[10:9]  ⁷ sn “Integrity” here means “blameless” in conduct. Security follows integrity, because the lifestyle is blameless. The righteous is certain of the course to be followed and does not fear retribution from man or God.

[10:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “walks.”

[10:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “he who perverts his ways” (so NASB); NIV “who takes crooked paths” (NLT similar). The Piel participle מְעַקֵּשׁ (mÿ’aqqesh) means “make crooked; twisted; perverse.” It is stronger than simply taking crooked paths; it refers to perverting the ways. The one who is devious will not get away with it.

[19:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the folly of a man.”

[19:3]  ¹¹ tn The verb סָלַף (salaf) normally means “to twist; to pervert; to overturn,” but in this context it means “to subvert” (BDB 701 s.v.); cf. ASV “subverteth.”

[19:3]  ¹² tn The clause begins with vav on the nonverb phrase “against the Lord.” While clause structure and word order is less compelling in a book like Proverbs, this fits well as a circumstantial clause indicating concession.

[19:3]  ¹³ sn The “heart raging” is a metonymy of cause (or adjunct); it represents the emotions that will lead to blaming God for the frustration. Genesis 42:28 offers a calmer illustration of this as the brothers ask what God was doing to them.

[3:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “house.”

[3:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “house.”

[3:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “who.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons (also at the beginning of v. 10).