Proverbs 26:24-25

26:24 The one who hates others disguises ¹  it with his lips,

but he stores up ²  deceit within him. ³ 

26:25 When ⁴  he speaks graciously, ⁵  do not believe him, ⁶ 

for there are seven ⁷  abominations ⁸  within him.

Matthew 10:16-17

Persecution of Disciples

10:16 “I ⁹  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ¹⁰  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 10:17 Beware ¹¹  of people, because they will hand you over to councils ¹²  and flog ¹³  you in their synagogues. ¹⁴ 

John 2:24

2:24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people. ¹⁵ 

[26:24]  ¹ tn The Niphal imperfect from נָכַר (nakhar) means “to act [or, treat] as a foreigner [or, stranger]; to misconstrue; to disguise.” The direct object (“it”) is not present in the Hebrew text but is implied. In this passage it means that the hater speaks what is “foreign” to his thought; in other words, he dissembles.

[26:24]  ² tn Or “places; puts; lays up” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB).

[26:24]  ³ tn Heb “within him” (so KJV, ASV) or “in his midst”; NAB “in his inmost being.”

[26:25]  ⁴ tn The particle כִּי (ki) is here interpreted with a temporal nuance. It is also possible that it could be read as concessive (so NIV, NLT “Though”).

[26:25]  ⁵ tn The meaning of the rare Piel form of חָנַן (khanan) is “to make gracious; to make favorable.” The subject is קוֹלוֹ (qolo, “his voice”), a metonymy of cause for what he says. The idea is that what he says is very gracious in its content and its effect.

[26:25]  ⁶ sn It may be that the placing of this proverb in this setting is designed to point out that the person speaking graciously is this wicked person who conceals an evil heart. Otherwise it may have in mind a person who has already proven untrustworthy but protests in order to conceal his plans. But even if that were not the connection, the proverb would still warn the disciple not to believe someone just because it sounded wonderful. It will take great discernment to know if there is sincerity behind the person’s words.

[26:25]  ⁷ sn The number “seven” is used in scripture as the complete number. In this passage it is not intended to be literally seven; rather, the expression means that there is complete or total abomination in his heart. Cf. TEV “his heart is filled to the brim with hate.”

[26:25]  ⁸ sn “Abomination” means something that is loathed. This is a description applied by the writer, for the hypocritical person would not refer to his plans this way.

[10:16]  ⁹ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[10:16]  ¹⁰ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.

[10:17]  ¹¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:17]  ¹² sn Councils in this context refers to local judicial bodies attached to the Jewish synagogue. This group would be responsible for meting out justice and discipline within the Jewish community.

[10:17]  ¹³ tn BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “of flogging as a punishment decreed by the synagogue (Dt 25:2f; s. the Mishna Tractate Sanhedrin-Makkoth, edited w. notes by SKrauss ’33) w. acc. of pers. Mt 10:17; 23:34.”

[10:17]  ¹⁴ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[2:24]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “all.” The word “people” has been supplied for clarity, since the Greek word πάντας (pantas) is masculine plural (thus indicating people rather than things).