Proverbs 1:10

Admonition to Avoid Easy but Unjust Riches

1:10 My child, if sinners ¹  try to entice ²  you,

do not consent! ³ 

Proverbs 2:1

Benefits of Seeking Wisdom ⁴ 

2:1 My child, ⁵  if ⁶  you receive my words,

and store up ⁷  my commands within you,

Proverbs 4:1

Admonition to Follow Righteousness and Avoid Wickedness ⁸ 

4:1 Listen, children, ⁹  to a father’s instruction, ¹⁰ 

and pay attention so that ¹¹  you may gain ¹²  discernment.

Matthew 9:2

9:2 Just then ¹³  some people ¹⁴  brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. ¹⁵  When Jesus saw their ¹⁶  faith, he said to the paralytic, “Have courage, son! Your sins are forgiven.” ¹⁷ 

John 21:5

21:5 So Jesus said to them, “Children, you don’t have any fish, ¹⁸  do you?” ¹⁹  They replied, ²⁰  “No.”

John 21:1

Jesus’ Appearance to the Disciples in Galilee

21:1 After this ²¹  Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias. ²²  Now this is how he did so. ²³ 

John 2:1

Turning Water into Wine

2:1 Now on the third day there was a wedding at Cana ²⁴  in Galilee. ²⁵  Jesus’ mother ²⁶  was there,

[1:10]  ¹ tn The term חַטָּא (khatta’) is the common word for “sinner” in the OT. Because the related verb is used once of sling-shot throwers who miss the mark (Judg 20:16), the idea of sin is often explained as “missing the moral mark” (BDB 306-8 s.v.). But the term should not be restricted to the idea of a sin of ignorance or simply falling short of the moral ideal. Its meaning is more likely seen in the related Akkadian term “to revolt, rebel.” It is active rebellion against authority. It is used here in reference to a gang of robbers.

[1:10]  ² tn The imperfect tense verb יְפַתּוּךָ (yÿftukha) may be nuanced in a connotative sense: “(If) they attempt to
persuade you.” The verb פָּתָה (patah) means “to persuade, entice” a person to sin (BDB 834 s.v. פָּתָה 1; see, e.g., Judg 14:15; 16:5; Prov 16:29; Hos 2:16).

[1:10]  ³ tc The MT reads the root אָבָה (’avah, “to be willing; to consent”). Some medieval Hebrew mss read the root בּוֹא (bo’, “to go”): “do not go with them.” The majority of Hebrew mss and the versions support the MT reading, which is the less common word and so the more likely original reading.

[2:1]  ⁴ sn The chapter begins with an admonition to receive wisdom (1-4) and then traces the benefits: the knowledge of God and his protection (5-8), moral discernment for living (9-11), protection from evil men (12-15) and immoral women (16-19), and enablement for righteous living (20-22).

[2:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “my son.”

[2:1]  ⁶ sn Verses 1-11 form one long conditional sentence in the Hebrew text: (1) the protasis (“if…”) encompasses vv. 1-4 and (2) the apodosis (“then…”) consists of two parallel panels in vv. 5-8 and vv. 9-11 both of which are introduced by the particle אָז (’az, “then”).

[2:1]  ⁷ sn The verb “to store up” (צָפַן, tsafan; cf. NAB, NLT “treasure”) in the second colon qualifies the term “receive” (לָקַח, laqakh) in the first, just as “commands” intensifies “words.” This pattern of intensification through parallelism occurs throughout the next three verses. The verb “to store up; to treasure” is used in reference to things of value for future use, e.g., wealth, dowry for a bride. Since proverbs will be useful throughout life and not always immediately applicable, the idea of storing up the sayings is fitting. They will form the way people think which in turn will influence attitudes (W. G. Plaut, Proverbs, 43).

[4:1]  ⁸ sn The chapter includes an exhortation to acquire wisdom (1-4a), a list of the benefits of wisdom (4b-9), a call to pursue a righteous lifestyle (10-13), a warning against a wicked lifestyle (14-19), and an exhortation to righteousness (20-27).

[4:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “sons.”

[4:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “discipline.”

[4:1]  ¹¹ tn The Qal infinitive construct with preposition ל (lamed) indicates the purpose/result of the preceding imperative.

[4:1]  ¹² tn Heb “know” (so KJV, ASV).

[9:2]  ¹³ tn Grk “And behold, they were bringing.” Here καὶ ἰδού (kai idou) has been translated as “just then” to indicate the somewhat sudden appearance of the people carrying the paralytic. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1), especially in conjunction with the suddenness of the stretcher bearers’ appearance.

[9:2]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “they”; the referent (some unnamed people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:2]  ¹⁵ tn Traditionally, “on a bed,” but this could be confusing to the modern reader who might envision a large piece of furniture. In various contexts, κλίνη (klinh) may be translated “bed, couch, cot, stretcher, or bier” (in the case of a corpse). See L&N 6.106.

[9:2]  ¹⁶ sn The plural pronoun their makes it clear that Jesus was responding to the faith of the entire group, not just the paralyzed man.

[9:2]  ¹⁷ sn The passive voice here is a divine passive (ExSyn 437). It is clear that God does the forgiving.

[21:5]  ¹⁸ tn The word προσφάγιον (prosfagion) is unusual. According to BDAG 886 s.v. in Hellenistic Greek it described a side dish to be eaten with bread, and in some contexts was the equivalent of ὄψον (oyon), “fish.” Used in addressing a group of returning fishermen, however, it is quite clear that the speaker had fish in mind.

[21:5]  ¹⁹ tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “do you?”).

[21:5]  ²⁰ tn Grk “They answered him.”

[21:1]  ²¹ tn The time reference indicated by μετὰ ταῦτα (meta tauta) is indefinite, in comparison with the specific “after eight days” (μεθ᾿ ἡμέρας ὀκτώ, meq’ Jhmera" oktw) between the two postresurrection appearances of Jesus in 20:26.

[21:1]  ²² sn The Sea of Tiberias is another name for the Sea of Galilee (see 6:1).

[21:1]  ²³ tn Grk “how he revealed himself.”

[2:1]  ²⁴ map For location see Map1 C3; Map2 D2; Map3 C5.

[2:1]  ²⁵ sn Cana in Galilee was not a very well-known place. It is mentioned only here, in 4:46, and 21:2, and nowhere else in the NT. Josephus (Life 16 [86]) says he once had his quarters there. The probable location is present day Khirbet Cana, 8 mi (14 km) north of Nazareth, or Khirbet Kenna, 4 mi (7 km) northeast of Nazareth.

[2:1]  ²⁶ tn Grk “in Galilee, and Jesus’ mother.”