Proverbs 1:12

1:12 We will swallow them alive ¹  like Sheol, ² 

those full of vigor ³  like those going down to the Pit.

Proverbs 3:22

3:22 So ⁴  they will give ⁵  life to you, ⁶ 

and grace to adorn ⁷  your neck. ⁸ 

Proverbs 10:16

10:16 The reward ⁹  which the righteous receive ¹⁰  is life;

the recompense ¹¹  which the wicked receive ¹²  is judgment. ¹³ 

Proverbs 11:19

11:19 True ¹⁴  righteousness leads to ¹⁵  life,

but the one who pursues evil pursues it ¹⁶  to his own death. ¹⁷ 

[1:12]  ¹ tn Heb “lives.” The noun חַיִּים (khayyim, “lives”) functions as an adverbial accusative of manner: “alive.” The form is a plural of state, used to describe a condition of life which encompasses a long period of time – in this case a person’s entire life. Murder cuts short a person’s life.

[1:12]  ² tn The noun שְׁאוֹל (shÿ’ol) can mean (1) “death,” cf. NCV; (2) “the grave,” cf. KJV, NIV, NLT (3) “Sheol” as the realm of departed spirits, cf. NAB “the nether world,” and (4) “extreme danger.” Here it is parallel to the noun בוֹר (vor, “the Pit”) so it is the grave or more likely “Sheol” (cf. ASV, NRSV). Elsewhere Sheol is personified as having an insatiable appetite and swallowing people alive as they descend to their death (e.g., Num 16:30, 33; Isa 5:14; Hab 2:5). In ancient Near Eastern literature, the grave is often personified in similar manner, e.g., in Ugaritic mythological texts Mot (= “death”) is referred to as “the great swallower.”

[1:12]  ³ tn Heb “and whole.” The vav (ו) is asseverative or appositional (“even”); it is omitted in the translation for the sake of style and smoothness. The substantival adjective תָּמִים (tamim, “whole; perfect; blameless”) is an adverbial accusative describing the condition and state of the object. Used in parallel to חַיִּים (khayyim, “alive”), it must mean “full of health” (BDB 1071 s.v. תָּמִים 2). These cutthroats want to murder a person who is full of vigor.

[3:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “and.” The vav probably denotes purpose/result.

[3:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “they will be.”

[3:22]  ⁶ tn Heb “your soul.” The noun נַפְשֶׁךָ (nafshekha, “your soul”) is a synecdoche of part (= inner soul) for the whole person (= you); see BDB 600 s.v. 4.a.2.

[3:22]  ⁷ tn The phrase “to adorn” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

[3:22]  ⁸ tn Heb “grace for your neck.” See note on 1:9.

[10:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “recompense” (so NAB); NASB, NIV “wages.” The noun פְּעֻלַּה (pÿ’ullah) has a two-fold range of meanings: (1) “work; deed” and (2) “reward; recompense” (BDB 821 s.v.). There is a clear correlation between a person’s conduct and its consequences. Rewards are determined by moral choices. What one receives in life depends on the use of gifts and a righteous character.

[10:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “the recompense of the righteous.”

[10:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “harvest.” The term תְּבוּאַת (tÿvu’at, “harvest; yield”) is used figuratively here (hypocatastasis), drawing an implied comparison between the agricultural yield of a farmer’s labors with the consequences of the actions of the wicked. They will “reap” (= judgment) what they “sow” (= sin).

[10:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the harvest of the wicked.”

[10:16]  ¹¹ tn Heb “sin.” The term חַטָּאת (khatta’t, “sin”) functions as a metonymy of cause (= sin) for effect (= punishment). In contrast to the righteous who receive a reward, the wicked receive punishment for their sin (cf. NASB, NIV, NCV). See D. W. Thomas, “The Meaning of חַטָּאת in Proverbs X.16,” JTS 15 (1964): 295-96.

[11:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the veritable of righteousness.” The adjective כֵּן (ken, “right; honest; veritable”) functions substantivally as an attributive genitive, meaning “veritable righteousness” = true righteousness (BDB 467 s.v. 2; HALOT 482 s.v. I כֵּן 2.b). One medieval Hebrew ms, LXX, and Syriac read בֵּן (ben), “son of righteousness.” That idiom, however, usually introduces bad qualities (“son of worthlessness”). Others interpret it as “righteousness is the foundation of life.” KB identifies the form as a participle and reads it as “steadfast in righteousness”; but the verb does not otherwise exist in the Qal. W. McKane reads it as כָּן (kan, from כּוּן, kun) and translates it “strive after” life (Proverbs [OTL], 435).

[11:19]  ¹¹ tn Heb “is to life.” The expression “leads to” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but the idiom implies it; it is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

[11:19]  ¹² tn The phrase “pursues it” does not appear in the Hebrew but has been supplied in the translation from context.

[11:19]  ¹³ sn “Life” and “death” describe the vicissitudes of this life but can also refer to the situation beyond the grave. The two paths head in opposite directions.