Discovery BoxProverbs 1:29
Context1:29 Because 1 they hated moral knowledge, 2
and did not choose to fear the Lord, 3
Proverbs 1:7
Context1:7 Fearing the Lord 4 is the beginning 5 of moral knowledge, 6
but 7 fools 8 despise 9 wisdom and instruction. 10
Proverbs 2:5
Context2:5 then you will understand 11 how to fear the Lord, 12
and you will discover 13 knowledge 14 about God. 15
Proverbs 3:7
Context3:7 Do not be wise in your own estimation; 16
fear the Lord and turn away from evil. 17
Proverbs 8:13
Context8:13 The fear of the Lord is to hate 18 evil;
I hate arrogant pride 19 and the evil way
and perverse utterances. 20
Proverbs 9:10
Context9:10 The beginning 21 of wisdom is to fear the Lord, 22
and acknowledging 23 the Holy One 24 is understanding.
Proverbs 10:27
Context10:27 Fearing the Lord 25 prolongs life, 26
but the life span 27 of the wicked will be shortened. 28
Proverbs 14:2
Context14:2 The one who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord, 29
but the one who is perverted in his ways 30 despises him.
Proverbs 14:26-27
Context14:26 In the fear of the Lord one has 31 strong confidence, 32
and it will be a refuge 33 for his children.
14:27 The fear of the Lord 34 is like 35 a life-giving fountain, 36
to turn 37 people 38 from deadly snares. 39
Proverbs 15:16
Context15:16 Better 40 is little with the fear of the Lord
than great wealth and turmoil 41 with it. 42
Proverbs 15:33
Context15:33 The fear of the Lord provides wise instruction, 43
and before honor comes humility. 44
Proverbs 16:6
Context16:6 Through loyal love and truth 45 iniquity is appeased; 46
through fearing the Lord 47 one avoids 48 evil. 49
Proverbs 19:23
Context19:23 Fearing the Lord 50 leads 51 to life, 52
and one who does so will live 53 satisfied; he will not be afflicted 54 by calamity.
Proverbs 22:4
Context22:4 The reward 55 for humility 56 and fearing the Lord 57
is riches and honor and life.
Proverbs 23:17
Context23:17 Do not let your heart envy 58 sinners,
but rather be zealous in fearing the Lord 59 all the time.
Proverbs 28:14
Context28:14 Blessed is the one who is always cautious, 60
but whoever hardens his heart 61 will fall into evil.
Proverbs 31:30
Context31:30 Charm is deceitful 62 and beauty is fleeting, 63
but a woman who fears the Lord 64 will be praised.
[1:29] 1 tn The causal particle תַּחַת כִּי (takhat ki, “for the reason that”) introduces a second accusation of sin and reason for punishment.
[1:29] 2 tn Heb “knowledge.” The noun דָעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) refers to moral knowledge. See note on 1:7.
[1:29] 3 tn Heb “the fear of the
[1:7] 4 tn Heb “fear of the
[1:7] 5 tn The noun רֵאשִׁית (re’shit) has a two-fold range of meaning (BDB 912 s.v.): (1) “beginning” = first step in a course of action (e.g., Ps 111:10; Prov 17:14; Mic 1:13) or (2) “chief thing” as the principal aspect of something (e.g., Prov 4:7). So fearing the
[1:7] 6 tn Heb “knowledge.” The noun דָּעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) refers to experiential knowledge, not just cognitive knowledge, including the intellectual assimilation and practical application (BDB 394 s.v.). It is used in parallelism to מוּסָר (musar, “instruction, discipline”) and חָכְמָה (khokhmah, “wisdom, moral skill”).
[1:7] 7 tn The conjunction “but” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the antithetical parallelism. It is supplied in the translation for clarity.
[1:7] 8 tn The term אֱוִיל (’evil, “fool”) refers to a person characterized by moral folly (BDB 17 s.v.). Fools lack understanding (10:21), do not store up knowledge (10:14), fail to attain wisdom (24:7), and refuse correction (15:5; 27:22). They are arrogant (26:5), talk loosely (14:3) and are contentious (20:3). They might have mental intelligence but they are morally foolish. In sum, they are stubborn and “thick-brained” (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 6).
[1:7] 9 tn The verb of בָּזָה (bazah, “despise”) means to treat things of value with contempt, as if they were worthless (BDB 102 s.v.). The classic example is Esau who despised his birthright and sold it for lentil stew (Gen 25:34). The perfect tense of this verb may be classified as characteristic perfect (what they have done and currently do) or gnomic perfect (what they always do in past, present and future). The latter is preferred; this describes a trait of fools, and elsewhere the book says that fools do not change.
[1:7] 10 sn Hebrew word order is emphatic here. Normal word order is: verb + subject + direct object. Here it is: direct object + subject + verb (“wisdom and instruction fools despise”).
[2:5] 7 tn The verb בִּין (bin, “to perceive; to understand; to discern”) refers to ability to grasp, discern or be sensitive to what it means to fear the
[2:5] 8 tn Heb “the fear of the
[2:5] 9 tn Heb “find” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV).
[2:5] 10 tn The term דַּעַת (da’at, “knowledge”) goes beyond cognition; it is often used metonymically (cause) for obedience (effect); see, e.g., Prov 3:6, “in all your ways acknowledge him,” and BDB 395 s.v. This means that the disciple will follow God’s moral code; for to know God is to react ethically and spiritually to his will (e.g., J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 18).
[2:5] 11 tn Heb “knowledge of God.” The noun is an objective genitive.
[3:7] 10 tn Heb “in your own eyes” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom.”
[3:7] 11 sn The second colon clarifies the first. If one fears the
[8:13] 13 tn The verb שָׂנֵא (sane’) means “to hate.” In this sentence it functions nominally as the predicate. Fearing the
[8:13] 14 tn Since both גֵּאָה (ge’ah, “pride”) and גָּאוֹן (ga’on, “arrogance; pride”) are both from the same verbal root גָּאָה (ga’ah, “to rise up”), they should here be interpreted as one idea, forming a nominal hendiadys: “arrogant pride.”
[8:13] 15 tn Heb “and a mouth of perverse things.” The word “mouth” is a metonymy of cause for what is said; and the noun תַהְפֻּכוֹת (tahpukhot, “perverse things”) means destructive things (the related verb is used for the overthrowing of Sodom).
[9:10] 16 sn The difference between תְּחִלַּת (tÿkhillat) here and רֵאשִׁית (re’shit) of 1:7, if there is any substantial difference, is that this term refers to the starting point of wisdom, and the earlier one indicates the primary place of wisdom (K&D 16:202).
[9:10] 17 tn Heb “fear of the
[9:10] 18 tn Heb “knowledge of the Holy One” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[9:10] 19 tn The word is in the plural in the Hebrew (literally “holy ones”; KJV “the holy”). It was translated “holy men” in Tg. Prov 9:10. But it probably was meant to signify the majestic nature of the
[10:27] 19 tn Heb “the fear of the
[10:27] 20 tn Heb “days” (so KJV, ASV).
[10:27] 21 tn Heb “years.” The term “years” functions as a synecdoche of part (= years) for the whole (= lifespan).
[10:27] 22 sn This general saying has to be qualified with the problem of the righteous suffering and dying young, a problem that perplexed the sages of the entire ancient world. But this is the general principle: The righteous live longer because their life is the natural one and because God blesses them.
[14:2] 22 tn Heb “fear of the
[14:2] 23 tn Heb “crooked of ways”; NRSV “devious in conduct.” This construct phrase features a genitive of specification: “crooked in reference to his ways.” The term “ways” is an idiom for moral conduct. The evidence that people fear the
[14:26] 25 tn Heb “In the fear of the
[14:26] 26 tn Heb “confidence of strength.” This construct phrase features an attributive genitive: “strong confidence” (so most English versions; NIV “a secure fortress”).
[14:26] 27 sn The fear of the
[14:27] 28 sn The verse is similar to Prov 13:14 except that “the fear of the
[14:27] 29 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.
[14:27] 30 tn Heb “fountain of life.”
[14:27] 31 tn The infinitive construct with prefixed ל (lamed) indicates the purpose/result of the first line; it could also function epexegetically, explaining how fear is a fountain: “by turning….”
[14:27] 32 tn The term “people” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.
[14:27] 33 tn Heb “snares of death” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); CEV “deadly traps.”
[15:16] 31 sn One of the frequent characteristics of wisdom literature is the “better” saying; it is a comparison of different but similar things to determine which is to be preferred. These two verses focus on spiritual things being better than troubled material things.
[15:16] 32 sn Turmoil refers to anxiety; the fear of the
[15:16] 33 sn Not all wealth has turmoil with it. But the proverb is focusing on the comparison of two things – fear of the
[15:33] 34 tn Heb “[is] instruction of wisdom” (KJV and NASB similar). The noun translated “wisdom” is an attributive genitive: “wise instruction.”
[15:33] 35 tn Heb “[is] humility” (so KJV). The second clause is a parallel idea in that it stresses how one thing leads to another – humility to honor. Humble submission in faith to the
[16:6] 37 sn These two words are often found together to form a nominal hendiadys: “faithful loyal love.” The couplet often characterize the
[16:6] 38 tn Heb “is atoned”; KJV “is purged”; NAB “is expiated.” The verb is from I כָּפַר (kafar, “to atone; to expiate; to pacify; to appease”; HALOT 493-94 s.v. I כפר). This root should not be confused with the identically spelled Homonym II כָּפַר (kafar, “to cover over”; HALOT 494 s.v. II *כפר). Atonement in the OT expiated sins, it did not merely cover them over (cf. NLT). C. H. Toy explains the meaning by saying it affirms that the divine anger against sin is turned away and man’s relation to God is as though he had not sinned (Proverbs [ICC], 322). Genuine repentance, demonstrated by loyalty and truthfulness, appeases the anger of God against one’s sin.
[16:6] 39 tn Heb “fear of the
[16:6] 40 tn Heb “turns away from”; NASB “keeps away from.”
[16:6] 41 sn The Hebrew word translated “evil” (רַע, ra’) can in some contexts mean “calamity” or “disaster,” but here it seems more likely to mean “evil” in the sense of sin. Faithfulness to the
[19:23] 40 tn Heb “the fear of the
[19:23] 41 tn The term “leads” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and style.
[19:23] 42 tn Here “life” is probably a metonymy of subject for “blessings and prosperity in life.” The plural form often covers a person’s “lifetime.”
[19:23] 43 tn The subject of this verb is probably the one who fears the
[19:23] 44 tn Heb “he will not be visited” (so KJV, ASV). The verb פָּקַד (paqad) is often translated “visit.” It describes intervention that will change the destiny. If God “visits” it means he intervenes to bless or to curse. To be “visited by trouble” means that calamity will interfere with the course of life and change the direction or the destiny. Therefore this is not referring to a minor trouble that one might briefly experience. A life in the
[22:4] 43 tn The Hebrew term עֵקֶב (’eqev, “reward”) is related to the term meaning “heel”; it refers to the consequences or the reward that follows (akin to the English expression “on the heels of”).
[22:4] 44 tn “Humility” is used here in the religious sense of “piety”; it is appropriately joined with “the fear of the
[22:4] 45 tn Heb “the fear of the
[23:17] 46 tn The verb in this line is אַל־יְקַנֵּא (’al-yÿqanne’), the Piel jussive negated. The verb means “to be jealous, to be zealous”; it describes passionate intensity for something. In English, if the object is illegitimate, it is called “envy”; if it is correct, it is called “zeal.” Here the warning is not to envy the sinners. The second colon could use the verb in the positive sense to mean “but rather let your passion burn for the fear of the
[23:17] 47 tn Heb “the fear of the
[28:14] 49 tn Most commentators (and some English versions, e.g., NIV) assume that the participle מְפַחֵד (mÿfakhed, “fears”) means “fears the
[28:14] 50 sn The one who “hardens his heart” in this context is the person who refuses to fear sin and its consequences. The image of the “hard heart” is one of a stubborn will, unyielding and unbending (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT). This individual will fall into sin.
[31:30] 52 tn The first word of the twenty-first line begins with שׁ (shin), the twenty-first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The graphic distinction between שׁ (shin) and שׂ (sin) had not been made at the time the book of Proverbs was written; that graphic distinction was introduced by the Masoretes, ca.
[31:30] 53 sn The verse shows that “charm” and “beauty” do not endure as do those qualities that the fear of the
[31:30] 54 sn This chapter describes the wise woman as fearing the
