Proverbs 1:8

1:8 Listen, ¹  my child, ²  to the instruction ³  from ⁴  your father,

and do not forsake the teaching ⁵  from ⁶  your mother.

Proverbs 1:24

1:24 However, ⁷  because ⁸  I called but you refused to listen, ⁹ 

because ¹⁰  I stretched out my hand ¹¹  but no one paid attention,

Proverbs 3:11

3:11 My child, do not despise discipline from the Lord, ¹² 

and do not loathe ¹³  his rebuke.

Proverbs 5:20

5:20 But why should you be captivated, ¹⁴  my son, by an adulteress,

and embrace the bosom of a different woman? ¹⁵ 

Proverbs 6:1

Admonitions and Warnings against Dangerous and Destructive Acts ¹⁶ 

6:1 My child, ¹⁷  if you have made a pledge ¹⁸  for your neighbor,

and ¹⁹  have become a guarantor ²⁰  for a stranger, ²¹ 

Proverbs 6:20

6:20 My child, guard the commands of your father

and do not forsake the instruction of your mother.

Proverbs 8:6

8:6 Listen, for I will speak excellent things, ²² 

and my lips will utter ²³  what is right.

Proverbs 8:8

8:8 All the words of my mouth are righteous; ²⁴ 

there is nothing in them twisted ²⁵  or crooked.

Proverbs 22:17

The Sayings of the Wise ²⁶ 

22:17 Incline your ear ²⁷  and listen to the words of the wise,

and apply your heart to my instruction. ²⁸ 

Proverbs 24:13

24:13 Eat honey, ²⁹  my child, for it is good,

and honey from the honeycomb is sweet to your taste.

Proverbs 24:21

24:21 Fear the Lord, my child, ³⁰  as well as the king,

and do not associate ³¹  with rebels, ³² 

[1:8]  ¹ tn The imperative שְׁמַע (shÿma’, “Listen!”) forms an urgent exhortation which expects immediate compliance with parental instruction.

[1:8]  ² tn Heb “my son.” It is likely that collections of proverbs grew up in the royal courts and were designed for the training of the youthful prince. But once the collection was included in the canon, the term “son” would be expanded to mean a disciple, for all the people were to learn wisdom when young. It would not be limited to sons alone but would include daughters – as the expression “the children of (בְּנֵי, bÿne) Israel” (including males and females) clearly shows. Several passages in the Mishnah and Talmud record instructions to teach daughters the Mosaic law so that they will be righteous and avoid sin as well. The translation “my child,” although not entirely satisfactory, will be used here.

[1:8]  ³ tn Heb “training” or “discipline.” See note on 1:2.

[1:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “of.” The noun אָבִיךָ (’avikha, “of your father”) may be classified as a genitive of source.

[1:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “instruction.” In Proverbs the noun תּוֹרַה (torah) often means “instruction” or “moral direction” rather than “law” (BDB 435 s.v. 1.a). It is related to יָרָה (yarah, “to point [or, show] the way” in the Hiphil (BDB 435). Instruction attempts to point a person in the right direction (e.g., Gen 46:28).

[1:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “of.” The noun אִמֶּךָ (’immekha, “of your mother”) may be classified as a genitive of source.

[1:24]  ⁷ tn The term “however” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the contrast between the offer in 1:23 and the accusation in 1:24-25. It is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[1:24]  ⁸ tn The particle יַעַן (ya’an, “because”) introduces a causal clause which forms part of an extended protasis; the apodosis is 1:26.

[1:24]  ⁹ tn The phrase “to listen” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[1:24]  ¹⁰ tn The term “because” does not appear in this line but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.

[1:24]  ¹¹ sn This expression is a metonymy of adjunct; it is a gesture that goes with the appeal for some to approach.

[3:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “the discipline of the Lord.”

[3:11]  ¹⁴ tn The verb קוּץ (quts) has a two-fold range of meaning: (1) “to feel a loathing; to abhor” and (2) “to feel a sickening dread” (BDB 880 s.v.). The parallelism with “do not despise” suggests the former nuance here. The common response to suffering is to loathe it; however, the righteous understand that it refines one’s moral character and that it is a means to the blessing.

[5:20]  ¹⁹ tn In the interrogative clause the imperfect has a deliberative nuance.

[5:20]  ²⁰ tn Heb “foreigner” (so ASV, NASB), but this does not mean that the woman is non-Israelite. This term describes a woman who is outside the moral boundaries of the covenant community – she is another man’s wife, but since she acts with moral abandonment she is called “foreign.”

[6:1]  ²⁵ sn The chapter advises release from foolish indebtedness (1-5), admonishes avoiding laziness (6-11), warns of the danger of poverty (9-11) and deviousness (12-15), lists conduct that the Lord hates (16-19), and warns about immorality (20-35).

[6:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “my son” (likewise in vv. 3, 20).

[6:1]  ²⁷ sn It was fairly common for people to put up some kind of financial security for someone else, that is, to underwrite another’s debts. But the pledge in view here was foolish because the debtor was a neighbor who was not well known (זָר, zar), perhaps a misfit in the community. The one who pledged security for this one was simply gullible.

[6:1]  ²⁸ tn The conjunction “and” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

[6:1]  ²⁹ tn Heb “struck your hands”; NIV “have struck hands in pledge”; NASB “have given a pledge.” The guarantee of a pledge was signaled by a handshake (e.g., 11:15; 17:18; 22:26).

[6:1]  ³⁰ tn Heb “stranger.” The term זוּר (zur, “stranger”) probably refers to a neighbor who was not well-known. Alternatively, it could describe a person who is living outside the norms of convention, a moral misfit in the community. In any case, this “stranger” is a high risk in any financial arrangement.

[8:6]  ³¹ tn Heb “noble” or “princely.” Wisdom begins the first motivation by claiming to speak noble things, that is, excellent things.

[8:6]  ³² tn Heb “opening of my lips” (so KJV, NASB). The noun “lips” is a metonymy of cause, with the organ of speech put for what is said.

[8:8]  ³⁷ tn The phrase could be rendered with an understood ellipsis: “all the words of my mouth [are said] in righteousness”; or the preposition could be interpreted as a beth essentiae: “all the words of my mouth are righteousness.”

[8:8]  ³⁸ sn The verb פָּתַל (patal) means “to twist.” In the Niphal it means “to wrestle” (to twist oneself). It was used in Gen 30:8 for the naming of Naphtali, with the motivation for the name from this verb: “with great struggling.” Here it describes speech that is twisted. It is a synonym for the next word, which means “twisted; crooked; perverse.”

[22:17]  ⁴³ sn A new collection of sayings begins here, forming the fourth section of the book of Proverbs. This collection is not like that of 1:1–9:18; here the introductory material is more personal than 1:1-7, and the style differs, showing great similarity to the Instruction of Amenemope in Egypt (especially the thirty precepts of the sages in 22:17–24:22). Verses 17-21 form the introduction, and then the sayings begin in v. 22. After the thirty sayings are given, there are further sayings in 24:23-34. There is much literature on this material: see W. K. Simpson, ed., Literature of Ancient Egypt; ANET 412-425; and A. Cody, “Notes on Proverbs 22:21 and 22:23b,” Bib 61 (1980): 418-26.

[22:17]  ⁴⁴ sn To “incline the ear” means to “listen carefully” (cf. NCV); the expression is metonymical in that the ear is the instrument for hearing. It is like telling someone to lean over to hear better.

[22:17]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “knowledge” (so KJV, NASB); in this context it refers to the knowledge that is spoken by the wise, hence “instruction.”

[24:13]  ⁴⁹ sn The twenty-sixth saying teaches that one should develop wisdom because it has a profitable future. The saying draws on the image of honey; its health-giving properties make a good analogy to wisdom.

[24:21]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “my son,” but there is no indication in the immediate context that this should be limited only to male children.

[24:21]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “do not get mixed up with”; cf. TEV “Have nothing to do with”; NIV “do not join with.” The verb עָרַב (’arav) is used elsewhere meaning “to exchange; to take on pledge.” In the Hitpael stem it means “to have fellowship; to share; to associate with.” Some English versions (e.g., KJV) interpret as “to meddle” in this context, because “to have fellowship” is certainly not what is meant.

[24:21]  ⁵⁷ tn The form rendered “rebellious” is difficult; it appears to be the Qal active participle, plural, from שָׁנָה (shanah), “to change” – “those who change.” The RV might have thought of the idea of “change” when they rendered it “political agitators.” The Syriac and Tg. Prov 24:21 have “fools,” the Latin has “detractors,” and the LXX reads, “do not disobey either of them,” referring to God and the king in the first line. Accordingly the ruin predicted in the next line would be the ruin that God and the king can inflict. If the idea of “changers” is retained, it would have to mean people who at one time feared God and the king but no longer do.