Proverbs 10:14

10:14 Those who are wise ¹  store up ²  knowledge,

but foolish speech ³  leads to imminent ⁴  destruction.

Proverbs 11:29

11:29 The one who troubles ⁵  his family ⁶  will inherit nothing, ⁷ 

and the fool ⁸  will be a servant to the wise person. ⁹ 

Proverbs 12:15-16

12:15 The way of a fool ¹⁰  is right ¹¹  in his own opinion, ¹² 

but the one who listens to advice is wise. ¹³ 

12:16 A fool’s annoyance ¹⁴  is known at once, ¹⁵ 

but the prudent ¹⁶  overlooks ¹⁷  an insult.

Proverbs 14:3

14:3 In ¹⁸  the speech ¹⁹  of a fool is a rod for his back, ²⁰ 

but the words ²¹  of the wise protect them.

Proverbs 15:5

15:5 A fool rejects his father’s discipline,

but whoever heeds reproof shows good sense. ²² 

Proverbs 17:28

17:28 Even a fool who remains silent is considered ²³  wise,

and the one who holds his tongue is deemed discerning. ²⁴ 

Proverbs 20:3

20:3 It is an honor for a person ²⁵  to cease ²⁶  from strife,

but every fool quarrels. ²⁷ 

Proverbs 27:3

27:3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,

but vexation ²⁸  by a fool is more burdensome ²⁹  than the two of them.

Proverbs 7:22

7:22 Suddenly he went ³⁰  after her

like an ox that goes to the slaughter,

like a stag prancing into a trapper’s snare ³¹ 

Proverbs 29:9

29:9 If a wise person ³²  goes to court ³³  with a foolish person,

there is no peace ³⁴  whether he is angry or laughs. ³⁵ 

[10:14]  ¹ tn Heb “wise men.”

[10:14]  ² sn The verb צָפַן (tsafan, “to store up; to treasure”) may mean (1) the wise acquire and do not lose wisdom (cf. NAB, NIV, TEV), or (2) they do not tell all that they know (cf. NCV), that is, they treasure it up for a time when they will need it. The fool, by contrast, talks without thinking.

[10:14]  ³ tn Heb “the mouth of foolishness”; cf. NRSV, NLT “the babbling of a fool.” The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for speech. The genitive אֶוִיל (’evil, “foolishness”) functions as an attributive adjective: “a foolish mouth” = foolish speech.

[10:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “near destruction.” The words of the fool that are uttered without wise forethought may invite imminent ruin (e.g., James 3:13-18). See also Ptah-hotep and Amenemope in ANET 414 and 423.

[11:29]  ⁵ tn The verb עָכַר (’akhar, “to trouble”) refers to actions which make life difficult for one’s family (BDB 747 s.v.). He will be cut out of the family inheritance.

[11:29]  ⁶ tn Heb “his house.” The term בֵּית (bet, “house”) is a synecdoche of container (= house) for its contents (= family, household).

[11:29]  ⁷ tn Heb “the wind” (so KJV, NCV, NLT); NAB “empty air.” The word “wind” (רוּחַ, ruakh) refers to what cannot be grasped (Prov 27:16; Eccl 1:14, 17). The figure is a hypocatastasis, comparing wind to what he inherits – nothing he can put his hands on. Cf. CEV “won’t inherit a thing.”

[11:29]  ⁸ sn The “fool” here is the “troubler” of the first half. One who mismanages his affairs so badly so that there is nothing for the family may have to sell himself into slavery to the wise. The ideas of the two halves of the verse are complementary.

[11:29]  ⁹ tn Heb “to the wise of heart.” The noun לֵב (lev, “heart”) is an attributed genitive: “wise heart.” The term לֵב (“heart”) also functions as a synecdoche of part (= heart) for the whole (= person); see BDB 525 s.v. 7.

[12:15]  ⁹ sn The way of a fool describes a headlong course of actions (“way” is an idiom for conduct) that is not abandoned even when wise advice is offered.

[12:15]  ¹⁰ sn The fool believes that his own plans and ideas are perfect or “right” (יָשָׁר, yashar); he is satisfied with his own opinion.

[12:15]  ¹¹ tn Heb “in his own eyes.”

[12:15]  ¹² tn Or “a wise person listens to advice” (cf. NIV, NRSV, TEV, CEV, NLT).

[12:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “The fool, at once his vexation is known.” This rhetorically emphatic construction uses an independent nominative absolute, which is then followed by the formal subject with a suffix. The construction focuses attention on “the fool,” then states what is to be said about him.

[12:16]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “on the day” or “the same day.”

[12:16]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “shrewd.”

[12:16]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “covers.” The verb כָּסָה (casah) means “covers” in the sense of ignores or bides his time. The point is not that he does not respond at all, but that he is shrewd enough to handle the criticism or insult in the best way – not instinctively and irrationally.

[14:3]  ¹⁷ tn The preposition בְּ (bet) may denote (1) exchange: “in exchange for” foolish talk there is a rod; or (2) cause: “because of” foolish talk.

[14:3]  ¹⁸ sn The noun פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said (“speech, words, talk”).

[14:3]  ¹⁹ tc The MT reads גַּאֲוָה (ga’avah, “pride”) which creates an awkward sense “in the mouth of a fool is a rod of pride” (cf. KJV, ASV). The BHS editors suggest emending the form to גֵּוֹה (“disciplining-rod”) to create tighter parallelism and irony: “in the mouth of a fool is a rod for the back” (e.g., Prov 10:13). What the fools says will bring discipline.

[14:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause, meaning what they say. The wise by their speech will find protection.

[15:5]  ²¹ tn Heb “is prudent” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NCV, NLT “is wise.” Anyone who accepts correction or rebuke will become prudent in life.

[17:28]  ²⁵ tn The imperfect tense here denotes possibility: One who holds his tongue [may be considered] discerning.

[17:28]  ²⁶ tn The Niphal participle is used in the declarative/estimative sense with stative verbs: “to be discerning” (Qal) becomes “to be declared discerning” (Niphal). The proverb is teaching that silence is one evidence of wisdom, and that even a fool can thereby appear wise. D. Kidner says that a fool who takes this advice is no longer a complete fool (Proverbs [TOTC], 127). He does not, of course, become wise – he just hides his folly.

[20:3]  ²⁹ tn Heb “man.”

[20:3]  ³⁰ tn Heb “cessation” (שֶׁבֶת, shevet); NAB “to shun strife”; NRSV “refrain from strife.”

[20:3]  ³¹ tn Heb “breaks out.” The Hitpael of the verb גָּלַע (gala’, “to expose; to lay bare”) means “to break out; to disclose oneself,” and so the idea of flaring up in a quarrel is clear. But there are also cognate connections to the idea of “showing the teeth; snarling” and so quarreling viciously.

[27:3]  ³³ tn The subject matter is the vexation produced by a fool. The term כַּעַס (ca’as) means “vexation” (ASV); provocation” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); “anger” (KJV “wrath”) and usually refers to undeserved treatment. Cf. NLT “the resentment caused by a fool.”

[27:3]  ³⁴ sn The contrast is made between dealing with the vexation of a fool and physical labor (moving stones and sand). More tiring is the vexation of a fool, for the mental and emotional effort it takes to deal with it is more draining than physical labor. It is, in the sense of this passage, almost unbearable.

[7:22]  ³⁷ tn The participle with “suddenly” gives a more vivid picture, almost as if to say “there he goes.”

[7:22]  ³⁸ tn The present translation follows R. B. Y. Scott (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes [AB], 64). This third colon of the verse would usually be rendered, “fetters to the chastening of a fool” (KJV, ASV, and NASB are all similar). But there is no support that עֶכֶס (’ekhes) means “fetters.” It appears in Isaiah 3:16 as “anklets.” The parallelism here suggests that some animal imagery is required. Thus the ancient versions have “as a dog to the bonds.”

[29:9]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “a wise man…a foolish man.”

[29:9]  ⁴² tn The verb שָׁפַט (shafat) means “to judge.” In the Niphal stem it could be passive, but is more frequently reciprocal: “to enter into controversy” or “to go to court.” The word is usually used in connection with a lawsuit (so many recent English versions), but can also refer to an argument (e.g., 1 Sam 12:7; Isa 43:26); cf. NAB “disputes”; NASB “has a controversy.”

[29:9]  ⁴³ tn The noun נָחַת (nakhat) is a derivative of נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”) and so means “quietness” or “rest,” i.e., “peace.”

[29:9]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “and he is angry and he laughs.” The construction uses the conjunctive vav to express alternate actions: “whether…or.”