Proverbs 10:19

10:19 When words abound, transgression is inevitable, ¹ 

but the one who restrains ²  his words ³  is wise.

Proverbs 14:35

14:35 The king shows favor ⁴  to a wise ⁵  servant,

but his wrath falls ⁶  on one who acts shamefully.

Proverbs 17:2

17:2 A servant who acts wisely ⁷  will rule

over ⁸  an heir ⁹  who behaves shamefully, ¹⁰ 

and will share the inheritance along with the relatives. ¹¹ 

Proverbs 28:7

28:7 The one who keeps the law ¹²  is a discerning child, ¹³ 

but a companion of gluttons brings shame ¹⁴  to his parents. ¹⁵ 

[10:19]  ¹ tn Heb “does not cease.” It is impossible to avoid sinning in an abundance of words – sooner or later one is bound to say something wrong.

[10:19]  ² tn Or “holds his lips under control.” The verb חָשַׂךְ (khasakh) means “to withhold; to restrain; to hold in check” (BDB 362 s.v.). The related Arabic term is used in reference to placing a piece of wood in the mouth of a goat to prevent it from sucking (HALOT 359 s.v. חשׂךְ).

[10:19]  ³ tn Heb “his lips” (so KJV, NAB, NASB); NIV “his tongue.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause for speech.

[14:35]  ⁴ tn Heb “the favor of a king.” The noun “king” functions as a subjective genitive: “the king shows favor….”

[14:35]  ⁵ sn The wise servant is shown favor, while the shameful servant is shown anger. Two Hiphil participles make the contrast: מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil, “wise”) and מֵבִישׁ (mevish, “one who acts shamefully”). The wise servant is a delight and enjoys the favor of the king because he is skillful and clever. The shameful one botches his duties; his indiscretions and incapacity expose the master to criticism (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 470).

[14:35]  ⁶ tn Heb “is” (so KJV, ASV).

[17:2]  ⁷ sn The setting is in the ancient world where a servant rarely advanced beyond his or her station in life. But there are notable exceptions (e.g., Gen 15:3 where the possibility is mentioned, 1 Chr 2:35 where it changed through marriage, and 2 Sam 16:1-4; 19:24-30, with the story of Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth). This proverb focuses on a servant who is wise, one who uses all his abilities effectively – a Joseph figure.

[17:2]  ⁸ sn The parallelism indicates that “ruling over” and “sharing in the inheritance” means that the disgraceful son will be disinherited.

[17:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “son.”

[17:2]  ¹⁰ tn The form מֵבִישׁ (mevish) is a Hiphil participle, modifying בֵן (ben). This original heir would then be one who caused shame or disgrace to the family, probably by showing a complete lack of wisdom in the choices he made.

[17:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “in the midst of the brothers”; NIV “as one of the brothers.”

[28:7]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew word could refer (1) to “instruction” by the father (cf. NCV) or (2) the Mosaic law (so most English versions). The chapter seems to be stressing religious obedience, so the referent is probably the law. Besides, the father’s teaching will be what the law demands, and the one who associates with gluttons is not abiding by the law.

[28:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “son,” but the immediate context does not suggest limiting this only to male children.

[28:7]  ¹² sn The companion of gluttons shames his father and his family because such a life style as he now embraces is both unruly and antisocial.

[28:7]  ¹³ tn Heb “father,” but the immediate context does not suggest limiting this only to the male parent.