Proverbs 10:22

10:22 The blessing ¹  from the Lord ²  makes a person rich, ³ 

and he adds no sorrow ⁴  to ⁵  it.

Proverbs 15:6

15:6 In the house ⁶  of the righteous is abundant wealth, ⁷ 

but the income of the wicked brings trouble. ⁸ 

Psalms 112:3

112:3 His house contains wealth and riches;

his integrity endures. ⁹ 

Ecclesiastes 5:19

5:19 To every man whom God has given wealth, and possessions,

he has also given him the ability ¹⁰ 

to eat from them, to receive his reward and to find enjoyment in his toil;

these things ¹¹  are the gift of God.

Ecclesiastes 7:11

Wisdom Can Lengthen One’s Life

7:11 Wisdom, like ¹²  an inheritance, is a good thing;

it benefits those who see the light of day. ¹³ 

Ecclesiastes 10:19

10:19 Feasts ¹⁴  are made ¹⁵  for laughter,

and wine makes life merry, ¹⁶ 

but money is the answer ¹⁷  for everything.

Matthew 6:19-20

Lasting Treasure

6:19 “Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth ¹⁸  and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. 6:20 But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.

Luke 6:45

6:45 The good person out of the good treasury of his ¹⁹  heart ²⁰  produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasury ²¹  produces evil, for his mouth speaks ²²  from what fills ²³  his heart.

[10:22]  ¹ tn The term בְּרָכָּה (bÿrakhah, “blessing”) refers to a gift, enrichment or endowment from the Lord.

[10:22]  ² tn Heb “of the Lord.” The term יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”) functions here as a genitive of source.

[10:22]  ³ tn Heb “makes rich” (so NASB); NAB “brings wealth.” The direct object “a person” does not appear in the Hebrew but is implied by the Hiphil verb; it is supplied in the translation.

[10:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “toil.” The noun עֶצֶב (’etsev) has a basic two-fold range of meanings: (1) “toil; labor” which produces pain and sorrow, and (2) “pain; sorrow” which is the result of toil and labor (BDB 780 s.v.). This is the word used of the curse of “toil” in man’s labor (Gen 3:17) and the “pain” in the woman’s child-bearing (Gen 3:16). God’s blessing is pure and untarnished – it does not bring physical pain or emotional sorrow.

[10:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “with.”

[15:6]  ⁶ tn The term בֵּית (bet, “house”) functions as an adverbial accusative of location.

[15:6]  ⁷ sn The Hebrew noun חֹסֶן (khosen) means “wealth; treasure.” Prosperity is the reward for righteousness. This is true only in so far as a proverb can be carried in its application, allowing for exceptions. The Greek text for this verse has no reference for wealth, but talks about amassing righteousness.

[15:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “will be troubled.” The function of the Niphal participle may be understood in two ways: (1) substantival use: abstract noun meaning “disturbance, calamity” (BDB 747 s.v. עָכַר) or passive noun meaning “thing troubled,” or (2) verbal use: “will be troubled” (HALOT 824 s.v. עכר nif).

[112:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “stands forever.”

[5:19]  ¹⁰ tn The syntax of this verse is difficult. The best approach is to view הִשְׁלִיטוֹ (hishlito, “he has given him the ability”) as governing the three following infinitives: לֶאֱכֹל (le’ekhol, “to eat”), וְלָשֵׂאת (vÿlase’t, “and to lift” = “to accept [or receive]”), and וְלִשְׂמֹחַ (vÿlismoakh, “and to rejoice”). This statement parallels 2:24-26 which states that no one can find enjoyment in life unless God gives him the ability to do so.

[5:19]  ¹¹ tn Heb “this.” The feminine singular demonstrative pronoun זֹה (zoh, “this”) refers back to all that preceded it in the verse (e.g., GKC 440-41 §135.p), that is, the ability to enjoy the fruit of one’s labor is the gift of God (e.g., Eccl 2:24-26). The phrase “these things” is used in the translation for clarity.

[7:11]  ¹² tn Or “Wisdom with an inheritance, is good”; or “Wisdom is as good as an inheritance.” This use of the preposition עִם (’im) may denote: (1) accompaniment: “together with,” or (2) comparison: “as good as; like; in comparison to” (HALOT 839–40 s.v. עִם; BDB 767–69 s.v. עִם). BDB 767 s.v. 1 suggests the accompaniment nuance “together with,” while HALOT 840 s.v. 2.c suggests the comparative sense “in comparison to.” The translations are also divided: “wisdom with an inheritance is good” (KJV, ASV margin, RSV, NASB, YLT); “wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing” (NIV); “wisdom is as good as an inheritance” (ASV, NRSV, MLB, NJPS, Moffatt); “wisdom is better than an inheritance” (NEB). Because v. 12 compares wisdom with money (i.e., an inheritance), v. 11 is probably making a comparison as well: “Wisdom, like an inheritance, is good” (7:11a) = “Wisdom provides protection, just as money provides protection” (7:12a). The “good thing” that wisdom – like an inheritance or money – provides is protection.

[7:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “see the sun.”

[10:19]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “bread.” The term לֶחֶם (lekhem) is used literally of “bread” and figuratively (i.e., by metonymy) for a “feast” (BDB 536–37 s.v. לֶחֶם). BDB suggests that עֹשִׂיה לֶחֶם (’osih lekhem) in Eccl 10:19 means “make a feast” (BDB 537 s.v. לֶחֶם 1.a). This obscure line has occasioned numerous proposals: “a feast is made for laughter” (KJV, ASV, NIV); “feasts are made for laughter” (NRSV); “men feast for merrymaking” (Moffatt); “men prepare a meal for enjoyment” (NASB); “the table has its pleasures” (NEB); “they [i.e., rulers of v. 16] make a banquet for revelry” (NJPS); “people prepare a banquet for enjoyment” (MLB); “for laughter they make bread and wine, that the living may feast” (Douay); “bread is made for laughter” (RSV); “bread [and oil] call forth merriment” (NAB).

[10:19]  ¹⁵ tn The subject of the verb is not specified. When active verbs have an unspecified subject, they are often used in a passive sense: “Bread [feasts] are made….”

[10:19]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and wine gladdens life.”

[10:19]  ¹⁷ tn Or “and [they think that] money is the answer for everything.”

[6:19]  ¹⁸ tn The term σής (shs) refers to moths in general. It is specifically the larvae of moths that destroy clothing by eating holes in it (L&N 4.49; BDAG 922 s.v.). See Jas 5:2, which mentions “moth-eaten” clothing.

[6:45]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “the”; the Greek article has been translated here and in the following clause (“out of the evil”) as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[6:45]  ²⁰ sn Mention of the heart shows that Jesus is not interested in what is done, but why. Motives are more important than actions for him.

[6:45]  ²¹ tn The word “treasury” is not repeated in the Greek text at this point, but is implied.

[6:45]  ²² sn What one utters from one’s mouth is especially singled out as the example of this principle. James seems to have known this teaching (Jas 1:26; 3:1-12).

[6:45]  ²³ tn Grk “for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”