Proverbs 10:4

10:4 The one who is lazy ¹  becomes poor, ² 

but the one who works diligently ³  becomes wealthy. ⁴ 

Proverbs 13:4

13:4 The appetite ⁵  of the sluggard ⁶  craves ⁷  but gets nothing,

but the desire of the diligent will be abundantly satisfied. ⁸ 

Proverbs 17:2

17:2 A servant who acts wisely ⁹  will rule

over ¹⁰  an heir ¹¹  who behaves shamefully, ¹² 

and will share the inheritance along with the relatives. ¹³ 

Proverbs 22:29

22:29 Do you see a person skilled ¹⁴  in his work?

He will take his position before kings;

he will not take his position ¹⁵  before obscure people. ¹⁶ 

Proverbs 22:1

22:1 A good name ¹⁷  is to be chosen ¹⁸  rather than great wealth,

good favor ¹⁹  more than silver or gold.

Proverbs 11:28

11:28 The one who trusts in his riches will fall,

but the righteous ²⁰  will flourish like a green leaf. ²¹ 

Proverbs 12:20

12:20 Deceit is in the heart of those who plot evil, ²² 

but those who promote peace ²³  have joy.

[10:4]  ¹ tn Heb “a palm of slackness.” The genitive noun רְמִיָּה (remiyyah, “slackness”) functions as an attributive adjective: “a slack palm” (BDB 941 s.v.). The term כַף (khaf, “palm”) is a synecdoche of part (= palm) for the whole person (= one who works with his hands). The hand is emphasized because it is the instrument of physical labor. The “slack hand” is contrasted with the “diligent hand.” A slack hand refers to a lazy worker or careless work that such hands produce. See N. C. Habel, “Wisdom, Wealth, and Poverty Paradigms in the Book of Proverbs,” BiBh 14 (1988): 28-49.

[10:4]  ² tc The MT reads רָאשׁ (ra’sh, “poor”) which is the plene spelling of רָשׁ (rash, “poor [person]”; HALOT 1229-30 s.v. רֵישׁ). Both Tg. Prov 10:4 and LXX reflect an alternate vocalization רִישׁ (rish, “poverty”) which is from the same root, and essentially means the same thing.

[10:4]  ³ tn Heb “but the hand of the diligent” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV). The genitive noun חָרוּצִים (kharutsim, “diligence”) functions as an attributive adjective: “a diligent hand.” The noun חָרוּצִים (kharutsim) uses the plural form because the plural is often used for abstract moral qualities. The term יָד (yad, “hand”) is a synecdoche of part (= “hand”) for the whole person (= “the one who works with his hands”). The hand is emphasized because it is the instrument of physical labor.

[10:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “makes rich” (so NASB, NRSV). The Hiphil verb is used in a causative sense; literally, “the hand of the diligent makes rich.”

[13:4]  ⁵ tn The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, traditionally “soul”) has a broad range of meanings, and here denotes “appetite” (e.g., Ps 17:9; Prov 23:3; Eccl 2:24; Isa 5:14; Hab 2:5; BDB 660 s.v. 5.c) or (2) “desire” (e.g., Deut 12:20; Prov 19:8; 21:10; BDB 660 s.v. 6.a).

[13:4]  ⁶ sn The contrast is between the “soul (= appetite) of the sluggard” (נַפְשׁוֹ עָצֵל, nafsho ’atsel) and the “soul (= desire) of the diligent” (נֶפֶשׁ חָרֻצִים, nefesh kharutsim) – what they each long for.

[13:4]  ⁷ tn The Hitpael verb means “to lust after; to crave.” A related verb is used in the Decalogue’s prohibition against coveting (Exod 20:17; Deut 5:21).

[13:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “will be made fat” (cf. KJV, NASB); NRSV “is richly supplied.”

[17:2]  ⁹ 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]  ¹⁰ sn The parallelism indicates that “ruling over” and “sharing in the inheritance” means that the disgraceful son will be disinherited.

[17:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “son.”

[17:2]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ tn Heb “in the midst of the brothers”; NIV “as one of the brothers.”

[22:29]  ¹⁴ sn The word translated “skilled” is general enough to apply to any crafts; but it may refer to a scribe or an official (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 134).

[22:29]  ¹⁵ tn The verb form used twice here is יִתְיַצֵּב (yityatsev), the Hitpael imperfect of יָצַב (yatsav), which means “to set or station oneself; to take one’s stand” in this stem. With the form לִפְנֵי (life) it means “to present oneself before” someone; so here it has the idea of serving as a courtier in the presence of a king.

[22:29]  ¹⁶ sn The fifth saying affirms that true skill earns recognition and advancement (cf. Instruction of Amenemope, chap. 30, 27:16-17 [ANET 424]).

[22:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “a name.” The idea of the name being “good” is implied; it has the connotation here of a reputation (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT).

[22:1]  ¹⁸ tn “To be chosen rather than” is a translation of the Niphal participle with the comparative degree taken into consideration. Cf. CEV “worth much more than.”

[22:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “favor of goodness.” This is a somewhat difficult expression. Some English versions render the phrase “favor is better than silver or gold” (so NASB, NRSV) making it parallel to the first colon. But if “good” is retained as an attributive modifier, then it would mean one was well thought of, or one had engaging qualities (cf. ASV “loving favor; NLT “high esteem”). This fits with the idea of the reputation in the first colon, for a good name would bring with it the favor of others.

[11:28]  ²⁰ sn The implication from the parallelism is that the righteous do not trust in their own riches, but in the Lord.

[11:28]  ²¹ tn Heb “leafage” or “leaf” (cf. KJV “as a branch”); TEV “leaves of summer”; NLT “leaves in spring.” The simile of a leaf is a figure of prosperity and fertility throughout the ancient Near East.

[12:20]  ²² sn The contrast here is between “evil” (= pain and calamity) and “peace” (= social wholeness and well-being); see, e.g., Pss 34:14 and 37:37.

[12:20]  ²³ tn Heb “those who are counselors of peace.” The term שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) is an objective genitive, so the genitive-construct “counselors of peace” means those who advise, advocate or promote peace (cf. NAB, NIV).