Proverbs 11:13

11:13 The one who goes about slandering others ¹  reveals ²  secrets,

but the one who is trustworthy ³  conceals a matter.

Proverbs 18:8

18:8 The words of a gossip ⁴  are like choice morsels; ⁵ 

they go down into the person’s innermost being. ⁶ 

Proverbs 26:20-22

26:20 Where there is no wood, a fire goes out,

and where there is no gossip, ⁷  contention ceases. ⁸ 

26:21 Like charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire,

so is a contentious person ⁹  to kindle strife. ¹⁰ 

26:22 The words of a gossip are like delicious morsels;

they go down into a person’s innermost being. ¹¹ 

Leviticus 19:16

19:16 You must not go about as a slanderer among your people. ¹²  You must not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is at stake. ¹³  I am the Lord.

[11:13]  ¹ tn Heb “going about in slander.” This expression refers to a slanderer. The noun means “slander” and so “tale-bearer” (so KJV, ASV, NASB), “informer.” The related verb (רָכַל, rakhal) means “to go about” from one person to another, either for trade or for gossip.

[11:13]  ² tn The participle מְגַלֶּה (mÿgaleh) means “uncovering” or “revealing” secrets.

[11:13]  ³ tn Heb “faithful of spirit.” This phrase describes the inner nature of the person as faithful and trustworthy. This individual will not rush out to tell whatever information he has heard, but will conceal it.

[18:8]  ⁴ tn Or “slanderer”; KJV, NAB “talebearer”; ASV, NRSV “whisperer.”

[18:8]  ⁵ tn The word כְּמִתְלַהֲמִים (kÿmitlahamim) occurs only here. It is related to a cognate verb meaning “to swallow greedily.” Earlier English versions took it from a Hebrew root הָלַם (halam, see the word לְמַהֲלֻמוֹת [lÿmahalumot] in v. 6) meaning “wounds” (so KJV). But the translation of “choice morsels” fits the idea of gossip better.

[18:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “they go down [into] the innermost parts of the belly”; NASB “of the body.”

[26:20]  ⁷ sn Gossip (that is, the one who goes around whispering and slandering) fuels contention just as wood fuels a fire. The point of the proverb is to prevent contention – if one takes away the cause, contention will cease (e.g., 18:8).

[26:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “becomes silent.”

[26:21]  ⁹ sn Heb “a man of contentions”; NCV, NRSV, NLT “a quarrelsome person.” The expression focuses on the person who is contentious by nature. His quarreling is like piling fuel on a fire that would otherwise go out. This kind of person not only starts strife, but keeps it going.

[26:21]  ¹⁰ tn The Pilpel infinitive construct לְחַרְחַר (lÿkharkhar) from חָרַר (kharar, “to be hot; to be scorched; to burn”) means “to kindle; to cause to flare up.”

[26:22]  ¹¹ tn The proverb is essentially the same as 18:8; it observes how appealing gossip is.

[19:16]  ¹² tn The term רָכִיל (rakhil) is traditionally rendered “slanderer” here (so NASB, NIV, NRSV; see also J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 304, 316), but the exact meaning is uncertain (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129). It is sometimes related to I רָכַל (“to go about as a trader [or “merchant”]”; BDB 940 s.v. רָכַל), and taken to refer to cutthroat business dealings, but there may be a II רָכַל, the meaning of which is dubious (HALOT 1237 s.v. II *רכל). Some would render it “to go about as a spy.”

[19:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “You shall not stand on the blood of your neighbor.” This part of the verse is also difficult to interpret. The rendering here suggests that one will not allow a neighbor to be victimized, whether in court (cf. v. 15) or in any other situation (see the discussion in B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 129).