Proverbs 12:17

12:17 The faithful witness ¹  tells what is right, ² 

but a false witness ³  speaks ⁴  deceit.

Proverbs 19:5

19:5 A false witness ⁵  will not go unpunished,

and the one who spouts out ⁶  lies will not escape punishment. ⁷ 

Proverbs 19:9

19:9 A false witness will not go unpunished,

and the one who spouts out ⁸  lies will perish. ⁹ 

[12:17]  ¹ tn The text has “he pours out faithfully”; the word rendered “faithfully” or “reliably” (אֱמוּנָה, ’emunah) is used frequently for giving testimony in court, and so here the subject matter is the reliable witness.

[12:17]  ² tn Heb “righteousness.”

[12:17]  ³ tn Heb “witness of falsehoods.” The genitive noun functions attributively, and the plural form depicts habitual action or moral characteristic. This describes a person who habitually lies. A false witness cannot be counted on to help the cause of justice.

[12:17]  ⁴ tn The term “speaks” does not appear in this line but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.

[19:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “a witness of lies.” This expression is an attributive genitive: “a lying witness” (cf. CEV “dishonest witnesses”). This is paralleled by “the one who pours out lies.”

[19:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “breathes out”; NAB “utters”; NIV “pours out.”

[19:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “will not escape” (so NAB, NASB); NIV “will not go free.” Here “punishment” is implied, and has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[19:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “breathes out”; NAB “utters”; NIV “pours out.”

[19:9]  ¹⁰ sn The verse is the same as v. 5, except that the last word changes to the verb “will perish” (cf. NCV “will die”; CEV, NLT “will be destroyed”; TEV “is doomed”).