Proverbs 13:16

13:16 Every shrewd ¹  person acts with knowledge,

but a fool displays ²  his folly.

Proverbs 14:16

14:16 A wise person is cautious ³  and turns from evil,

but a fool throws off restraint ⁴  and is overconfident. ⁵ 

Proverbs 15:20

15:20 A wise child ⁶  brings joy to his father,

but a foolish person ⁷  despises ⁸  his mother.

Proverbs 21:20

21:20 There is desirable treasure and olive oil ⁹  in the dwelling of the wise,

but a foolish person ¹⁰  devours all he has. ¹¹ 

[13:16]  ¹ sn The shrewd person knows the circumstances, dangers and pitfalls that lie ahead. So he deals with them wisely. This makes him cautious.

[13:16]  ² tn Heb “spreads open” [his folly]. W. McKane suggests that this is a figure of a peddler displaying his wares (Proverbs [OTL], 456; cf. NAB “the fool peddles folly”). If given a chance, a fool will reveal his foolishness in public. But the wise study the facts and make decisions accordingly.

[14:16]  ³ tn Heb “fears.” Since the holy name (Yahweh, translated “the Lord”) is not used, it probably does not here mean fear of the Lord, but of the consequences of actions.

[14:16]  ⁴ tn The Hitpael of עָבַר (’avar, “to pass over”) means “to pass over the bounds of propriety; to act insolently” (BDB 720 s.v.; cf. ASV “beareth himself insolently”).

[14:16]  ⁵ tn The verb בָּטַח here denotes self-assurance or overconfidence. Fools are not cautious and do not fear the consequences of their actions.

[15:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “son.”

[15:20]  ⁶ tn Heb “a fool of a man,” a genitive of specification.

[15:20]  ⁷ sn The proverb is almost the same as 10:1, except that “despises” replaces “grief.” This adds the idea of the callousness of the one who inflicts grief on his mother (D. Kidner, Proverbs [TOTC], 116).

[21:20]  ⁷ tn The mention of “olive oil” (שֶׁמֶן, shemen) is problematic in the line – how can a fool devour it? Several attempts have been made to alleviate the problem. The NIV interprets “treasure” as “choice food,” so that food and oil would make more sense being swallowed. C. H. Toy (Proverbs [ICC], 406) suggests dropping “oil” altogether based on the reading in the LXX, but the Greek is too general for any support: It has “precious treasure will rest on the mouth of the sage.” W. McKane wants to change “oil” to an Arabic word “expensive” to read “desirable and rare wealth” (Proverbs [OTL], 552), but this idea does not match the metaphor any better. The figure of “devouring” in the second line simply means the fool uses up whatever he has.

[21:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “a fool of a man.”

[21:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “he swallows it.” The imagery compares swallowing food with consuming one’s substance. The fool does not prepare for the future.