Proverbs 14:8

14:8 The wisdom of the shrewd person ¹  is to discern ²  his way,

but the folly of fools is deception. ³ 

Amos 5:13

5:13 For this reason whoever is smart ⁴  keeps quiet ⁵  in such a time,

for it is an evil ⁶  time.

Acts 13:7

13:7 who was with the proconsul ⁷  Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. The proconsul ⁸  summoned ⁹  Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear ¹⁰  the word of God.

[14:8]  ¹ tn Or “the prudent [person]” (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV).

[14:8]  ² tn The Hiphil infinitive construct denotes purpose. Those who are shrewd will use it to give careful consideration to all their ways.

[14:8]  ³ tn The word means “deception,” but some suggest “self-deception” here (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 466; and D. W. Thomas, “Textual and Philological Notes on Some Passages in the Book of Proverbs,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 286); cf. NLT “fools deceive themselves.” The parallelism would favor this, but there is little support for it. The word usually means “craft practiced on others.” If the line is saying the fool is deceitful, there is only a loose antithesis between the cola.

[5:13]  ⁴ tn Or “the wise”; or “the prudent.” Another option is to translate “the successful, prosperous” and understand this as a reference to the rich oppressors. See G. V. Smith, Amos, 169-70. In this case the following verb will also have a different nuance, that is, the wealthy remain silent before the abuses they perpetuate. See the note on the verb translated “keeps quiet” later in this verse.

[5:13]  ⁵ tn Or “moans, laments,” from a homonymic verbal root. If the rich oppressors are in view, then the verb (whether translated “will be silenced” or “will lament”) describes the result of God’s judgment upon them. See G. V. Smith, Amos, 170.

[5:13]  ⁶ tn If this is a judgment announcement against the rich, then the Hebrew phrase עֵת רָעָה (’et ra’ah) must be translated, “[a] disastrous time.” See G. V. Smith, Amos, 170.

[13:7]  ⁷ sn The proconsul was the Roman official who ruled over a province traditionally under the control of the Roman senate.

[13:7]  ⁸ tn Grk “This one”; the referent (the proconsul) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:7]  ⁹ tn Grk “summoning Barnabas and Saul, wanted to hear.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[13:7]  ¹⁰ sn The proconsul…wanted to hear the word of God. This description of Sergius Paulus portrays him as a sensitive, secular Gentile leader.