Proverbs 23:1-3

23:1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

consider carefully ¹  what ²  is before you,

23:2 and put a knife to your throat ³ 

if you possess a large appetite. ⁴ 

23:3 Do not crave that ruler’s ⁵  delicacies,

for ⁶  that food is deceptive. ⁷ 

Proverbs 23:6-8

23:6 Do not eat the food of a stingy person, ⁸ 

do not crave his delicacies;

23:7 for he is ⁹  like someone calculating the cost ¹⁰  in his mind. ¹¹ 

“Eat and drink,” he says to you,

but his heart is not with you;

23:8 you will vomit up ¹²  the little bit you have eaten,

and will have wasted your pleasant words. ¹³ 

[23:1]  ¹ tn The construction uses the imperfect tense of instruction with the infinitive absolute to emphasize the careful discernment required on such occasions. Cf. NIV “note well”; NLT “pay attention.”

[23:1]  ² tn Or “who,” referring to the ruler (so ASV, NAB, TEV).

[23:2]  ³ sn The expression “put a knife to your throat” is an idiom that means “curb your appetite” or “control yourself” (cf. TEV). The instruction was from a time when people dealt with all-powerful tyrants. To enter the presence of such a person and indulge one’s appetites would be to take a very high risk.

[23:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “lord of appetite.” The idiom בַּעַל נֶפֶשׁ (ba’al nefesh) refers to someone who possesses a large appetite (cf. NAB “a ravenous appetite”). A person with a big appetite is in danger of taking liberties when invited to court.

[23:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “his”; the referent (the ruler mentioned in v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:3]  ⁶ sn The final line gives the causal clause: The impressive feast is not what it appears to be; the king is not doing you a favor, but rather wants something from you or is observing you (K&D 17:104); cf. TEV “he may be trying to trick you.”

[23:3]  ⁷ sn Verses 1-3 form the sixth saying about being cautious before rulers (cf. Instruction of Amememope, chap. 23, 23:13-18). One should not get too familiar with rulers, for they always have ulterior motives. The Mishnah cites Gamaliel as warning that a ruler only draws someone into his court for his purpose, but in their day of trouble he will not be there to help them (m. Abot 2:3).

[23:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “an evil eye.” This is the opposite of the “good eye” which meant the generous man. The “evil eye” refers to a person who is out to get everything for himself (cf. NASB, NCV, CEV “selfish”). He is ill-mannered and inhospitable (e.g., Prov 28:22). He is up to no good – even though he may appear to be a host.

[23:7]  ⁹ tc The line is difficult; it appears to mean that the miser is the kind of person who has calculated the cost of everything in his mind as he offers the food. The LXX has: “Eating and drinking with him is as if one should swallow a hair; do not introduce him to your company nor eat bread with him.” The Hebrew verb “to calculate” (שָׁעַר, sha’ar) with a change of vocalization and of sibilant would yield “hair” (שֵׂעָר, se’ar) – “like a hair in the throat [נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh], so is he.” This would picture an irritating experience. The Instruction of Amenemope uses “blocking the throat” in a similar saying (chapt. 11, 14:7 [ANET 423]). The suggested change is plausible and is followed by NRSV; but the rare verb “to calculate” in the MT would be easier to defend on the basis of the canons of textual criticism because it is the more difficult reading.

[23:7]  ¹⁰ tn The phrase “the cost” does not appear in the Hebrew but is implied by the verb; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[23:7]  ¹¹ tn Heb “soul.”

[23:8]  ¹² sn Eating and drinking with a selfish miser would be irritating and disgusting. The line is hyperbolic; the whole experience turns the stomach.

[23:8]  ¹³ tn Or “your compliments” (so NASB, NIV); cf. TEV “your flattery.”