Proverbs 3:14-15

3:14 For her ¹  benefit ²  is more profitable ³  than silver,

and her ⁴  gain ⁵  is better ⁶  than gold.

3:15 She is more precious than rubies,

and none of the things ⁷  you desire ⁸  can compare ⁹  with her. ¹⁰ 

Proverbs 8:18-19

8:18 Riches and honor are with me,

long-lasting wealth and righteousness.

8:19 My fruit is better than the purest gold, ¹¹ 

and what I produce ¹²  is better than choice silver.

Proverbs 16:16

16:16 How much better it is to acquire ¹³  wisdom than gold;

to acquire understanding is more desirable ¹⁴  than silver.

Proverbs 23:23

23:23 Acquire ¹⁵  truth and do not sell it –

wisdom, and discipline, and understanding.

Psalms 19:10

19:10 They are of greater value ¹⁶  than gold,

than even a great amount of pure gold;

they bring greater delight ¹⁷  than honey,

than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb.

Psalms 119:14

119:14 I rejoice in the lifestyle prescribed by your rules ¹⁸ 

as if ¹⁹  they were riches of all kinds. ²⁰ 

Psalms 119:72

119:72 The law you have revealed is more important to me

than thousands of pieces of gold and silver. ²¹ 

Psalms 119:127

119:127 For this reason ²²  I love your commands

more than gold, even purest gold.

Matthew 6:19-21

Lasting Treasure

6:19 “Do not accumulate for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth ²³  and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. 6:20 But accumulate for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. 6:21 For where your ²⁴  treasure ²⁵  is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 13:44

Parables on the Kingdom of Heaven

13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, hidden in a field, that a person found and hid. Then because of joy he went and sold all that he had and bought that field.

Matthew 19:21-22

19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go sell your possessions and give the money ²⁶  to the poor, and you will have treasure ²⁷  in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 19:22 But when the young man heard this he went away sorrowful, for he was very rich. ²⁸ 

Matthew 19:29

19:29 And whoever has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much ²⁹  and will inherit eternal life.

[3:14]  ¹ tn Heb “her profit.” The 3rd person feminine singular suffix on the noun is probably a genitive of source: “from her.”

[3:14]  ² tn Heb “profit.” The noun סַחַר (sakhar, “trading profit”) often refers to the financial profit of traveling merchants (Isa 23:3, 18; 45:14; HALOT 750 s.v.). The related participle describes a traveling “trader, dealer, wholesaler, merchant” (e.g., Gen 37:28; Prov 31:14; Isa 23:2; Ezek 27:36; HALOT 750 s.v. סחר qal.2). Here the noun is used figuratively to describe the moral benefit of wisdom.

[3:14]  ³ tn The noun סַחַר (“profit”) is repeated in this line for emphasis. The two usages draw upon slightly different nuances, creating a polysemantic wordplay. The moral “benefit” of wisdom is more “profitable” than silver.

[3:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “her yield.” The 3rd person feminine singular suffix on the noun is probably a genitive of source: “from her.”

[3:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “yield.” The noun תְּבוּאָה (tÿvu’ah, “product; yield”) is normally used of crops and harvests (BDB 100 s.v. 1). Here it is figurative for the moral benefit of wisdom (BDB 100 s.v. 2.b).

[3:14]  ⁶ tn The phrase “is better” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.

[3:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “all of your desires cannot compare with her.”

[3:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “your desires.” The 2nd person masculine singular suffix on the noun probably functions as subjective genitive.

[3:15]  ⁹ tn The imperfect tense verb יָסַד (yasad, “to establish be like; to resemble”) has a potential nuance here: “can be compared with.”

[3:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “All of your desires do not compare with her.”

[8:19]  ¹¹ tn The two synonyms, “than gold, than fine gold” probably form a hendiadys here to express “the very finest gold.”

[8:19]  ¹² sn The language of the text with “fruit” and “ingathering” is the language of the harvest – what the crops yield. So the figure is hypocatastasis, comparing what wisdom produces to such crops.

[16:16]  ¹³ tn The form קְנֹה (qÿnoh) is an infinitive; the Greek version apparently took it as a participle, and the Latin as an imperative – both working with an unpointed קנה, the letter ה (he) being unexpected in the form if it is an infinitive construct (the parallel clause has קְנוֹת [qÿnot] for the infinitive, but the ancient versions also translate that as either a participle or an imperative).

[16:16]  ¹⁴ tn The form is a Niphal participle, masculine singular. If it is modifying “understanding” it should be a feminine form. If it is to be translated, it would have to be rendered “and to acquire understanding is to be chosen more than silver” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB). Many commentaries consider it superfluous. NIV and NCV simply have “to choose understanding rather than silver!”

[23:23]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “buy” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NLT); CEV “Invest in truth.”

[19:10]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “more desirable.”

[19:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “are sweeter.” God’s law is “sweet’ in the sense that, when obeyed, it brings a great reward (see v. 11b).

[119:14]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “in the way of your rules.”

[119:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “as upon,” meaning “as if” (see 2 Chr 32:19).

[119:14]  ²⁰ tn Heb “all wealth.” The phrase refers to all kinds of wealth and riches. See Prov 1:13; 6:31; 24:4; Ezek 27:12, 18.

[119:72]  ²¹ tn Heb “better to me [is] the law of your mouth than thousands of gold and silver.”

[119:127]  ²² tn “For this reason” connects logically with the statement made in v. 126. Because the judgment the psalmist fears (see vv. 119-120) is imminent, he remains loyal to God’s law.

[6:19]  ²³ tn The term σής (shs) refers to moths in general. It is specifically the larvae of moths that destroy clothing by eating holes in it (L&N 4.49; BDAG 922 s.v.). See Jas 5:2, which mentions “moth-eaten” clothing.

[6:21]  ²⁴ tn The pronouns in this verse are singular while the pronouns in vv. 19-20 are plural. The change to singular emphasizes personal responsibility as opposed to corporate responsibility; even if others do not listen, the one who hears Jesus’ commands should obey.

[6:21]  ²⁵ sn Seeking heavenly treasure means serving others and honoring God by doing so.

[19:21]  ²⁶ tn The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[19:21]  ²⁷ sn The call for sacrifice comes with a promise of eternal reward: You will have treasure in heaven. Jesus’ call is a test to see how responsive the man is to God’s direction through him. Will he walk the path God’s agent calls him to walk? For a rich person who got it right, see Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10.

[19:22]  ²⁸ tn Grk “he had many possessions.” This term (κτῆμα, kthma) is often used for land as a possession.

[19:29]  ²⁹ sn Jesus reassures his disciples with a promise that (1) much benefit in this life (a hundred times as much) and (2) eternal life will be given.