Proverbs 30:11

30:11 There is a generation ¹  who curse their fathers

and do not bless their mothers. ² 

Proverbs 30:17

30:17 The eye ³  that mocks at a father

and despises obeying ⁴  a mother –

the ravens of the valley will peck it out

and the young vultures will eat it. ⁵ 

Exodus 20:12

20:12 “Honor ⁶  your father and your mother, that you may live a long time ⁷  in the land ⁸  the Lord your God is giving to you.

Exodus 21:17

21:17 “Whoever treats his father or his mother disgracefully ⁹  must surely be put to death.

Leviticus 20:9

Family Life and Sexual Prohibitions ¹⁰ 

20:9 “‘If anyone ¹¹  curses his father and mother ¹²  he must be put to death. He has cursed his father and mother; his blood guilt is on himself. ¹³ 

Deuteronomy 27:16

27:16 ‘Cursed ¹⁴  is the one who disrespects ¹⁵  his father and mother.’ Then all the people will say, ‘Amen!’

Matthew 15:4

15:4 For God said, ¹⁶  ‘Honor your father and mother’ ¹⁷  and ‘Whoever insults his father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹⁸ 

Mark 7:10-13

7:10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ ¹⁹  and, ‘Whoever insults his father or mother must be put to death.’ ²⁰  7:11 But you say that if anyone tells his father or mother, ‘Whatever help you would have received from me is corban’ ²¹  (that is, a gift for God), 7:12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother. 7:13 Thus you nullify ²²  the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like this.”

[30:11]  ¹ sn The next four verses all start with the Hebrew expression translated “There is a generation.” This is a series of denunciations of things that are dangerous in society without mentioning specific punishments or proscriptions. The word “generation” as used in this passage refers to a class or group of people.

[30:11]  ² sn The first observation is that there is a segment in society that lacks respect for parents. This uses the antonyms “curse” and [not] “bless” to make the point. To “curse” a parent could include treating them lightly, defaming them, or showing disrespect in general. To “bless” would mean to honor, respect, or enrich in some way, which is what should be done (e.g., Exod 21:17; Prov 20:20).

[30:17]  ³ sn The “eye” as the organ that exhibits the inner feelings most clearly, here represents a look of scorn or disdain that speaks volumes (a metonymy of cause or of adjunct). It is comparable to the “evil eye” which is stinginess (28:22).

[30:17]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew word לִיקֲּהַת (liqqahat, “obeying”) occurs only here and in Gen 49:10; it seems to mean “to receive” in the sense of “receiving instruction” or “obeying.” C. H. Toy suggests emending to “to old age” (לְזִקְנַת, lÿziqnat) of the mother (Proverbs [ICC], 530). The LXX with γῆρας (ghra", “old age”) suggests that a root lhq had something to do with “white hair.” D. W. Thomas suggests a corruption from lhyqt to lyqht; it would have read, “The eye that mocks a father and despises an aged mother” (“A Note on לִיקֲּהַת in Proverbs 30:17,” JTS 42 [1941]: 154-55); this is followed by NAB “or scorns an aged mother.”

[30:17]  ⁵ sn The sternest punishment is for the evil eye. The punishment is talionic – eye for eye. The reference to “the valley” may indicate a place where people are not be given decent burials and the birds of prey pick the corpses clean. It is an image the prophets use in judgment passages.

[20:12]  ⁶ tn The verb כַּבֵּד (kabbed) is a Piel imperative; it calls for people to give their parents the respect and honor that is appropriate for them. It could be paraphrased to say, give them the weight of authority that they deserve. Next to God, parents were to be highly valued, cared for, and respected.

[20:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “that your days may be long.”

[20:12]  ⁸ sn The promise here is national rather than individual, although it is certainly true that the blessing of life was promised for anyone who was obedient to God’s commands (Deut 4:1, 8:1, etc.). But as W. C. Kaiser (“Exodus,” EBC 2:424) summarizes, the land that was promised was the land of Canaan, and the duration of Israel in the land was to be based on morality and the fear of God as expressed in the home (Deut 4:26, 33, 40; 32:46-47). The captivity was in part caused by a breakdown in this area (Ezek 22:7, 15). Malachi would announce at the end of his book that Elijah would come at the end of the age to turn the hearts of the children and the parents toward each other again.

[21:17]  ⁹ tn The form is a Piel participle from קָלַל (qalal), meaning in Qal “be light,” in Piel “treat lightly, curse, revile, declare contemptible, treat shamefully.” (See its use in Lev 19:14; Josh 24:9; Judg 9:26-28; 1 Sam 3:13; 17:43; 2 Sam 16:5-13; Prov 30:10-11; Eccl 7:21-22; 10:20.) It is opposite of “honor” (כָּבֵד, kaved; Qal “be heavy”; Piel “honor,” as in 20:12) and of “bless.” This verse then could refer to any act contrary to the commandment to honor the parents. B. Jacob (Exodus, 640) cites parallels in Sumerian where people were severely punished for publicly disowning their parents. “21:15, 17 taken together evoke the picture of parents who, physically and verbally, are forcibly turned out of the house (cf. Prov. 19:26)” (C. Houtman, Exodus, 3:148).

[20:9]  ¹⁰ sn Compare the regulations in Lev 18:6-23.

[20:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “If a man a man who.”

[20:9]  ¹² tn Heb “makes light of his father and his mother.” Almost all English versions render this as some variation of “curses his father or mother.”

[20:9]  ¹³ tn Heb “his blood [plural] is in him.” Cf. NAB “he has forfeited his life”; TEV “is responsible for his own death.”

[27:16]  ¹⁴ tn The Levites speak again at this point; throughout this pericope the Levites pronounce the curse and the people respond with “Amen.”

[27:16]  ¹⁵ tn The Hebrew term קָלָה (qalah) means to treat with disdain or lack of due respect (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV “dishonors”; NLT “despises”). It is the opposite of כָּבֵד (kaved, “to be heavy,” that is, to treat with reverence and proper deference). To treat a parent lightly is to dishonor him or her and thus violate the fifth commandment (Deut 5:16; cf. Exod 21:17).

[15:4]  ¹⁶ tc Most mss (א*^,2 C L W 0106 33 Ï) have an expanded introduction here; instead of “For God said,” they read “For God commanded, saying” (ὁ γὰρ θεὸς ἐνετείλατο λέγων, Jo gar qeo" eneteilato legwn). But such expansions are generally motivated readings; in this case, most likely it was due to the wording of the previous verse (“the commandment of God”) that caused early scribes to add to the text. Although it is possible that other witnesses reduced the text to the simple εἶπεν (eipen, “[God] said”) because of perceived redundancy with the statement in v. 3, such is unlikely in light of the great variety and age of these authorities (א¹ B D Θ 073 Ë^1,13 579 700 892 pc lat co, as well as other versions and fathers).

[15:4]  ¹⁷ sn A quotation from Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16.

[15:4]  ¹⁸ sn A quotation from Exod 21:17; Lev 20:9.

[7:10]  ¹⁹ sn A quotation from Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16.

[7:10]  ²⁰ sn A quotation from Exod 21:17; Lev 20:9.

[7:11]  ²¹ sn Corban is a Hebrew loanword (transliterated in the Greek text and in most modern English translations) referring to something that has been set aside as a gift to be given to God at some later date, but which is still in the possession of the owner (L&N 53.22). According to contemporary Jewish tradition the person who made this claim was absolved from responsibility to support or assist his parents, a clear violation of the Mosaic law to honor one’s parents (v. 10).

[7:13]  ²² tn Grk “nullifying.” This participle shows the results of the Pharisees’ command.