Discovery BoxProverbs 6:20--7:27
Context6:20 My child, guard the commands of your father
and do not forsake the instruction of your mother.
6:21 Bind them 1 on your heart continually;
fasten them around your neck.
6:22 When you walk about, 2 they 3 will guide you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
when you wake up, 4 they will talk 5 to you.
6:23 For the commandments 6 are like 7 a lamp, 8
instruction is like a light,
and rebukes of discipline are like 9 the road leading to life, 10
6:24 by keeping 11 you from the evil woman, 12
from the smooth tongue of 13 the loose woman. 14
6:25 Do not lust 15 in your heart for her beauty,
and do not let her captivate you with her alluring eyes; 16
6:26 for on account 17 of a prostitute one is brought down to a loaf of bread,
but the wife of another man 18 preys on your precious life. 19
6:27 Can a man hold 20 fire 21 against his chest 22
without 23 burning his clothes?
6:28 Can 24 a man walk on hot coals
without scorching his feet?
6:29 So it is with 25 the one who has sex with 26 his neighbor’s wife;
no one 27 who touches 28 her will escape 29 punishment. 30
6:30 People 31 do not despise a thief when he steals
to fulfill his need 32 when he is hungry.
6:31 Yet 33 if he is caught 34 he must repay 35 seven times over,
he might even have to give 36 all the wealth of his house.
6:32 A man who commits adultery with a woman lacks wisdom, 37
whoever does it destroys his own life. 38
6:33 He will be beaten and despised, 39
and his reproach will not be wiped away; 40
6:34 for jealousy kindles 41 a husband’s 42 rage,
and he will not show mercy 43 when he takes revenge.
6:35 He will not consider 44 any compensation; 45
he will not be willing, even if you multiply the compensation. 46
7:1 My child, 48 keep my words
and treasure up my commands in your own keeping. 49
7:2 Keep my commands 50 so that you may live, 51
and obey 52 my instruction as your most prized possession. 53
7:3 Bind them on your forearm; 54
write them on the tablet of your heart. 55
7:4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,” 56
and call understanding a close relative,
7:5 so that they may keep you 57 from the adulterous 58 woman,
from the loose woman 59 who flatters you 60 with her words. 61
7:6 For at the window of my house
through my window lattice I looked out
7:7 and I saw among the naive –
I discerned among the youths 62 –
a young man 63 who lacked wisdom. 64
7:8 He was passing by the street near her corner,
making his way 65 along the road to her house 66
7:9 in the twilight, the evening, 67
in the dark of the night. 68
7:10 Suddenly 69 a woman came out to meet him!
She was dressed like a prostitute 70 and with secret intent. 71
7:11 (She is loud and rebellious,
she 72 does not remain 73 at home –
7:12 at one time outside, at another 74 in the wide plazas,
and by every corner she lies in wait.)
7:13 So she grabbed him and kissed him,
and with a bold expression 75 she said to him,
7:14 “I have 76 fresh meat at home; 77
today I have fulfilled my vows!
7:15 That is why I came out to meet you,
to look for you, 78 and I found you!
7:16 I have spread my bed with elegant coverings, 79
with richly colored fabric 80 from Egypt.
7:17 I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon.
7:18 Come, let’s drink deeply 81 of lovemaking 82 until morning,
let’s delight ourselves 83 with sexual intercourse. 84
7:19 For my husband 85 is not at home; 86
he has gone on a journey of some distance.
7:20 He has taken a bag of money with him; 87
he will not return until 88 the end of the month.” 89
7:21 She persuaded him 90 with persuasive words; 91
with her smooth talk 92 she compelled him. 93
7:22 Suddenly he went 94 after her
like an ox that goes to the slaughter,
like a stag prancing into a trapper’s snare 95
7:23 till an arrow pierces his liver 96 –
like a bird hurrying into a trap,
and he does not know that it will cost him his life. 97
7:24 So now, sons, 98 listen to me,
and pay attention to the words I speak. 99
7:25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways –
do not wander into her pathways;
7:26 for she has brought down 100 many fatally wounded,
and all those she has slain are many. 101
[6:21] 1 sn The figures used here are hypocatastases (implied comparisons). There may also be an allusion to Deut 6 where the people were told to bind the law on their foreheads and arms. The point here is that the disciple will never be without these instructions. See further, P. W. Skehan, Studies in Israelite Poetry and Wisdom (CBQMS), 1-8.
[6:22] 2 tn The verbal form is the Hitpael infinitive construct with a preposition and a suffixed subjective genitive to form a temporal clause. The term הָלַךְ (halakh) in this verbal stem means “to go about; to go to and fro.” The use of these terms in v. 22 also alludes to Deut 6:7.
[6:22] 3 tn Heb “it will guide you.” The verb is singular and the instruction is the subject.
[6:22] 4 tn In both of the preceding cola an infinitive construct was used for the temporal clauses; now the construction uses a perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive. The verb would then be equivalent to an imperfect tense, but subordinated as a temporal clause here.
[6:22] 5 sn The Hebrew verb means “talk” in the sense of “to muse; to complain; to meditate”; cf. TEV, NLT “advise you.” Instruction bound to the heart will speak to the disciple on awaking.
[6:23] 6 tn Heb “the commandment” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV).
[6:23] 7 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
[6:23] 8 sn The terms “lamp,” “light,” and “way” are all metaphors. The positive teachings and commandments will illumine or reveal to the disciple the way to life; the disciplinary correctives will provide guidance into fullness of life.
[6:23] 9 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
[6:23] 10 tn Heb “the way of life” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV, NLT “the way to life.” The noun “life” is a genitive following the construct “way.” It could be an attributive genitive modifying the kind of way/course of life that instruction provides, but it could also be objective in that the course of life followed would produce and lead to life.
[6:24] 11 tn The infinitive construct is epexegetical here, explaining how these teachings function as lights: “by keeping you.” This verse is the transition from the general admonition about heeding the teachings to the practical application.
[6:24] 12 tc The word translated “woman” is modified by רַע (ra’, “evil”) in the sense of violating the codes of the community and inflicting harm on others. The BHS editors propose changing it to read “strange woman” as before, but there is not support for that. Some commentaries follow the LXX and read רַע as “wife of a neighbor” (cf. NAB; also NRSV “the wife of another”; CEV “someone else’s wife”) but that seems to be only a clarification.
[6:24] 13 tn The word “tongue” is not in construct; the word “foreign woman” is in apposition to “smooth of tongue,” specifying whose it is. The word “smooth” then is the object of the preposition, “tongue” is the genitive of specification, and “foreign woman” in apposition.
[6:24] 14 sn The description of the woman as a “strange woman” and now a “loose [Heb “foreign”] woman” is within the context of the people of Israel. She is a “foreigner” in the sense that she is a nonconformist, wayward, and loose. It does not necessarily mean that she is not ethnically an Israelite.
[6:25] 15 tn The negated jussive gives the young person an immediate warning. The verb חָמַד (khamad) means “to desire,” and here in the sense of lust. The word is used in the Decalogue of Deut 5:21 for the warning against coveting.
[6:25] 16 tn Heb “her eyelids” (so KJV, NASB); NRSV “eyelashes”; TEV “flirting eyes”). This term is a synecdoche of part (eyelids) for the whole (eyes) or a metonymy of association for painted eyes and the luring glances that are the symptoms of seduction (e.g., 2 Kgs 9:30). The term “alluring” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarification.
[6:26] 17 tn The word בְעַד (bÿ’ad) may be taken either as “on account of” (= by means of a) prostitute (cf. ASV, NASB), or “for the price of” a prostitute (cf. NAB). Most expositors take the first reading, though that use of the preposition is unattested, and then must supply “one is brought to.” The verse would then say that going to a prostitute can bring a man to poverty, but going to another man’s wife can lead to death. If the second view were taken, it would mean that one had a smaller price than the other. It is not indicating that one is preferable to the other; both are to be avoided.
[6:26] 18 tn Heb “the wife of a man.”
[6:26] 19 tn These two lines might be an example of synthetic parallelism, that is, “A, what’s more B.” The A-line describes the detrimental moral effect of a man going to a professional prostitute; the B-line heightens this and describes the far worse effect – moral and mortal! – of a man committing adultery with another man’s wife. When a man goes to a prostitute, he lowers himself to become nothing more than a “meal ticket” to sustain the life of that woman; however, when a man commits adultery, he places his very life in jeopardy – the rage of the husband could very well kill him.
[6:27] 20 tn The Qal imperfect (with the interrogative) here has a potential nuance – “Is it possible to do this?” The sentence is obviously a rhetorical question making an affirmation that it is not possible.
[6:27] 21 sn “Fire” provides the analogy for the sage’s warning: Fire represents the sinful woman (hypocatastasis) drawn close, and the burning of the clothes the inevitable consequences of the liaison. See J. L. Crenshaw, “Impossible Questions, Sayings, and Tasks,” Semeia 17 (1980): 19-34. The word “fire” (אֵשׁ, ’esh) plays on the words “man” (אִישׁ,’ish) and “woman” (אִשָּׁה, ’ishah); a passage like this probably inspired R. Gamaliel’s little explanation that what binds a man and a woman together in a holy marriage is י (yod) and ה (he), the two main letters of the holy name Yah. But if the
[6:27] 22 tn Heb “snatch up fire into his bosom.”
[6:27] 23 tn The second colon begins with the vav (ו) disjunctive on the noun, indicating a disjunctive clause; here it is a circumstantial clause.
[6:28] 24 tn The particle indicates that this is another rhetorical question like that in v. 27.
[6:29] 25 tn Heb “thus is the one.”
[6:29] 26 tn Heb “who goes in to” (so NAB, NASB). The Hebrew verb בּוֹא (bo’, “to go in; to enter”) is used throughout scripture as a euphemism for the act of sexual intercourse. Cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT “who sleeps with”; NCV “have sexual relations with.”
[6:29] 27 tn Heb “anyone who touches her will not.”
[6:29] 28 sn The verb “touches” is intended here to be a euphemism for illegal sexual contact (e.g., Gen 20:6).
[6:29] 29 tn Heb “will be exempt from”; NASB, NLT “will not go unpunished.”
[6:29] 30 tn The verb is יִנָּקֶה (yinnaqeh), the Niphal imperfect from נָקָה (naqah, “to be empty; to be clean”). From it we get the adjectives “clean,” “free from guilt,” “innocent.” The Niphal has the meanings (1) “to be cleaned out” (of a plundered city; e.g., Isa 3:26), (2) “to be clean; to be free from guilt; to be innocent” (Ps 19:14), (3) “to be free; to be exempt from punishment” [here], and (4) “to be free; to be exempt from obligation” (Gen 24:8).
[6:30] 31 tn Heb “they do not despise.”
[6:30] 32 tn Heb “himself” or “his life.” Since the word נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, traditionally “soul”) refers to the whole person, body and soul, and since it has a basic idea of the bundle of appetites that make up a person, the use here for satisfying his hunger is appropriate.
[6:31] 33 tn The term “yet” is supplied in the translation.
[6:31] 34 tn Heb “is found out.” The perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive is equivalent to the imperfect nuances. Here it introduces either a conditional or a temporal clause before the imperfect.
[6:31] 35 tn The imperfect tense has an obligatory nuance. The verb in the Piel means “to repay; to make restitution; to recompense”; cf. NCV, TEV, CEV “must pay back.”
[6:31] 36 tn This final clause in the section is somewhat cryptic. The guilty thief must pay back sevenfold what he stole, even if it means he must use the substance of his whole house. The verb functions as an imperfect of possibility: “he might even give.”
[6:32] 37 tn Heb “heart.” The term “heart” is used as a metonymy of association for discernment, wisdom, good sense. Cf. NAB “is a fool”; NIV “lacks judgment”; NCV, NRSV “has no sense.”
[6:32] 38 tn Heb “soul.” The noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”) functions as a metonymy of association for “life” (BDB 659 s.v. 3.c).
[6:33] 39 tn Heb “He will receive a wound and contempt.”
[6:33] 40 sn Even though the text has said that the man caught in adultery ruins his life, it does not mean that he was put to death, although that could have happened. He seems to live on in ignominy, destroyed socially and spiritually. He might receive blows and wounds from the husband and shame and disgrace from the spiritual community. D. Kidner observes that in a morally healthy society the adulterer would be a social outcast (Proverbs [TOTC], 75).
[6:34] 41 tn The word “kindles” was supplied in the translation; both “rage” and “jealousy” have meanings connected to heat.
[6:34] 43 tn The verb חָמַל (khamal) means “to show mercy; to show compassion; to show pity,” usually with the outcome of sparing or delivering someone. The idea here is that the husband will not spare the guilty man any of the punishment (cf. NRSV “he shows no restraint”).
[6:35] 44 tn Heb “lift up the face of,” meaning “regard.”
[6:35] 45 tn The word rendered “compensation” is כֹּפֶר (cofer); it is essentially a ransom price, a sum to be paid to deliver another from debt, bondage, or crime. The husband cannot accept payment as a ransom for a life, since what has happened cannot be undone so easily.
[6:35] 46 tn BDB 1005 s.v. שֹׁחַד suggests that this term means “hush money” or “bribe” (cf. NIV, NRSV, NLT). C. H. Toy takes it as legal compensation (Proverbs [ICC], 142).
[7:1] 47 sn The chapter begins with the important teaching of the father (1-5), then it focuses on the seduction: first of the victim (6-9), then the temptress (10-12), then the seduction (13-20), and the capitulation (21-23); the chapter concludes with the deadly results of consorting (24-27).
[7:1] 49 tn Heb “within you” (so NASB, NIV); KJV, ASV, NRSV “with you.” BDB 860 s.v. צָפַן Qal.1 suggests that “within you” means “in your own keeping.”
[7:2] 50 tc Before v. 2 the LXX inserts: “My son, fear the
[7:2] 51 tn The construction of an imperative with the vav (ו) of sequence after another imperative denotes a logical sequence of purpose or result: “that you may live,” or “and you will live.”
[7:2] 52 tn The term “obey” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the parallelism; it is supplied for the sake of clarity and smoothness. Some English versions, in light of the second line of v. 1, supply “guard” (e.g., NIV, NCV, NLT).
[7:2] 53 tn Heb “the little man in your eye.” Traditionally this Hebrew idiom is translated into English as “the apple of your eye” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); a more contemporary rendering would be “as your most prized possession.” The word for “man” has the diminutive ending on it. It refers to the pupil, where the object focused on – a man – is reflected in miniature. The point is that the teaching must be the central focus of the disciple’s vision and attention.
[7:3] 54 tn Heb “fingers” (so KJV and many other English versions). In light of Deut 6:8, “fingers” appears to be a metonymy for the lower part of the arm.
[7:3] 55 sn This is an allusion to Deut 6:8. Binding the teachings on the fingers and writing them on the tablets here are implied comparisons for preserving the teaching in memory so that it can be recalled and used with ease.
[7:4] 56 sn The metaphor is meant to signify that the disciple will be closely related to and familiar with wisdom and understanding, as close as to a sibling. Wisdom will be personified in the next two chapters, and so referring to it as a sister in this chapter certainly prepares for that personification.
[7:5] 57 tn The infinitive construct with the preposition shows the purpose of associating closely with wisdom: Wisdom will obviate temptations, the greatest being the sexual urge.
[7:5] 58 tn Heb “strange” (so KJV, ASV).
[7:5] 59 tn Heb “strange woman.” This can be interpreted as a “wayward wife” (so NIV) or an “unfaithful wife” (so NCV). As discussed earlier, the designations “strange woman” and “foreign woman” could refer to Israelites who stood outside the community in their lawlessness and loose morals – an adulteress or wayward woman. H. Ringgren and W. Zimmerli, however, suggest that she is also a promoter of a pagan cult, but that is not entirely convincing (Spruche/Prediger [ATD], 19).
[7:5] 60 tn The term “you” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.
[7:5] 61 tn Heb “she makes smooth her words.” This expression means “she flatters with her words.”
[7:7] 63 tn Heb “lad” or “youth.”
[7:8] 65 tn The verb צָעַד (tsa’ad) means “to step; to march.” It suggests that the youth was intentionally making his way to her house. The verb is the imperfect tense; it stresses continual action parallel to the active participle that began the verse, but within a context that is past time.
[7:8] 66 tn Heb “way of her house.” This expression uses an adverbial accusative of location, telling where he was marching along. The term “house” is the genitive of location, giving the goal.
[7:9] 67 tn Heb “in the evening of the day.”
[7:9] 68 tn Heb “in the middle of the night, and dark”; KJV “in the black and dark night”; NRSV “at the time of night and darkness.”
[7:10] 69 tn The particle וְהִנֵּה (vÿhinneh) introduces a dramatic sense of the immediate to the narrative; it has a deictic force, “and look! – there was a woman,” or “all of a sudden this woman….”
[7:10] 70 tn Heb “with the garment of a prostitute.” The noun שִׁית (shith, “garment”) is an adverbial accusative specifying the appearance of the woman. The words “she was” are supplied in the translation to make a complete English sentence.
[7:10] 71 tn Heb “kept secret of heart”; cf. ASV, NRSV “wily of heart.” The verbal form is the passive participle from נָצַר (natsar) in construct. C. H. Toy lists the suggestions of the commentators: false, malicious, secret, subtle, excited, hypocritical (Proverbs [ICC], 149). The LXX has “causes the hearts of the young men to fly away.” The verb means “to guard; to watch; to keep”; to be guarded of heart means to be wily, to have secret intent – she has locked up her plans and gives nothing away (e.g., Isaiah 48:6 as well). Interestingly enough, this contrasts with her attire which gives everything away.
[7:11] 72 tn Heb “her feet.” This is a synecdoche, a part for the whole; the point is that she never stays home, but is out and about all the time.
[7:11] 73 tn Heb “dwell” or “settle”; NAB “her feet cannot rest.”
[7:12] 74 tn The repetition of the noun “time, step,” usually translated “now, this time,” signifies here “at one time…at another time” (BDB 822 s.v. פַּעַם 3.e).
[7:13] 75 tn Heb “she makes bold her face.” The Hiphil perfect of עָזַז (’azar, “to be strong”) means she has an impudent face (cf. KJV, NAB, NRSV), a bold or brazen expression (cf. NASB, NIV, NLT).
[7:14] 77 tn Heb “I have peace offerings.” The peace offerings refer to the meat left over from the votive offering made at the sanctuary (e.g., Lev 7:11-21). Apparently the sacrificial worship meant as little to this woman spiritually as does Christmas to modern hypocrites who follow in her pattern. By expressing that she has peace offerings, she could be saying nothing more than that she has fresh meat for a meal at home, or that she was ceremonially clean, perhaps after her period. At any rate, it is all probably a ruse for winning a customer.
[7:15] 78 tn Heb “to look diligently for your face.”
[7:16] 79 tn Heb “with spreads.” The sentence begins with the cognate accusative: “with spreads I have spread my bed.” The construction enhances the idea – she has covered her bed.
[7:16] 80 tn The feminine noun means “dark-hued stuffs” (BDB 310 s.v. חֲטֻבוֹת). The form is a passive participle from a supposed root II חָטַב (khatav), which in Arabic means to be of a turbid, dusky color mixed with yellowish red. Its Aramaic cognate means “variegated”; cf. NAB “with brocaded cloths of Egyptian linen.” BDB’s translation of this colon is unsatifactory: “with dark hued stuffs of yarn from Egypt.”
[7:18] 81 tn The form נִרְוֶה (nirveh) is the plural cohortative; following the imperative “come” the form expresses the hortatory “let’s.” The verb means “to be saturated; to drink one’s fill,” and can at times mean “to be intoxicated with.”
[7:18] 82 tn Heb “loves.” The word דּוֹד (dod) means physical love or lovemaking. It is found frequently in the Song of Solomon for the loved one, the beloved. Here the form (literally, “loves”) is used in reference to multiple acts of sexual intercourse, as the phrase “until morning” suggests.
[7:18] 83 tn The form is the Hitpael cohortative of עָלַס (’alas), which means “to rejoice.” Cf. NIV “let’s enjoy ourselves.”
[7:19] 85 tn Heb “the man.” The LXX interpreted it as “my husband,” taking the article to be used as a possessive. Many English versions do the same.
[7:19] 86 tn Heb “in his house.”
[7:20] 87 tn Heb “in his hand.”
[7:20] 88 tn Heb “he will come back at.”
[7:20] 89 tn Heb “new moon.” Judging from the fact that the husband took a purse of money and was staying away until the next full moon, the woman implies that they would be safe in their escapade. If v. 9 and v. 20 are any clue, he could be gone for about two weeks – until the moon is full again.
[7:21] 90 tn Heb “she turned him aside.” This expression means that she persuaded him. This section now begins the description of the capitulation, for the flattering speech is finished.
[7:21] 91 sn The term לֶקַח (leqakh) was used earlier in Proverbs for wise instruction; now it is used ironically for enticement to sin (see D. W. Thomas, “Textual and Philological Notes on Some Passages in the Book of Proverbs,” VTSup 3 [1955]: 280-92).
[7:21] 92 tn Heb “smooth of her lips”; cf. NAB “smooth lips”; NASB “flattering lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause representing what she says.
[7:21] 93 tn The verb means “to impel; to thrust; to banish,” but in this stem in this context “to compel; to force” into some action. The imperfect tense has the nuance of progressive imperfect to parallel the characteristic perfect of the first colon.
[7:22] 94 tn The participle with “suddenly” gives a more vivid picture, almost as if to say “there he goes.”
[7:22] 95 tn The present translation follows R. B. Y. Scott (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes [AB], 64). This third colon of the verse would usually be rendered, “fetters to the chastening of a fool” (KJV, ASV, and NASB are all similar). But there is no support that עֶכֶס (’ekhes) means “fetters.” It appears in Isaiah 3:16 as “anklets.” The parallelism here suggests that some animal imagery is required. Thus the ancient versions have “as a dog to the bonds.”
[7:23] 96 sn The figure of an arrow piercing the liver (an implied comparison) may refer to the pangs of a guilty conscience that the guilty must reap along with the spiritual and physical ruin that follows (see on these expressions H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament).
[7:23] 97 tn The expression that it is “for/about/over his life” means that it could cost him his life (e.g., Num 16:38). Alternatively, the line could refer to moral corruption and social disgrace rather than physical death – but this would not rule out physical death too.
[7:24] 98 tn The literal translation “sons” works well here in view of the warning. Cf. KJV, NAB, NRSV “children.”
[7:24] 99 tn Heb “the words of my mouth.”
[7:26] 100 tn Heb “she has caused to fall.”
[7:26] 101 tn Heb “numerous” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT) or “countless.”
[7:27] 102 tn The noun “Sheol” in parallelism to “the chambers of death” probably means the grave. The noun is a genitive of location, indicating the goal of the road(s). Her house is not the grave; it is, however, the sure way to it.
[7:27] 103 tn The Qal active participle modifies “ways” to Sheol. The “road,” as it were, descends to the place of death.
[7:27] 104 tn “Chambers” is a hypocatastasis, comparing the place of death or the grave with a bedroom in the house. It plays on the subtlety of the temptation. Cf. NLT “Her bedroom is the den of death.”
