Proverbs 8:14

8:14 Counsel and sound wisdom belong to me; ¹ 

I possess understanding and might.

Proverbs 1:33

1:33 But the one who listens ²  to me will live in security, ³ 

and will be at ease ⁴  from the dread of harm.

Proverbs 5:7

5:7 So now, children, ⁵  listen to me;

do not turn aside from the words I speak. ⁶ 

Proverbs 7:24

7:24 So now, sons, ⁷  listen to me,

and pay attention to the words I speak. ⁸ 

Proverbs 8:32

8:32 “So now, children, ⁹  listen to me;

blessed are those who keep my ways.

Proverbs 23:26

23:26 Give me your heart, my son, ¹⁰ 

and let your eyes observe my ways;

Proverbs 30:2

30:2 Surely ¹¹  I am more brutish ¹²  than any other human being, ¹³ 

and I do not have human understanding; ¹⁴ 

Proverbs 4:4

4:4 he taught me, and he said to me:

“Let your heart lay hold of my words;

keep my commands so that ¹⁵  you will live.

Proverbs 8:34

8:34 Blessed is the one ¹⁶  who listens to me,

watching ¹⁷  at my doors day by day,

waiting ¹⁸  beside my doorway. ¹⁹ 

Proverbs 24:29

24:29 Do not say, “I will do to him just as he has done to me;

I will pay him back ²⁰  according to what he has done.” ²¹ 

Proverbs 30:8

30:8 Remove falsehood and lies ²²  far from me;

do not give me poverty or riches,

feed me with my allotted portion ²³  of bread, ²⁴ 

[8:14]  ¹ tc In the second half of v. 14 instead of אֲנִי (’ani) the editors propose reading simply לִי (li) as the renderings in the LXX, Latin, and Syriac suggest. Then, in place of the לִי that comes in the same colon, read וְלִי (vÿli). While the MT is a difficult reading, it can be translated as it is. It would be difficult to know exactly what the ancient versions were reading, because their translations could have been derived from either text. They represent an effort to smooth out the text.

[1:33]  ² tn The participle is used substantivally here: “whoever listens” will enjoy the benefits of the instruction.

[1:33]  ³ tn The noun בֶּטַח (betakh, “security”) functions as an adverbial accusative of manner: “in security.” The phrase refers to living in a permanent settled condition without fear of danger (e.g., Deut 33:12; Ps 16:9). It is the antithesis of the dread of disaster facing the fool and the simple.

[1:33]  ⁴ tn The verb שַׁאֲנַן (sha’anan) is a Palel perfect of שָׁאַן (sha’an) which means “to be at ease; to rest securely” (BDB 983 s.v. שָׁאַן). Elsewhere it parallels the verb “to be undisturbed” (Jer 30:10), so it means “to rest undisturbed and quiet.” The reduplicated Palel stem stresses the intensity of the idea. The perfect tense functions in the so-called “prophetic perfect” sense, emphasizing the certainty of this blessing for the wise.

[5:7]  ³ tn Heb “sons.”

[5:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “the words of my mouth” (so KJV, NAB, NRSV).

[7:24]  ⁴ tn The literal translation “sons” works well here in view of the warning. Cf. KJV, NAB, NRSV “children.”

[7:24]  ⁵ tn Heb “the words of my mouth.”

[8:32]  ⁵ tn Heb “sons.”

[23:26]  ⁶ tn Heb “my son”; the reference to a “son” is retained in the translation here because in the following lines the advice is to avoid women who are prostitutes.

[30:2]  ⁷ tn The particle כִּי (ki) functions in an asseverative sense, “surely; indeed; truly” (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 73, §449).

[30:2]  ⁸ tn The noun בַּעַר (ba’ar) means “brutishness”; here it functions as a predicate adjective. It is followed by מֵאִישׁ (me’ish) expressing comparative degree: “more than a man” or “more than any man,” with “man” used in a generic sense. He is saying that he has fallen beneath the level of mankind. Cf. NRSV “I am too stupid to be human.”

[30:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “than man.” The verse is using hyperbole; this individual feels as if he has no intelligence at all, that he is more brutish than any other human. Of course this is not true, or he would not be able to speculate on the God of the universe at all.

[30:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the understanding of a man,” with “man” used attributively here.

[4:4]  ⁸ tn The imperative with the vav expresses volitional sequence after the preceding imperative: “keep and then you will live,” meaning “keep so that you may live.”

[8:34]  ⁹ tn Heb “the man.”

[8:34]  ¹⁰ tn The form לִשְׁקֹד (lishqod) is the infinitive construct serving epexegetically in the sentence. It explains how the person will listen to wisdom.

[8:34]  ¹¹ tn Heb “keeping” or “guarding.”

[8:34]  ¹² tn Heb “at the posts of my doors” (so KJV, ASV).

[24:29]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “repay to the man.” The verb is שׁוּב (shuv), which in the Hiphil stem means “to restore; to repay; to return” (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT “I’ll get even”). The idea is that of repaying someone for what he did.

[24:29]  ¹¹ sn Rather than give in to the spirit of vengeance, one should avoid retaliation (e.g., Prov 20:22; Matt 5:43-45; Rom 12:9). According to the Talmud, Hillel said, “Do not do to others what you would not have them do unto you” (b. Sanhedrin 31a).

[30:8]  ¹¹ tn The two words might form a hendiadys: “falsehood and lies” being equivalent to “complete deception.” The word שָׁוְא means “false; empty; vain; to a false purpose.” The second word means “word of lying,” thus “a lying word.” Taken separately they might refer to false intentions and false words.

[30:8]  ¹² tn The word חֹק (khoq) means “statute”; it is also used of a definite assignment in labor (Exod 5:14; Prov 31:15), or of a set portion of food (Gen 47:22). Here it refers to food that is the proper proportion for the speaker.

[30:8]  ¹³ sn Agur requested an honest life (not deceitful) and a balanced life (not self-sufficient). The second request about his provision is clarified in v. 9.