Proverbs 9:4

9:4 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,”

she says ¹  to those ²  who lack understanding. ³ 

Proverbs 9:16

9:16 “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here,”

she says to those who lack understanding. ⁴ 

Proverbs 25:7

25:7 for it is better for him ⁵  to say to you, “Come up here,” ⁶ 

than to put you lower ⁷  before a prince,

whom your eyes have seen. ⁸ 

[9:4]  ¹ tn Heb “lacking of heart she says to him.” The pronominal suffix is a resumptive pronoun, meaning, “she says to the lacking of heart.”

[9:4]  ² tn Heb “him.”

[9:4]  ³ tn Heb “heart”; cf. NIV “to those who lack judgment.”

[9:16]  ⁴ tn This expression is almost identical to v. 4, with the exception of the addition of conjunctions in the second colon: “and the lacking of understanding and she says to him.” The parallel is deliberate, of course, showing the competing appeals for those passing by.

[25:7]  ⁷ tn The phrase “for him” is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[25:7]  ⁸ sn This proverb, covering the two verses, is teaching that it is wiser to be promoted than to risk demotion by self-promotion. The point is clear: Trying to promote oneself could bring on public humiliation; but it would be an honor to have everyone in court hear the promotion by the king.

[25:7]  ⁹ tn The two infinitives construct form the contrast in this “better” sayings; each serves as the subject of its respective clause.

[25:7]  ¹⁰ tc Most modern commentators either omit this last line or attach it to the next verse. But it is in the text of the MT as well as the LXX, Syriac, Vulgate, and most modern English versions (although some of them do connect it to the following verse, e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).