Psalms 25:8-12

25:8 The Lord is both kind and fair; ¹ 

that is why he teaches sinners the right way to live. ² 

25:9 May he show ³  the humble what is right! ⁴ 

May he teach ⁵  the humble his way!

25:10 The Lord always proves faithful and reliable ⁶ 

to those who follow the demands of his covenant. ⁷ 

25:11 For the sake of your reputation, ⁸  O Lord,

forgive my sin, because it is great. ⁹ 

25:12 The Lord shows his faithful followers

the way they should live. ¹⁰ 

Psalms 32:8

32:8 I will instruct and teach you ¹¹  about how you should live. ¹² 

I will advise you as I look you in the eye. ¹³ 

Proverbs 3:6

3:6 Acknowledge ¹⁴  him in all your ways, ¹⁵ 

and he will make your paths straight. ¹⁶ 

Proverbs 8:20

8:20 I walk in the path of righteousness,

in the pathway of justice,

Proverbs 8:2

8:2 At the top ¹⁷  of the elevated places along the way,

at the intersection ¹⁸  of the paths she takes her stand;

Proverbs 3:5

3:5 Trust ¹⁹  in the Lord with all your heart, ²⁰ 

and do not rely ²¹  on your own understanding. ²² 

[25:8]  ¹ tn Heb “good and just.”

[25:8]  ² tn Heb “teaches sinners in the way.”

[25:9]  ³ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive; the psalmist expresses his prayer.

[25:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “may he guide the humble into justice.” The Hebrew term עֲנָוִים (’anavim, “humble”) usually refers to the oppressed, but in this context, where the psalmist confesses his sin and asks for moral guidance, it apparently refers to sinners who humble themselves before God and seek deliverance from their sinful condition.

[25:9]  ⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form is interpreted as a jussive (it stands parallel to the jussive form, “may he guide”).

[25:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “all the paths of the Lord are faithful and trustworthy.” The Lord’s “paths” refer here to his characteristic actions.

[25:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “to the ones who keep his covenant and his testimonies.”

[25:11]  ⁸ tn Heb “name.” By forgiving the sinful psalmist, the Lord’s reputation as a merciful God will be enhanced.

[25:11]  ⁹ sn Forgive my sin, because it is great. The psalmist readily admits his desperate need for forgiveness.

[25:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Who is this man, the one who fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way he should choose.” The singular (note “man”) is representative here (see v. 14, where the plural is used), and has thus been translated as a plural (“followers…they”).

[32:8]  ¹¹ tn The second person pronominal forms in this verse are singular. The psalmist addresses each member of his audience individually (see also the note on the word “eye” in the next line). A less likely option (but one which is commonly understood) is that the Lord addresses the psalmist in vv. 8-9 (cf. NASB “I will instruct you and teach you…I will counsel you with My eye upon you”).

[32:8]  ¹² tn Heb “I will instruct you and I will teach you in the way [in] which you should walk.”

[32:8]  ¹³ tn Heb “I will advise, upon you my eye,” that is, “I will offer advice [with] my eye upon you.” In 2 Chr 20:12 the statement “our eye is upon you” means that the speakers are looking to the Lord for intervention. Here the expression “my eye upon you” may simply mean that the psalmist will teach his pupils directly and personally.

[3:6]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “know him.” The verb יָדַע (yadah, “to know”) includes mental awareness of who God is and the consequential submission to his lordship. To know him is to obey him. The sage is calling for a life of trust and obedience in which the disciple sees the Lord in every event and relies on him. To acknowledge the Lord in every event means trusting and obeying him for guidance in right conduct.

[3:6]  ¹⁵ tn The term דֶרֶךְ (derekh, “way”) is figurative (hypocatastasis: implied comparison) referring to a person’s course of life, actions and undertakings (Prov 2:8; 3:6, 23; 11:5; 20:24; 29:27; 31:3; BDB 203 s.v. 5; cf. TEV “in everything you do”; NCV, NLT “in all you do”). This is a call for total commitment in trust for obedience in all things.

[3:6]  ¹⁶ tn The verb יָשָׁר (yashar) means “to make smooth; to make straight” (BDB 444 s.v.). This phrase means “to make the way free from obstacles,” that is, to make it successful (e.g., Isa 40:3). The straight, even road is the right road; God will make the way smooth for the believer.

[8:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “head.” The word רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “head”) refers to the highest area or most important place in the elevated area. The contrast with chapter 7 is striking. There the wayward woman lurked at the corners in the street at night; here wisdom is at the highest point in the open places in view of all.

[8:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “at the house of the paths.” The “house” is not literal here, but refers to where the paths meet (cf. ASV, NIV), that is, the “crossroads” (so NAB, NRSV, NLT).

[3:5]  ¹⁹ sn The word בְּטַח (bÿtakh, “trust”) is used in the OT in (1) literal physical sense: to physically lean upon something for support and (2) figurative sense: to rely upon someone or something for help or protection (BDB 105 s.v. I בְּטַח; HALOT 120 s.v. I בטח). The verb is often used with false securities, people trusting in things that prove to be worthless. But here the object of the secure trust is the Lord who is a reliable object of confidence.

[3:5]  ²⁰ sn The “heart” functions as a metonymy of subject encompassing mind, emotions and will (BDB 524 s.v. לֵב 2).

[3:5]  ²¹ tn Heb “do not lean.” The verb שָׁעַן (sha’an, “to lean; to rely”) is used in (1) literal physical sense of leaning upon something for support and (2) figurative sense of relying upon someone or something for help or protection (BDB 1043 s.v.). Here it functions figuratively (hypocatastasis: implied comparison); relying on one’s own understanding is compared to leaning on something that is unreliable for support (e.g., Isa 10:20).

[3:5]  ²² tn Heb “your understanding.” The term בִּינָה (binah, “understanding”) is used elsewhere in this book of insight given by God from the instructions in Proverbs (Prov 2:3; 7:4; 8:14; 9:6, 10; 23:23). Here it refers to inherent human understanding that functions in relative ignorance unless supplemented by divine wisdom (Job 28:12-28; 39:26). The reflexive pronoun “own” is supplied in the translation to clarify this point. It is dangerous for a person to rely upon mere human wisdom (Prov 14:12; 16:25).