Psalms 25:21

25:21 May integrity and godliness protect me,

for I rely on you!

Psalms 26:11

26:11 But I have integrity! ¹ 

Rescue me ²  and have mercy on me!

Psalms 41:12

41:12 As for me, you uphold ³  me because of my integrity; ⁴ 

you allow ⁵  me permanent access to your presence. ⁶ 

Psalms 78:72

78:72 David ⁷  cared for them with pure motives; ⁸ 

he led them with skill. ⁹ 

Proverbs 19:1

19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity ¹⁰ 

than one who is perverse in his speech ¹¹  and is a fool. ¹² 

Proverbs 19:1

19:1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity ¹³ 

than one who is perverse in his speech ¹⁴  and is a fool. ¹⁵ 

Proverbs 2:10

2:10 For wisdom will enter your heart, ¹⁶ 

and moral knowledge ¹⁷  will be attractive ¹⁸  to you. ¹⁹ 

[26:11]  ¹ tn Heb “and I in my integrity walk.” The psalmist uses the imperfect verbal form to emphasize this is his practice. The construction at the beginning of the verse (conjunction + pronoun) highlights the contrast between the psalmist and the sinners mentioned in vv. 9-10.

[26:11]  ² tn Or “redeem me.”

[41:12]  ³ tn Or “have upheld.” The perfect verbal form can be taken as generalizing/descriptive (present) or as a present perfect.

[41:12]  ⁴ sn Because of my integrity. See Pss 7:8; 25:21; 26:1, 11.

[41:12]  ⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive has the same aspectual function as the preceding perfect. It is either generalizing/descriptive (present) or has a present perfect nuance (“you have allowed”).

[41:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “and you cause me to stand before you permanently.”

[78:72]  ⁷ tn Heb “He”; the referent (David, God’s chosen king, mentioned in v. 70) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[78:72]  ⁸ tn Heb “and he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart.”

[78:72]  ⁹ tn Heb “and with the understanding of his hands he led them.”

[19:1]  ¹⁰ sn People should follow honesty even if it leads to poverty (e.g., Prov 18:23; 19:22).

[19:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy for what one says with his lips. The expression “perverse in his lips” refers to speech that is morally perverted. Some medieval Hebrew mss, the Syriac, and Tg. Prov 19:1 have “his ways” rather than “his lips” (e.g., Prov 28:6); cf. NAB.

[19:1]  ¹² tc The Syriac and Tg. Prov 19:1 read “rich” instead of MT “fool.” This makes tighter antithetical parallelism than MT and is followed by NAB. However, the MT makes sense as it stands; this is an example of metonymical parallelism. The MT reading is also supported by the LXX. The Hebrew construction uses וְהוּא (vÿhu’), “and he [is],” before “fool.” This may be rendered “one who is perverse while a fool” or “a fool at the same time.”

[19:1]  ¹³ sn People should follow honesty even if it leads to poverty (e.g., Prov 18:23; 19:22).

[19:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy for what one says with his lips. The expression “perverse in his lips” refers to speech that is morally perverted. Some medieval Hebrew mss, the Syriac, and Tg. Prov 19:1 have “his ways” rather than “his lips” (e.g., Prov 28:6); cf. NAB.

[19:1]  ¹⁵ tc The Syriac and Tg. Prov 19:1 read “rich” instead of MT “fool.” This makes tighter antithetical parallelism than MT and is followed by NAB. However, the MT makes sense as it stands; this is an example of metonymical parallelism. The MT reading is also supported by the LXX. The Hebrew construction uses וְהוּא (vÿhu’), “and he [is],” before “fool.” This may be rendered “one who is perverse while a fool” or “a fool at the same time.”

[2:10]  ¹⁶ tn The noun לֵב (lev, “heart”) functions as a metonymy of association for “mind” and “thoughts” (BDB 524 s.v. 3). It represents the center of the inner life where the volition and emotions join to bring about actions. It is used here in parallelism with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “soul”), for which see note.

[2:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “knowledge.” For the noun דַּעַת (da’at), see the note on 1:7.

[2:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “pleasant.” The verb יִנְעָם (yin’am, “to be pleasant”) describes what is attractive. It is used of being physically attracted to one’s lover (Song 7:7) or to a close friendship (2 Sam 1:26). Here wisdom becomes attractive to the righteous, that is, the righteous desires to acquire it.

[2:10]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “your soul.” The term נַפְשְׁךָ (nafshÿkha, “your soul”) functions as a synecdoche of part (= soul) for the whole person (= you); see BDB 660 s.v. 4.a.2. It also might function as a metonymy of association for emotions and passions (BDB 660 s.v. 6) or mental cognition (BDB 660 s.v. 7).