10:2 Treasures gained by wickedness 1 do not profit,
but righteousness 2 delivers from mortal danger. 3
11:4 Wealth does not profit in the day of wrath, 4
but righteousness delivers from mortal danger. 5
14:23 In all hard work 6 there is profit,
but merely talking about it 7 only brings 8 poverty. 9
1 tn Heb “treasures of wickedness” (so KJV, ASV); NASB “Ill-gotten gains”; TEV “Wealth that you get by dishonesty.”
2 sn The term “righteousness” here means honesty (cf. TEV). Wealth has limited value even if gained honestly; but honesty delivers from mortal danger.
3 tn Heb “death.” This could refer to literal death, but it is probably figurative here for mortal danger or ruin.
4 sn The “day of wrath” refers to divine punishment in this life (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 67; e.g., also Job 21:30; Ezek 7:19; Zeph 1:18). Righteousness and not wealth is more valuable in anticipating judgment.
5 tn Heb “from death.”
6 sn The Hebrew term עֶצֶב (’etsev, “painful toil; labor”) is first used in scripture in Gen 3:19 to describe the effects of the Fall. The point here is that people should be more afraid of idle talk than of hard labor.
7 tn Heb “word of lips.” This construct phrase features a genitive of source (“a word from the lips”) or a subjective genitive (“speaking a word”). Talk without work (which produces nothing) is contrasted with labor that produces something.
8 tn The term “brings” does not appear in the Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.
9 sn The noun מַחְסוֹר (makhsor, “need; thing needed; poverty”) comes from the verb “to lack; to be lacking; to decrease; to need.” A person given to idle talk rather than industrious work will have needs that go unmet.