Proverbs 22:18

22:18 For it is pleasing if you keep these sayings within you,

and they are ready on your lips.

Proverbs 26:24

26:24 The one who hates others disguises it with his lips,

but he stores up deceit within him.


tn Or “when” (so NIV).

tn Heb “keep them,” referring to the words of the wise expressed in these sayings. The referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

tn The term “and” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation.

sn If the teachings are preserved in the heart/mind of the disciple, then that individual will always be ready to speak what was retained.

tn The Niphal imperfect from נָכַר (nakhar) means “to act [or, treat] as a foreigner [or, stranger]; to misconstrue; to disguise.” The direct object (“it”) is not present in the Hebrew text but is implied. In this passage it means that the hater speaks what is “foreign” to his thought; in other words, he dissembles.

tn Or “places; puts; lays up” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB).

tn Heb “within him” (so KJV, ASV) or “in his midst”; NAB “in his inmost being.”

sn Hypocritical words may hide a wicked heart. The proverb makes an observation: One who in reality despises other people will often disguise that with what he says.