3:11 My child, do not despise discipline from the Lord, 1
and do not loathe 2 his rebuke.
3:31 Do not envy a violent man, 3
and do not choose to imitate 4 any of his ways;
7:25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways –
do not wander into her pathways;
22:24 Do not make friends with an angry person, 5
and do not associate with a wrathful person,
23:6 Do not eat the food of a stingy person, 6
do not crave his delicacies;
24:1 Do not envy evil people, 7
do not desire 8 to be with them;
27:1 Do not boast 9 about tomorrow; 10
for you do not know 11 what a day may bring forth.
1 tn Heb “the discipline of the
2 tn The verb קוּץ (quts) has a two-fold range of meaning: (1) “to feel a loathing; to abhor” and (2) “to feel a sickening dread” (BDB 880 s.v.). The parallelism with “do not despise” suggests the former nuance here. The common response to suffering is to loathe it; however, the righteous understand that it refines one’s moral character and that it is a means to the blessing.
3 tn Heb “a man of violence.” The noun חָמָס (khamas, “violence”) functions as an attributive genitive. The word itself means “violence, wrong” (HALOT 329 s.v.) and refers to physical violence, social injustice, harsh treatment, wild ruthlessness, injurious words, hatred, and general rudeness (BDB 329 s.v.).
4 tn Heb “do not choose.”
5 tn Heb “possessor of anger.” This expression is an idiom for “wrathful person” or “an angry person” (cf. NAB “a hotheaded man”; NLT “short-tempered people”). These are people characterized by anger, meaning the anger is not a rare occurrence with them.
6 tn Heb “an evil eye.” This is the opposite of the “good eye” which meant the generous man. The “evil eye” refers to a person who is out to get everything for himself (cf. NASB, NCV, CEV “selfish”). He is ill-mannered and inhospitable (e.g., Prov 28:22). He is up to no good – even though he may appear to be a host.
7 tn Heb “evil men,” although the context indicates a generic sense.
8 tn The Hitpael jussive is from the verb that means “to crave; to desire.” This is more of a coveting, an intense desire.
9 tn The form אַל־תִּתְהַלֵּל (’al-tithallel) is the Hitpael jussive negated; it is from the common verb “to praise,” and so in this setting means “to praise oneself” or “to boast.”
sn The verse rules out one’s overconfident sense of ability to control the future. No one can presume on the future.
10 sn The word “tomorrow” is a metonymy of subject, meaning what will be done tomorrow, or in the future in general.
11 sn The expression “you do not know” balances the presumption of the first line, reminding the disciple of his ignorance and therefore his need for humility (e.g., Matt 6:34; Luke 12:20; Jas 4:13-16).