3:34 Although 1 he is scornful to arrogant scoffers, 2
yet 3 he shows favor to the humble. 4
1 tn The particle אִם (’im, “though”) introduces a concessive clause: “though….”
2 tn Heb “he mocks those who mock.” The repetition of the root לִיץ (lits, “to scorn; to mock”) connotes poetic justice; the punishment fits the crime. Scoffers are characterized by arrogant pride (e.g., Prov 21:24), as the antithetical parallelism with “the humble” here emphasizes.
3 tn The prefixed vav (ו) introduces the apodosis to the concessive clause: “Though … yet …”
4 tn The Hebrew is structured chiastically (AB:BA): “he scorns / arrogant scoffers // but to the humble / he gives grace.” The word order in the translation is reversed for the sake of smoothness and readability.