Proverbs 5:12

5:12 And you will say, “How I hated discipline!

My heart spurned reproof!

Proverbs 5:23

5:23 He will die because there was no discipline;

because of the greatness of his folly he will reel.


tn The preposition בּ (bet) is used in a causal sense: “because” (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV).

sn The word אִוַּלְתּוֹ (’ivvalto, “his folly”) is from the root אול and is related to the noun אֶוִיל (’evil, “foolish; fool”). The noun אִוֶּלֶת (’ivvelet, “folly”) describes foolish and destructive activity. It lacks understanding, destroys what wisdom builds, and leads to destruction if it is not corrected.

sn The verb שָׁגָה (shagah, “to swerve; to reel”) is repeated in a negative sense. If the young man is not captivated by his wife but is captivated with a stranger in sinful acts, then his own iniquities will captivate him and he will be led to ruin.