Discovery Box| (0.25) | (Pro 24:5) | 1 sn The twenty-first saying seems to be concerned with the need for wisdom in warfare. In line with that, the word used here is גֶּבֶר (gever), “mighty man; hero; warrior.” |
| (0.25) | (Pro 24:12) | 4 sn The verse completes the saying by affirming that people will be judged responsible for helping those in mortal danger. The verse uses a series of rhetorical questions to affirm that God knows our hearts and we cannot plead ignorance. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 24:15) | 2 sn The saying warns that it is futile and self-defeating to mistreat God’s people, for they survive—the wicked do not. The warning is against a deliberate, planned assault on their places of dwelling. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 24:10) | 3 sn The test of strength is adversity, for it reveals how strong a person is. Of course a weak person can always plead adverse conditions in order to quit. This is the twenty-fourth saying. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 23:11) | 2 sn This is the tenth saying; once again there is a warning not to encroach on other people’s rights and property, especially the defenseless (see v. 10; 22:22-23, 28). |
| (0.25) | (Pro 22:27) | 3 sn The third saying deals with rash vows: If people foolishly pledge what they have, they could lose everything (e.g., 6:1-5; 11:15; 17:18; 20:16; there is no Egyptian parallel). |
| (0.25) | (Pro 22:17) | 1 sn A new collection of sayings begins here, forming the fourth section of the book of Proverbs. This collection is not like that of 1:1-9:18; here the introductory material is more personal than 1:1-7, and the style differs, showing great similarity to the Instruction of Amenemope in Egypt (especially the thirty precepts of the sages in 22:17-24:22). Verses 17-21 form the introduction, and then the sayings begin in v. 22. After the thirty sayings are given, there are further sayings in 24:23-34. There is much literature on this material: see W. K. Simpson, ed., Literature of Ancient Egypt; ANET 412-425; and A. Cody, “Notes on Proverbs 22:21 and 22:23b,” Bib 61 (1980): 418-26. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 22:14) | 5 sn The proverb is saying that the Lord will use the seductive, deceptive words of the adulteress to bring about the downfall of one who is inclined to such folly. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 22:12) | 4 tn The participle בֹגֵד (voged) means “one who acts treacherously, a traitor;” cf. NASB “the treacherous man;” ESV “traitor;” NIV “unfaithful;” KJV “transgressor.” What treacherous people say is treachery, that which would distort or undermine a just cause. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 20:30) | 3 sn Physical punishment may prove spiritually valuable. Other proverbs say that some people will never learn from this kind of punishment, but in general this may be the only thing that works for some cases. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 19:2) | 4 sn The basic meaning of the verb is “to miss a goal or the way.” D. Kidner says, “How negative is the achievement of a man who wants tangible and quick rewards”—he will miss the way (Proverbs [TOTC], 132). |
| (0.25) | (Pro 18:6) | 1 sn The “lips” is a metonymy of cause, meaning what the fool says. The “mouth” in the second colon is likewise a metonymy for speech, what comes out of the mouth. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 16:32) | 4 sn The saying would have had greater impact when military prowess was held in high regard. It is harder, and therefore better, to control one’s passions than to do some great exploit on the battlefield. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 16:27) | 4 sn The simile stresses the devastating way that slander hurts people. W. McKane says that this one “digs for scandal and…propagates it with words which are ablaze with misanthropy” (Proverbs [OTL], 494). |
| (0.25) | (Pro 16:27) | 3 tn Heb “on his lips” (so NAB) The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause. To say that “evil” is on his lips means that he talks about the evil he has dug up. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 16:2) | 5 sn Humans deceive themselves rather easily and so appear righteous in their own eyes, but the proverb says that God evaluates motives and so he alone can determine if the person’s ways are innocent. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 15:28) | 4 sn The advice of the proverb is to say less but better things. The wise—here called the righteous—are cautious in how they respond to others. They think about it (heart = mind) before speaking. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 13:17) | 2 tn The RSV changes this to a Hiphil to read, “plunges [men] into trouble.” But the text simply says the wicked messenger “falls into trouble,” perhaps referring to punishment for his bad service. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 12:18) | 4 sn Healing is a metonymy of effect. Healing words are the opposite of the cutting, irresponsible words. What the wise say is faithful and true, gentle and kind, uplifting and encouraging; so their words bring healing. |
| (0.25) | (Pro 12:23) | 3 tn Heb “the mind of fools.” The לֵב (lev, “mind, heart”) is the place of thinking and so it is the both source of what is said and the place of discernment for what to say aloud. |
