Proverbs 19:3

A person’s folly ¹  subverts ²  his way, and ³  his heart rages ⁴  against the Lord.

Ge 3:6-12; Ge 4:5-14; Nu 16:19-41; Nu 17:12,13; 1Sa 13:13; 1Sa 15:23; 1Sa 22:13-23; 1Ki 20:42,43; 2Ki 3:9,10; 2Ki 6:33; 2Ch 16:9,10; Ps 37:1,7; Isa 8:21,22; Ac 13:45,46; Re 16:9-11

¹ tn Heb “the folly of a man.”

² tn The verb סָלַף (salaf) normally means “to twist; to pervert; to overturn,” but in this context it means “to subvert” (BDB 701 s.v.); cf. ASV “subverteth.”

sn J. H. Greenstone comments: “Man’s own failures are the result of his own folly and should not be attributed to God” (Proverbs, 201).

³ tn The clause begins with vav on the nonverb phrase “against the Lord.” While clause structure and word order is less compelling in a book like Proverbs, this fits well as a circumstantial clause indicating concession.

⁴ sn The “heart raging” is a metonymy of cause (or adjunct); it represents the emotions that will lead to blaming God for the frustration. Genesis 42:28 offers a calmer illustration of this as the brothers ask what God was doing to them.