Proverbs 20:18

Plans ¹  are established by counsel, so ²  make war ³  with guidance.

Make plans by seeking advice; if you wage war, obtain guidance.

Prepare plans by consultation, And make war by wise guidance.

Plans succeed through good counsel; don’t go to war without the advice of others.

Form your purpose by asking for counsel, then carry it out using all the help you can get.

Every purpose is put into effect by wise help: and by wise guiding make war.

Plans are established by taking advice; wage war by following wise guidance.

Plans are established by counsel; By wise counsel wage war.

Plans ¹  are established by counsel, so ²  make war ³  with guidance.

¹ tn The noun form is plural, but the verb is singular, suggesting either an abstract plural or a collective plural is being used here.

² tn The clause begins with vav (ו) on “with guidance.” But the clause has an imperative for its main verb. One could take the imperfect tense in the first colon as an imperfect of injunction, and then this clause would be also instructional. But the imperfect tense is a Niphal, and so it is better to take the first colon as the foundational clause and the second colon as the consequence (cf. NAB): If that is true, then you should do this.

³ sn There have been attempts by various commentators to take “war” figuratively to mean life’s struggles, litigation, or evil inclinations. But there is no need and little justification for such interpretations. The proverb simply describes the necessity of taking counsel before going to war.