Proverbs 26:12
Context| NETBible | Do you see 1 a man wise in his own eyes? 2 There is more hope for a fool 3 than for him. |
| XREF | Pr 22:29; Pr 26:5,16; Pr 28:11; Pr 29:20; Mt 21:31; Lu 7:44; Lu 18:11; Ro 12:16; 1Co 3:18,19; 2Co 8:1,2; Re 3:17 |
| NET © Notes |
1 tn The verse simply uses a perfect tense. The meaning of the verse would be the same if this were interpreted as an affirmation rather than as an interrogative. The first line calls such a person to one’s attention. 2 tn Heb “in his own eyes” (so NAB, NASB, NIV). sn The subject matter of the verse is the person who is wise in his own opinion. Self-conceit is actually part of the folly that the book of Proverbs criticizes; those who think they are wise even though they are not are impossible to help. For someone to think he is wise when he is not makes him a conceited ignoramus (W. G. Plaut, Proverbs, 268). 3 sn Previous passages in the book of Proverbs all but deny the possibility of hope for the fool. So this proverb is saying there is absolutely no hope for the self-conceited person, and there might be a slight hope for the fool – he may yet figure out that he really is a fool. |
