Proverbs 8:24

When there were no deep oceans ¹  I was born, ²  when there were no springs overflowing ³  with water;

When there were no oceans, I was given birth, when there were no springs abounding with water;

"When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no springs abounding with water.

I was born before the oceans were created, before the springs bubbled forth their waters.

I arrived on the scene before Ocean, yes, even before Springs and Rivers and Lakes.

When there was no deep I was given birth, when there were no fountains flowing with water.

When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water.

When there were no depths I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water.

When there were no deep oceans ¹  I was born, ²  when there were no springs overflowing ³  with water;

¹ sn The summary statements just given are now developed in a lengthy treatment of wisdom as the agent of all creation. This verse singles out “watery deeps” (תְּהֹמוֹת, tÿhomot) in its allusion to creation because the word in Genesis signals the condition of the world at the very beginning, and because in the ancient world this was something no one could control. Chaos was not there first – wisdom was.

² tn The third parallel verb is חוֹלָלְתִּי (kholalti), “I was given birth.” Some (e.g., KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV) translate it “brought forth” – not in the sense of being presented, but in the sense of being “begotten, given birth to.” Here is the strongest support for the translation of קָנָה (qanah) as “created” in v. 22. The verb is not literal; it continues the perspective of the personification.

³ tn Heb “made heavy.”