Font Size
Proverbs 23:17-18
Christian Standard Bible
Proverbs 23:17-18
Christian Standard Bible
17 Don’t let your heart envy sinners;(A)
instead, always fear the Lord.(B)
18 For then you will have a future,
and your hope will not be dashed.(C)
Proverbs 23:17-18
New English Translation
Proverbs 23:17-18
New English Translation
17 Do not let your heart envy[a] sinners,
but rather be zealous in fearing the Lord[b] all the time.
18 For surely there is a future,[c]
and your hope will not be cut off.[d]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 23:17 tn The verb in this line is אַל־יְקַנֵּא (ʾal yeqanneʾ), the Piel jussive negated. The verb means “to be jealous, to be zealous”; it describes passionate intensity for something. In English, if the object is illegitimate, it is called “envy”; if it is correct, it is called “zeal.” Here the warning is not to envy the sinners. The second colon could use the verb in the positive sense to mean “but rather let your passion burn for the fear of the Lord.”
- Proverbs 23:17 tn Heb “the fear of the Lord.” This expression features an objective genitive: “fearing the Lord.”
- Proverbs 23:18 tn Heb “end” (so KJV); ASV “a reward.”
- Proverbs 23:18 sn The saying is an understatement; far from being cut off, the “hope” will be realized in the end. So this saying, the thirteenth, advises people to be zealous for the fear of the Lord, their religion, rather than for anything that sinners have to offer.
Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New English Translation (NET)
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.