Proverbs 25:14

New English Translation

¹⁴Like cloudy skies and wind that produce no rain,^[a]
so is the one who boasts^[b] of a gift not given.^[c]

Proverbs 25:14 sn The emblem now is one of clouds and winds that would be expected to produce rain; they gain attention and raise people’s expectations but prove to be disappointing when no rain is forthcoming, and hence could be thought of as deceitful.
Proverbs 25:14 tn The form מִתְהַלֵּל (mithallel) is the Hitpael participle of the well-known word for “praise,” but in this stem it means “to praise oneself” or “to boast.” The description of “windbag” seems appropriate in this context.
Proverbs 25:14 tn Heb “a gift of falsehood.” This would mean that the individual brags about giving a gift, when there is no gift.

Proverbs 25:27

New English Translation

²⁷It is not good^[a] to eat too much honey,
nor is it honorable for people to seek their own glory.^[b]

Proverbs 25:27 sn This is a figure of speech known as tapeinosis—a deliberate understatement to emphasize a worst-case scenario: “it is bad!”
Proverbs 25:27 tn Heb “and the investigation of their glory is not glory.” This line is difficult to understand but it forms an analogy to honey—glory, like honey, is good, but not to excess. The LXX rendered this, “it is proper to honor notable sayings.” A. A. MacIntosh suggests, “He who searches for glory will be distressed” (“A Note on Prov 25:27, ” VT 20 [1970]: 112-14). G. E. Bryce has “to search out difficult things is glorious” (“Another Wisdom ‘Book’ in Proverbs,” JBL 91 (1972): 145-47). R. C. Van Leeuwen suggests, “to seek difficult things is as glory” (“Proverbs 25:27 Once Again,” VT 36 [1986]: 105-14). The Hebrew is cryptic, but not unintelligible: “seeking their glory [is not] glory.” It is saying that seeking one’s own glory is dishonorable.

²Let another^[a] praise you, and not your own mouth;^[b]
someone else,^[c] and not your own lips.

Proverbs 27:2 tn Heb “a stranger.” This does not necessarily refer to a non-Israelite, as has been demonstrated before in the book of Proverbs, but these are people outside the familiar and accepted circles. The point is that such a person would be objective in speaking about your abilities and accomplishments.
Proverbs 27:2 sn “Mouth” and “lips” are metonymies of cause; they mean “what is said.” People should try to avoid praising themselves. Self praise can easily become a form of pride, even if it begins with trivial things. It does not establish a reputation; reputation comes from what others think about you.
Proverbs 27:2 tn “a foreigner”; KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV “a stranger.”