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Proverbs 2:8-9
New English Translation
Proverbs 2:8-9
New English Translation
8 to guard[a] the paths of the righteous[b]
and to protect[c] the way of his pious ones.[d]
9 Then you will understand[e] righteousness and justice
and equity—every[f] good[g] way.[h]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 2:8 tn The infinitive construct לִנְצֹר (lintsor, “to guard”) designates the purpose of the Lord giving “effective counsel” and being a “shield” to the upright. The verb נָצַר (natsar, “to guard”) has a broad range of meanings: (1) to watch over, guard or protect a vineyard from theft (Prov 27:18); (2) to guard one’s lips or heart from evil (Prov 4:23; 13:3); (3) to protect a person from moral or physical danger (Prov 2:8, 11; 4:6; 13:6; 20:28; 22:12; 24:12) and (4) to guard with fidelity = to observe commands, law or covenant (Prov 3:1, 21; 4:13; 5:2; 6:20; 28:7; see BDB 665-66 s.v.). Here God guards the way of the just, that is, the course and conduct of life from the influence of evil.
- Proverbs 2:8 tn Heb “paths of righteousness.” The word “righteousness” is a possessive genitive, signifying the ways that the righteous take.
- Proverbs 2:8 tn The imperfect tense verb יִשְׁמֹר (yishmor, “to protect”) continues the syntactical nuance of the preceding infinitive construct of purpose.
- Proverbs 2:8 tc The Kethib is the singular noun with third person masculine singular suffix חֲסִידוֹ (khasido) “his pious one.” The Qere reads the plural noun with third person masculine singular suffix חֲסִידָיו (khasidayv) “his pious ones.” The LXX εὐλαβουμένων αὐτόν (eulaboumenōn auton) supports the Qere reading.tn The noun חֶסֶד (khesed, “the pious”) describes those who show “covenantal faithful love” or “loyal love” to God and his people. The description of the righteous by this term indicates their active participation in the covenant, for which God has promised his protection.
- Proverbs 2:9 tn Heb “discern.” See preceding note on בִּין (bin) in 2:5.
- Proverbs 2:9 tn The phrase “every good way” functions appositionally to the preceding triad of righteous attributes, further explaining and defining them.
- Proverbs 2:9 tn Heb “every way of good.” The term טוֹב (tov, “good”) functions as an attributive genitive: “good way.”
- Proverbs 2:9 tn Heb “track”; KJV, NIV, NRSV “path.” The noun מַעְגַּל (maʿgal) is used (1) literally of “wagon-wheel track; firm path” and (2) figuratively (as a metaphor) to describe the course of life (Pss 17:5; 23:3; 140:6; Prov 2:9, 15, 18; 4:11, 26; 5:6, 21; Isa 26:7; 59:8; see BDB 722-23 s.v. 2; KBL 2:609). It is related to the feminine noun עֲגָלָה (ʿagalah, “cart”) and the verb עָגַל (ʿagal) “to be round” (Qal) and “to roll” (Niphal). As a wagon-wheel cuts a deep track in a much traversed dirt road, so a person falls into routines and habits that reveal his moral character. In Proverbs the “paths” of the righteous are characterized by uprightness and integrity.
Proverbs 2:8-9
New International Version
Proverbs 2:8-9
New International Version
8 for he guards the course of the just
and protects the way of his faithful ones.(A)
9 Then you will understand(B) what is right and just
and fair—every good path.
Proverbs 2:8-9
King James Version
Proverbs 2:8-9
King James Version
8 He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.
9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.
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Proverbs 8:20
New English Translation
Proverbs 8:20
New English Translation
20 I walk in the path of righteousness,
in the pathway of justice,
Proverbs 8:20
New International Version
Proverbs 8:20
New International Version
20 I walk in the way of righteousness,(A)
along the paths of justice,
Proverbs 8:20
King James Version
Proverbs 8:20
King James Version
20 I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment:
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Proverbs 12:5
New English Translation
Proverbs 12:5
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 12:5 tn Heb “thoughts.” This term refers not just to random thoughts, however, but to what is planned or devised.
- Proverbs 12:5 sn The plans of good people are directed toward what is right. Advice from the wicked, however, is deceitful and can only lead to trouble.
Proverbs 12:5
New International Version
Proverbs 12:5
New International Version
5 The plans of the righteous are just,
but the advice of the wicked is deceitful.
Proverbs 12:5
King James Version
Proverbs 12:5
King James Version
5 The thoughts of the righteous are right: but the counsels of the wicked are deceit.
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Proverbs 13:23
New English Translation
Proverbs 13:23
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 13:23 tn Heb “abundance of food, fallow ground of רָאשִׁים (raʾshim).” The line has several difficulties. The word רָאשִׁים is spelled as if from ראֹשׁ (roʾsh, “head”) meaning a tribal head, leader, chief (HALOT 1166 s.v.). It is usually assumed however that it is a participle from רוּשׁ (rush) meaning “to be poor” (HALOT 1209 s.v.). The lack of a verb also poses a problem. Some translations assume that the food is in the field or the field produces the food (NASB, KJV, BBE, NIV [2011], Holman), but this runs counter to the notion of fallow ground. If it is full of crops, it isn’t fallow (if indeed נִיר [nir] means prepared unplanted soil). Other translations are modal, stating that the field “may” or “would” produce much food (NIV [1973], ESV, NLT, NRSV). Perhaps it is fallow after a harvest; or perhaps the saying is about presuming the crops before they are actually there (like counting your chickens before they are hatched). BDB proposes the possibility: “abundant food [yields] the fallow ground of poor men” (BDB 644 s.v. נִיר). If food leads to fallow ground, it may imply not seeing a need to plant all the fields, which later results in poverty. Any of these options seems equally speculative.
- Proverbs 13:23 tc The MT reads “there is what is swept away without justice” (וְיֵשׁ נִסְפֶּה בְּלֹא מִשְׁפָּט, veyesh nispeh beloʾ mishpat). The LXX reads “the great enjoy wealth many years, but some men perish little by little.” The Syriac reads “those who have no habitation waste wealth many years, and some waste it completely.” Tg. Prov 13:23 reads “the great man devours the land of the poor, and some men are taken away unjustly.” The Vulgate has “there is much food in the fresh land of the fathers, and for others it is collected without judgment.” C. H. Toy says that the text is corrupt (Proverbs [ICC], 277). Nevertheless, the MT makes sense: The ground could produce enough food for people if there were no injustice in the land.
Proverbs 13:23
New International Version
Proverbs 13:23
New International Version
23 An unplowed field produces food for the poor,
but injustice sweeps it away.
Proverbs 13:23
King James Version
Proverbs 13:23
King James Version
23 Much food is in the tillage of the poor: but there is that is destroyed for want of judgment.
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Proverbs 16:10-12
New English Translation
Proverbs 16:10-12
New English Translation
10 The divine verdict[a] is in the words[b] of the king,
his pronouncements[c] must not act treacherously[d] against justice.
11 Honest scales and balances[e] are from the Lord;
all the weights[f] in the bag are his handiwork.
12 Doing wickedness[g] is an abomination to kings,
because a throne[h] is established in righteousness.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 16:10 tn Heb “oracle” (so NAB, NIV) or “decision”; TEV “the king speaks with divine authority.” The term קֶסֶם (qesem) is used in the sense of “oracle; decision; verdict” (HALOT 1115-16 s.v.). The pronouncements of a king form an oracular sentence, as if he speaks for God; they are divine decisions (e.g., Num 22:7; 23:23; 2 Sam 14:20).
- Proverbs 16:10 tn Heb “on the lips.” The term “lips” is a metonymy of cause referring to what the king says—no doubt what he says officially.
- Proverbs 16:10 tn Heb “his mouth.” The term “mouth” is a metonymy of cause for what the king says: his pronouncements and legal decisions.
- Proverbs 16:10 sn The second line gives the effect of the first: If the king delivers such oracular sayings (קֶסֶם, qesem, translated “divine verdict”), then he must be careful in the decisions he makes. The imperfect tense then requires a modal nuance to stress the obligation of the king not to act treacherously against justice. It would also be possible to translate the verb as a jussive: Let the king not act treacherously against justice. For duties of the king, see Ps 72 and Isa 11. For a comparison with Ezek 21:23-26, see E. W. Davies, “The Meaning of qesem in Prov 16:10, ” Bib 61 (1980): 554-56.
- Proverbs 16:11 tn Heb “a scale and balances of justice.” This is an attributive genitive, meaning “just scales and balances.” The law required that scales and measures be accurate and fair (Lev 19:36; Deut 25:13). Shrewd dishonest people kept light and heavy weights to make unfair transactions.
- Proverbs 16:11 tn Heb “stones.”
- Proverbs 16:12 sn The “wickedness” mentioned here (רֶשַׁע, reshaʿ) might better be understood as a criminal act, for the related word “wicked” can also mean the guilty criminal. If a king is trying to have a righteous administration, he will detest any criminal acts.
- Proverbs 16:12 tn The “throne” represents the administration, or the decisions made from the throne by the king, and so the word is a metonymy of adjunct (cf. NLT “his rule”).
Proverbs 16:10-12
New International Version
Proverbs 16:10-12
New International Version
10 The lips of a king speak as an oracle,
and his mouth does not betray justice.(A)
11 Honest scales and balances belong to the Lord;
all the weights in the bag are of his making.(B)
12 Kings detest wrongdoing,
for a throne is established through righteousness.(C)
Proverbs 16:10-12
King James Version
Proverbs 16:10-12
King James Version
10 A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment.
11 A just weight and balance are the Lord's: all the weights of the bag are his work.
12 It is an abomination to kings to commit wickedness: for the throne is established by righteousness.
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Proverbs 17:15
New English Translation
Proverbs 17:15
New English Translation
15 The one who acquits the guilty and the one who condemns the innocent[a]—
both of them are an abomination to the Lord.[b]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 17:15 tn Heb “he who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous” (so NASB). The first colon uses two Hiphil participles, מַצְדִּיק (matsdiq) and מַרְשִׁיעַ (marshiaʿ). The first means “to declare righteous” (a declarative Hiphil), and the second means “to make wicked [or, guilty]” or “to condemn” (i.e., “to declare guilty”). To declare someone righteous who is a guilty criminal, or to condemn someone who is innocent, are both abominations for the Righteous Judge of the whole earth.
- Proverbs 17:15 tn Heb “an abomination of the Lord.”
Proverbs 17:15
New International Version
Proverbs 17:15
New International Version
Proverbs 17:15
King James Version
Proverbs 17:15
King James Version
15 He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the Lord.
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Proverbs 17:23
New English Translation
Proverbs 17:23
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 17:23 sn The fact that the “gift” is given secretly (Heb “from the bosom” [מֵחֵיק, mekheq]; so NASB) indicates that it was not proper. Cf. NRSV “a concealed bribe”; TEV, CEV, NLT “secret bribes.”
- Proverbs 17:23 tn The form לְהַטּוֹת (lehattot) is the Hiphil infinitive construct of נָטָה (natah), meaning “to thrust away,” i.e., to “pervert.” This purpose clause clarifies that the receiving of the “gift” is for evil intent.
Proverbs 17:23
New International Version
Proverbs 17:23
New International Version
Proverbs 17:23
King James Version
Proverbs 17:23
King James Version
23 A wicked man taketh a gift out of the bosom to pervert the ways of judgment.
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Proverbs 17:26
New English Translation
Proverbs 17:26
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 17:26 tn Heb “not good.” This is an example of tapeinosis—an understatement that implies the worst-case scenario: “it is terrible.”
- Proverbs 17:26 tn The verb עָנַשׁ (ʿanash), here a Qal infinitive construct, properly means “to fine” (cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT) but is taken here to mean “to punish” in general. The infinitive functions as the subject of the clause.
- Proverbs 17:26 tn The form is the Hiphil infinitive construct from נָכָה (nakhah, “to strike; to smite”). It may well refer to public beatings, so “flog” is used in the translation, since “strike” could refer to an individual’s action and “beat” could be taken to refer to competition.
- Proverbs 17:26 tn Heb “[is] against uprightness.” The expression may be rendered “contrary to what is right.”sn The two lines could be synonymous parallelism, but the second part is being used to show how wrong the first act would be—punishing the righteous makes about as much sense as beating an official of the court for doing what is just.
Proverbs 17:26
New International Version
Proverbs 17:26
New International Version
26 If imposing a fine on the innocent is not good,(A)
surely to flog honest officials is not right.
Proverbs 17:26
King James Version
Proverbs 17:26
King James Version
26 Also to punish the just is not good, nor to strike princes for equity.
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Proverbs 18:5
New English Translation
Proverbs 18:5
New English Translation
5 It is terrible[a] to show partiality[b] to the wicked,[c]
by depriving[d] a righteous man of justice.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 18:5 tn Heb “not good.” This is a figure known as tapeinosis, a deliberate understatement to emphasize a worst-case scenario: “it is terrible!”
- Proverbs 18:5 tn The idiom “lifting up the face of” (שְׂאֵת פְּנֵי, seʾet pene) means “to show partiality” in decisions (e.g., Deut 10:17; Mal 2:9); cf. CEV, NLT “to favor.” The verbal form is the Qal infinitive construct from נָשָׂא (nasaʾ), which functions as the subject of the clause.
- Proverbs 18:5 tn Or “the guilty,” since in the second colon “righteous” can also be understood in contrast as “innocent” (cf. NRSV, TEV, NLT).
- Proverbs 18:5 tn Heb “to turn aside” (so ASV); NASB “to thrust aside.” The second half of the verse may illustrate this reprehensible action. The Hiphil infinitive construct לְהַטּוֹת (lehattot) may serve either (1) as result, “showing partiality…so that the righteous are turned away,” or (2) as epexegetical infinitive, “showing partiality…by turning the righteous away.” The second is preferred in the translation. Depriving the innocent of their rights is a perversion of justice.
Proverbs 18:5
New International Version
Proverbs 18:5
New International Version
Proverbs 18:5
King James Version
Proverbs 18:5
King James Version
5 It is not good to accept the person of the wicked, to overthrow the righteous in judgment.
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New English Translation (NET)
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