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11 The speech[a] of the righteous is a fountain of life,[b]
but the speech[c] of the wicked conceals[d] violence.[e]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 10:11 tn Heb “mouth.” The word “mouth” is metonymy of cause, representing what the righteous say and teach.
  2. Proverbs 10:11 tn Heb “a fountain of life is the mouth of the righteous” (NAB similar). The subject (“a fountain of life”) and the predicate (“the mouth of the righteous”) in the Hebrew text are reversed in the present translation (as in most English versions) for the sake of clarity and smoothness. The idea of this metaphor, “the fountain of life,” may come from Ps 36:9 (e.g., also Prov 13:14; 14:27; 16:22). What the righteous say is beneficial to life or life-giving. Their words are life-giving but the words of the wicked are violent. See R. B. Y. Scott, “Wise and Foolish, Righteous and Wicked,” VT 29 (1972): 145-65.
  3. Proverbs 10:11 tn Heb “the mouth.” The term פֶּה (peh, “mouth”) functions as a metonymy of cause for speech.
  4. Proverbs 10:11 tn Heb “covers.” Behind the speech of the wicked is aggressive violence (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 422).
  5. Proverbs 10:11 tn The syntax of this line is ambiguous. The translation takes “the mouth of the wicked” as the nominative subject and “violence” as the accusative direct object; however, the subject might be “violence,” hence: “violence covers the mouth of the wicked.”

11 The mouth of the righteous is a spring of life,
    but violence covers the mouth of the wicked.

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Speech[a] that heals[b] is like[c] a life-giving tree,[d]
but a perverse speech[e] breaks the spirit.[f]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 15:4 tn Heb “a tongue.” The term “tongue” is a metonymy of cause for what is produced: speech.
  2. Proverbs 15:4 tn Heb “a tongue of healing.” A healing tongue refers to speech that is therapeutic or soothing. It is a source of vitality.
  3. Proverbs 15:4 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.
  4. Proverbs 15:4 tn Heb “tree of life.”
  5. Proverbs 15:4 tn Heb “perversion in it.” The referent must be the tongue, representing speech, from the first line; so this has been supplied in the translation for clarity. A tongue that is twisted, perverse, or deceitful is a way of describing deceitful speech. Such words will crush the spirit.
  6. Proverbs 15:4 tn Heb “is a fracture in the spirit.”

A gentle tongue is a tree of life,
    but deceit in it crushes the spirit.

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23 A person has joy[a] in giving an appropriate answer,[b]
and a word at the right time[c]—how good it is!

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 15:23 tn Heb “joy to the man” or “the man has joy.”
  2. Proverbs 15:23 tn Heb “in the answer of his mouth” (so ASV); NASB “in an apt answer.” The term “mouth” is a metonymy of cause for what he says. But because the parallelism is loosely synonymous, the answer given here must be equal to the good word spoken in season. So it is an answer that is proper or fitting.
  3. Proverbs 15:23 tn Heb “in its season.” To say the right thing at the right time is useful; to say the right thing at the wrong time is counterproductive.

23 Joy comes to a man with the reply of his mouth.
    How good is a word at the right time!

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23 A wise person’s heart[a] makes his speech wise[b]
and it adds persuasiveness[c] to his words.[d]
24 Pleasant words are like[e] a honeycomb,[f]
sweet to the soul and healing[g] to the bones.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 16:23 tn Or “mind” (cf. NCV, NRSV, NLT).
  2. Proverbs 16:23 tn Heb “makes wise his mouth,” with “mouth” being a metonymy of cause for what is said: “speech.”
  3. Proverbs 16:23 sn Those who are wise say wise things. The proverb uses synthetic parallelism: The first line asserts that the wise heart ensures that what is said is wise, and the second line adds that such a person increases the reception of what is said.
  4. Proverbs 16:23 tn Heb “to his lips.” The term “lips” functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said.
  5. Proverbs 16:24 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
  6. Proverbs 16:24 sn The metaphor of honey or the honeycomb is used elsewhere in scripture, notably Ps 19:10 [11]. Honey was used in Israel as a symbol of the delightful and healthy products of the land—“a land flowing with milk and honey” (Deut 6:3).
  7. Proverbs 16:24 sn Two predicates are added to qualify the metaphor: The pleasant words are “sweet” and “healing.” “Soul” includes in it the appetites, physical and spiritual; and so sweet to the “soul” would summarize all the ways pleasant words give pleasure. “Bones” is a metonymy of subject, the boney framework representing the whole person, body and soul. Pleasant words, like honey, will enliven and encourage the whole person. One might recall, in line with the imagery here, how Jonathan’s eyes brightened when he ate from the honeycomb (1 Sam 14:27).

23 The heart of the wise instructs his mouth,
    and adds learning to his lips.
24 Pleasant words are a honeycomb,
    sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.

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The words of a person’s mouth[a] are like[b] deep waters,[c]
and[d] the fountain of wisdom[e] is like[f] a flowing brook.[g]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 18:4 tc The LXX reads “in a person’s heart,” probably conforming to the near parallel in Prov 20:5.
  2. Proverbs 18:4 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.
  3. Proverbs 18:4 sn The metaphor “deep waters” indicates either that the words have an inexhaustible supply or that they are profound. Keil and Delitzsch see the second line as two more characteristics of the man’s words rather than as a second sentence, i.e., a person’s words are: deep waters, a bubbling brook, a fountain of wisdom. The “bubbling brook” would refer to the supply and “deep waters” to their insightfulness, or what is beneath the surface. See also Prov 20:5 for the metaphor “deep waters.”
  4. Proverbs 18:4 tn There is debate about the nature of the parallelism between lines 4a and 4b. The major options are: (1) synonymous parallelism, (2) antithetical parallelism (e.g., NAB, NIV, NCV) or (3) formal parallelism. Normally a vav (ו) would begin an antithetical clause; the structure and the ideas suggest that the second colon continues the idea of the first half, but in a parallel way rather than as additional predicates. The metaphors used in the proverb elsewhere describe the wise.
  5. Proverbs 18:4 sn This is an implied comparison (hypocatastasis), the fountain of wisdom being the person who speaks. The Greek version has “fountain of life” instead of “wisdom,” probably influenced from 10:11.
  6. Proverbs 18:4 tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.
  7. Proverbs 18:4 sn The point of this metaphor is that the wisdom is a continuous source of refreshing and beneficial ideas.

The words of a man’s mouth are like deep waters.
    The fountain of wisdom is like a flowing brook.

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21 Death and life are in the power[a] of the tongue,[b]
and those who love its use[c] will eat its fruit.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 18:21 tn Heb “in the hand of.”
  2. Proverbs 18:21 sn What people say can lead to life or death. The Midrash on Psalms shows one way the tongue [what is said] can cause death: “The evil tongue slays three, the slanderer, the slandered, and the listener” (Midrash Tehillim 52:2). See J. G. Williams, “The Power of Form: A Study of Biblical Proverbs,” Semeia 17 (1980): 35-38.
  3. Proverbs 18:21 tn The referent of “it” must be the tongue, i.e., what the tongue says (= “its use”). So those who enjoy talking, indulging in it, must “eat” its fruit, whether good or bad. The expression “eating the fruit” is an implied comparison; it means accept the consequences of loving to talk (cf. TEV).

21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue;
    those who love it will eat its fruit.

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23 Like a coating of glaze[a] over earthenware
are fervent[b] lips with an evil heart.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 26:23 tn The traditional translation of “silver dross” (so KJV, ASV, NASB) never did make much sense because the parallel idea deals with hypocrisy—“fervent lips with an evil heart.” But silver dross would not be used over earthenware—instead it is discarded. Yet the MT clearly has “silver dross” (כֶּסֶף סִיגִים, kesef sigim). Ugaritic turned up a word spsg which means “glaze,” and this found a parallel in Hittite zapzaga[y]a. H. L. Ginsberg repointed the Hebrew text to k’sapsagim, “like glaze,” and this has been adopted by many commentators and recent English versions (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). The final ם (mem) is then classified as enclitic. See, among others, K. L. Barker, “The Value of Ugaritic for Old Testament Studies,” BSac 133 (1976): 128-29.
  2. Proverbs 26:23 tn The word translated “fervent” actually means “burning, glowing”; the LXX has “flattering lips” (as if from חָלַק [khalaq] rather than דָּלַק [dalaq]).
  3. Proverbs 26:23 sn The analogy fits the second line very well. Glaze makes a vessel look beautiful and certainly different from the clay that it actually is. So is one who has evil intent (“heart”) but covers it with glowing speech.

23 Like silver dross on an earthen vessel
    are the lips of a fervent one with an evil heart.

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