Proverbs 18:13

New English Translation

¹³The one who gives an answer^[a] before he listens^[b]—
that is his folly and his shame.^[c]

Proverbs 18:13 tn Heb “returns a word”; KJV “He that answereth a matter.”
Proverbs 18:13 sn Poor listening and premature answering indicate that the person has a low regard for what the other is saying, or that he is too absorbed in his own ideas. The Mishnah lists this as the second characteristic of the uncultured person (m. Avot 5:7).
Proverbs 18:13 tn Heb “it is folly to him and shame.” The verse uses formal parallelism, with the second colon simply completing the thought of the first.

Proverbs 18:13

Lexham English Bible

¹³He who returns a word before he will hear,
folly itself belongs to him as well as^[a] shame.

¹⁷The first to state his case^[a] seems^[b] right,
until his opponent^[c] begins to^[d] cross-examine him.^[e]

Proverbs 18:17 tn Heb “in his legal case”; NAB “who pleads his case first.”
Proverbs 18:17 tn The term “seems” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness (cf. KJV “seemeth”).
Proverbs 18:17 tn Heb “his neighbor”; NRSV “the other.”
Proverbs 18:17 tc The Kethib is the imperfect יָבֹא (yavoʾ), “his opponent comes and….” The Qere is the conjunction with the participle/perfect tense form וּבָא (uvaʾ), “[but] then his opponent comes and….” The latter is reflected in most of the ancient versions. There is not an appreciable difference in the translation.
Proverbs 18:17 sn The proverb is a continuous sentence teaching that there must be cross-examination to settle legal disputes. There are two sides in any disputes, and so even though the first to present his case sounds right, it must be challenged. The verb הָקַר (haqar, translated “cross-examines”) is used for careful, diligent searching and investigating to know something (e.g., Ps 139:1).

¹⁷The first in his dispute is deemed righteous,
but his neighbor will come and examine him.

New English Translation (NET)

Lexham English Bible (LEB)

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