19 A person of great anger will suffer the penalty,
For if you rescue him, you will only have to do it again.

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19 A person with great anger bears the penalty,[a]
but if you deliver him from it once, you will have to do it again.[b]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 19:19 sn The Hebrew word means “indemnity, fine”; this suggests that the trouble could be legal, and the angry person has to pay for it.
  2. Proverbs 19:19 tn The second colon of the verse is very difficult, and there have been many proposals as to its meaning: (1) “If you save [your enemy], you will add [good to yourself]”; (2) “If you save [your son by chastening], you may continue [chastisement and so educate him]”; (3) “If you deliver [him by paying the fine for him once], you will have to do it again”; (4) “If you save [him this time], you will have to increase [the punishment later on].” All interpretations have to supply a considerable amount of material (indicated by brackets). Many English versions are similar to (3).

24 Do not make friends with a person given to anger,
Or go with a (A)hot-tempered person,
25 Or you will (B)learn his ways
And [a]find a snare for yourself.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 22:25 Lit take

24 Do not make friends with an angry person,[a]
and do not associate with a wrathful person,
25 lest you learn[b] his ways
and entangle yourself in a snare.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 22:24 tn Heb “possessor of anger.” This expression is an idiom for “wrathful person” or “an angry person” (cf. NAB “a hotheaded man”; NLT “short-tempered people”). These are people characterized by anger, meaning the anger is not a rare occurrence with them.
  2. Proverbs 22:25 tn The verb פֶּן־תֶּאֱלַף (pen teʾelaf) is translated “lest you learn.” The idea is more precisely “become familiar with his ways.” The construction indicates that if one associates with such people he will become like them (cf. TEV “you might learn their habits”).
  3. Proverbs 22:25 sn The warning in this proverb is to avoid associating with a hothead because his influence could be fatal (a similar idea is found in the Instruction of Amenemope, chap. 9, 11:13-14 [ANET 423]).

22 An (A)angry person stirs up strife,
And a hot-tempered person abounds in wrongdoing.

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22 An angry person[a] stirs up dissension,
and a wrathful person[b] is abounding in transgression.[c]

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 29:22 tn Heb “a man of anger.” Here “anger” is an attributive (“an angry man”). This expression describes one given to or characterized by anger, not merely temporarily angry. The same is true of the next description.
  2. Proverbs 29:22 tn Heb “possessor of wrath.” Here “wrath” is an attributive (cf. ASV “a wrathful man”; KJV “a furious man”).
  3. Proverbs 29:22 tn Heb “an abundance of transgression.” The phrase means “abounding in transgression” (BDB 913 s.v. רַב 1.d]). Not only does the angry person stir up dissension, but he also frequently causes sin in himself and in others (e.g., 14:17, 29; 15:18; 16:32; 22:24).