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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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 2:8-9
Common English Bible
8 He protects the paths of justice
and guards the way of those who are loyal to him.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice,
as well as integrity, every good course.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 8:20
Common English Bible
20 I walk on the way of righteousness,
on the paths of justice,
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 12:5
Common English Bible
5 The plans of the righteous are just,
but the guidance of the wicked is deceptive.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 13:23
Common English Bible
23 A poor person’s land might produce much food,
but it is unjustly swept away.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 16:10-12
Common English Bible
10 A king’s speech is like an oracle;
in a judgment, one can’t go against his words.
11 Honest balances and scales are the Lord’s;
all the weights in the bag are his doing.
12 Kings detest wicked deeds,
for their thrones are founded on righteousness.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 17:15
Common English Bible
15 Judging the righteous wicked and the wicked righteous—
the Lord detests both of these.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 17:23
Common English Bible
23 The wicked take secret bribes
to twist the way of justice.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 17:26
Common English Bible
26 It isn’t good to punish the righteous,
to strike the honorable for their integrity.
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
Common English Bible
Proverbs 18:5
Common English Bible
5 Favoring the wicked isn’t good;
it denies justice to the righteous.
Proverbs 19:28
New English Translation
Proverbs 19:28
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 19:28 tn Heb “a witness who is worthless and wicked” (עֵד בְּלִיַּעַל, ʿed beliyyaʿal). Cf. KJV “an ungodly witness”; NAB “an unprincipled witness”; NCV “an evil witness”; NASB “a rascally witness.”sn These are crooked or corrupt witnesses who willfully distort the facts and make a mockery of the whole legal process.
- Proverbs 19:28 tn The parallel line says the mouth of the wicked “gulps down” or “swallows” (יְבַלַּע, yevallaʿ) iniquity. The verb does not seem to fit the line (or the proverb) very well. Some have emended the text to יַבִּיעַ (yabbiaʿ, “gushes”) as in 15:28 (cf. NAB “pours out”). Driver followed an Arabic balaga to get “enunciates,” which works well with the idea of a false witness (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 529). As it stands, however, the line indicates that in what he says the wicked person accepts evil—and that could describe a false witness.
Proverbs 19:28
Common English Bible
Proverbs 19:28
Common English Bible
28 A worthless witness mocks justice;
the wicked mouth gulps down trouble.
Proverbs 21:3
New English Translation
Proverbs 21:3
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 21:3 tn The Niphal participle בָּחַר (bakhar, “to choose”) means “choice to the Lord” or “chosen of the Lord,” meaning “acceptable to the Lord”; cf. TEV “pleases the Lord more.”
- Proverbs 21:3 sn The Lord prefers righteousness above religious service (e.g., Prov 15:8; 21:29; 1 Sam 15:22; Ps 40:6-8; Isa 1:11-17). This is not a rejection of ritual worship; rather, religious acts are without value apart from righteous living.
Proverbs 21:3
Common English Bible
Proverbs 21:3
Common English Bible
3 Acting with righteousness and justice
is more valued by the Lord than sacrifice.
Proverbs 21:7
New English Translation
Proverbs 21:7
New English Translation
7 The violence[a] done by the wicked[b] will drag them away
because[c] they have refused to do what is right.[d]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 21:7 tn The “violence” (שֹׁד, shod) drags away the wicked, probably either to do more sin or to their punishment. “Violence” here is either personified, or it is a metonymy of cause, meaning “the outcome of their violence” drags them away.
- Proverbs 21:7 tn Heb “violence of the wicked.” This is a subjective genitive: “violence which the wicked do.”
- Proverbs 21:7 tn The second colon of the verse is the causal clause, explaining why they are dragged away. They are not passive victims of their circumstances or their crimes. They have chosen to persist in their violence and so it destroys them.
- Proverbs 21:7 tn Heb “they refused to do מִשְׁפָּט (mishpat; justice). The noun may be an accusative of direct object “do justice” (so ASV) or an adverbial accusative of manner “act justly” or “act with justice” (so NASB).
Proverbs 21:7
Common English Bible
Proverbs 21:7
Common English Bible
7 The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,
for they refuse to act with justice.
New English Translation (NET)
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