Proverbs

Name and Location in Canon

The English title Proverbs comes from the Latin title Proverbia in the Vulgate. In Jewish tradition, Proverbs (Heb “mishlē”), shortened from The Proverbs of Solomon (Heb “mishlē shelomoh”; cf. 1.1; 10.1; 25.1), belongs to the Writings, the third division of the Tanakh. Grouped together with Psalms and Job, the book is one of the three poetical books. The order of the three varies in early manuscripts, with Proverbs either after Psalms and Job or between them.

The Septuagint (LXX) groups together Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon as the books of Solomon, and locates them in that order between Psalms and Job. Christian canons share the order of ProverbsEcclesiastes-Song of Solomon, but locate all three after Job and Psalms.

Authorship and Composition

Proverbs is attributed to Solomon (1.1; 10.1; 25.1), the second and last king of the united monarchy (ca. 966–926 bce) and the quintessential sage of Israel. Tradition says that Solomon received his wisdom from God, composed thousands of proverbs, and instructed people from near and far who came to learn from him (1 Kings 3–4, 10). At the same time, Solomon's larger-than-life status as a patron and author of wisdom literature cautions against interpreting claims of his authorship as historically reliable. Like David with the psalms and Moses with the Torah/Pentateuch, Solomon is identified conventionally with Israel's wisdom. Other wisdom texts are also ascribed to him, such as Ecclesiastes (1.1,12) and Wisdom of Solomon.

The composition of Proverbs occurred over centuries. Chapters 10–30 are thought to be the oldest sections of the book, consisting largely of originally oral folk proverbs that “sages”—namely, counselors and educators associated with the royal court—gathered and edited, starting perhaps as early as the time of Solomon. Reference to “the officials of King Hezekiah of Judah” (25.1) suggests that work on the book continued in the late eighth to early seventh centuries bce, possibly as part of Hezekiah's religious and political reforms. Finally, chs 1–9 and 31 were added in the early postexilic period (late sixth to early fifth centuries bce) as the community rebuilt after the Babylonian exile. Proverbs thus reflects Israel's wisdom traditions as interpreted and reinterpreted, often at significant moments in the life of the community.

Content and Structure

The book of Proverbs contains hundreds of proverbs. A “proverb” is a statement of an apparent truth that is based on human experience and endures in the life of a community over time. The term encompasses a wide variety of speech, from one-line sayings to extended poems. In Proverbs, the most prevalent form is the two-line proverb: the first line makes an observation or claim, which the second line develops, contrasts, or motivates. While a proverb's brevity and parallel structure convey precision, its details captivate and complicate interpretation. Vivid metaphors and similes are abundant, as is the use of wordplay, alliteration (repetition of the same or similar consonants in a line or group of lines), assonance (repetition of the same vowel), ambiguity, irony, and humor. A proverb often has several possible meanings and may “mean” differently depending on who says it and how, to whom, and in what circumstances. That is, proverbs are contingent claims, not universally applicable moralisms. Wise people need to know both the proverbs and how to read the world so that they use the proverbs rightly.

Superscriptions or titles organize the proverbs into sections, each of which has a distinct character. Chapters 1–9, “the proverbs of Solomon,” are long didactic poems by a father to his son(s) (NRSV “child[ren]” obscures the gender specificity) that serve as a prologue to the book, and introduce Wisdom personified as a woman and her negative counterpart, the “strange” woman or personified Folly. Other portions of Proverbs likewise suppose father-to-son instruction (e.g., 19.27; 23.15–16,19,26; 24.13,21; 27.11), and mothers teach as well (1.8; 6.20; 31.1–9,26). That many ancient Egyptian wisdom texts are also a father's words to his son—several apparently actually so—indicates that the family or household setting was common, even standard, for education in the ancient Near East. Moreover, there is little compelling evidence for the existence of schools in Israel prior to the Hellenistic period (note Ben Sira's “house of study,” Sir 51.23). In short, the education of children, especially sons, was done by parents, particularly the father. The instructions on the whole assume and convey a patriarchal worldview.

Proverbs 10.1–22.16, also “proverbs of Solomon,” is comprised mostly of two-line proverbs and develops many of the same themes. Two shorter sections are attributed to “the wise” (22.17–24.22; 24.23–34); the first is an artful adaptation of the Egyptian Instruction of Amenemope, a text from the late second millennium bce that presents thirty instructions of Amenemope to his youngest son. Chapters 25–29, more “proverbs of Solomon” edited by Hezekiah's officials, focus on the royal court and government. The two sections that follow are ascribed to the otherwise unknown foreigners Agur (30.1–33) and the mother of King Lemuel (31.1–9). The book ends with a tribute to “a woman of substance” that is an alphabetic acrostic, a poem in which each successive line begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

The outline of the book is:

“The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel” (1.1–9.18)

“The proverbs of Solomon” (10.1–22.16)

“The words of the wise” (22.17–24.22)

“These also are sayings of the wise” (24.23–34)

“These are other proverbs of Solomon that the officials of King Hezekiah of Judah copied” (25.1–29.27)

“The words of Agur son of Jaqeh” (30.1–33)

“The words of Lemuel, king of Massa, which his mother taught him” (31.1–9)

The woman of substance (31.10–31)

Reading proverbs that are gathered in a collection invites additional interpretation. Features like catchwords, metaphors, or sounds that animate one proverb may extend to create units of two or more (e.g., 11.10–11; 13.7–8). A shared theme or “inclusio,” the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning and ending of a unit, may invite reading a group of proverbs together (e.g., 3.13–18; 10.1–5). These connections highlight how proverbs can comment on one another and, as such, generate conversations across the book.

Proverbs may also be read as a literary whole. Remarkably similar portraits of two women, Wisdom (chs 1–9) and a woman of substance (31.10–31), frame the book, suggesting they should be identified with each other. Readers begin in the position of a silent son urged by his father to love Wisdom and accept the invitation to her house (Prov 1–9) and become, in the end, an esteemed adult who lives there (31.10–31). The sections of Proverbs in between contribute to readers’ maturation in various ways, including movement from Israelite to international wisdom (e.g., Agur, Lemuel's mother), an increasing variety of genres, heightening debate and contradiction between proverbs, and an expanding purview from household to creation. Proverbs thereby forms readers by its content and arrangement.

Interpretation and Reception

The author of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus, early second century bce ) clearly knew Proverbs and used it extensively. Fragments of Proverbs were found at Qumran (4Q102; 4Q103), and several of the community's wisdom texts draw on and develop Proverbs’ depictions of personified Folly (4Q184) and Wisdom (e.g., 4Q185; 4Q525; 11QPsa). Proverbs also influenced Wisdom of Solomon (first century ce) and Pirqe Avot, the Sayings of the Fathers, a collection of proverbs in the Mishnah. In the medieval period, Jewish ethical wills or testaments by parents to instruct their children to imitate Proverbs, as does the Geniza Wisdom Book.

The figure of personified Wisdom particularly captivates imaginations. The books of Baruch and Sirach identify her with Torah (Bar 4.1; Sir 24.23). Wisdom of Solomon describes her as the “spirit of Sophia,” the breath of the power of God (cf. Wis 7.7–10.18). Kabbalistic writings of medieval Judaism drew from depictions of her to portray the Shekhinah, the female element in divinity, as did the Talmud and midrash to depict Knesset Yisrael, the personification of the community of Israel.

Early Christians described the person and work of Jesus Christ using language and imagery associated with Wisdom (e.g., John 1.1–18; Col 1.15–20; Heb 1.1–3). Indeed, Prov 8.22–31 was a source of contention in the controversy between orthodox and Arian Christians about the nature of Christ's relationship with God. The controversy resulted in the condemnation of Arius and his thinking by the Council of Nicaea in 325 ce.

Christine Roy Yoder

¹ The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

²For learning about wisdom and instruction,

  for understanding words of insight,

³for gaining instruction in wise dealing,

  righteousness, justice, and equity;

⁴to teach shrewdness to the simple,

  knowledge and prudence to the young—

⁵let the wise also hear and gain in learning,

  and the discerning acquire skill,

⁶to understand a proverb and a figure,

  the words of the wise and their riddles.

⁷The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;

  fools despise wisdom and instruction.

⁸Hear, my child, your father's instruction,

  and do not reject your mother's teaching;

⁹for they are a fair garland for your head,

  and pendants for your neck.

¹⁰My child, if sinners entice you,

  do not consent.

¹¹If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood;

  let us wantonly ambush the innocent;

¹²like Sheol let us swallow them alive

  and whole, like those who go down to the Pit.

¹³We shall find all kinds of costly things;

  we shall fill our houses with booty.

¹⁴Throw in your lot among us;

  we will all have one purse”—

¹⁵my child, do not walk in their way,

  keep your foot from their paths;

¹⁶for their feet run to evil,

  and they hurry to shed blood.

¹⁷For in vain is the net baited

  while the bird is looking on;

¹⁸yet they lie in wait—to kill themselves!

  and set an ambush—for their own lives!

¹⁹Such is the end^a of all who are greedy for gain;

  it takes away the life of its possessors.

²⁰Wisdom cries out in the street;

  in the squares she raises her voice.

²¹At the busiest corner she cries out;

  at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

²²“How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?

  How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing

and fools hate knowledge?

²³Give heed to my reproof;

  I will pour out my thoughts to you;

  I will make my words known to you.

²⁴Because I have called and you refused,

  have stretched out my hand and no one heeded,

²⁵and because you have ignored all my counsel

  and would have none of my reproof,

²⁶I also will laugh at your calamity;

  I will mock when panic strikes you,

²⁷when panic strikes you like a storm,

  and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,

when distress and anguish come upon you.

²⁸Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;

  they will seek me diligently, but will not find me.

²⁹Because they hated knowledge

  and did not choose the fear of the Lord,

³⁰would have none of my counsel,

  and despised all my reproof,

³¹therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way

  and be sated with their own devices.

³²For waywardness kills the simple,

  and the complacency of fools destroys them;

³³but those who listen to me will be secure

  and will live at ease, without dread of disaster.”

2

My child, if you accept my words

  and treasure up my commandments within you,

²making your ear attentive to wisdom

  and inclining your heart to understanding;

³if you indeed cry out for insight,

  and raise your voice for understanding;

⁴if you seek it like silver,

  and search for it as for hidden treasures—

⁵then you will understand the fear of the Lord

  and find the knowledge of God.

⁶For the Lord gives wisdom;

  from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

⁷he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;

  he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly,

⁸guarding the paths of justice

  and preserving the way of his faithful ones.

⁹Then you will understand righteousness and justice

  and equity, every good path;

¹⁰for wisdom will come into your heart,

  and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

¹¹prudence will watch over you;

  and understanding will guard you.

¹²It will save you from the way of evil,

  from those who speak perversely,

¹³who forsake the paths of uprightness

  to walk in the ways of darkness,

¹⁴who rejoice in doing evil

  and delight in the perverseness of evil;

¹⁵those whose paths are crooked,

  and who are devious in their ways.

¹⁶You will be saved from the loose^a woman,

  from the adulteress with her smooth words,

¹⁷who forsakes the partner of her youth

  and forgets her sacred covenant;

¹⁸for her way^b leads down to death,

  and her paths to the shades;

¹⁹those who go to her never come back,

  nor do they regain the paths of life.

²⁰Therefore walk in the way of the good,

  and keep to the paths of the just.

²¹For the upright will abide in the land,

  and the innocent will remain in it;

²²but the wicked will be cut off from the land,

  and the treacherous will be rooted out of it.

3

My child, do not forget my teaching,

  but let your heart keep my commandments;

²for length of days and years of life

  and abundant welfare they will give you.

³Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you;

  bind them around your neck,

write them on the tablet of your heart.

⁴So you will find favor and good repute

  in the sight of God and of people.

⁵Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

  and do not rely on your own insight.

⁶In all your ways acknowledge him,

  and he will make straight your paths.

⁷Do not be wise in your own eyes;

  fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.

⁸It will be a healing for your flesh

  and a refreshment for your body.

⁹Honor the Lord with your substance

  and with the first fruits of all your produce;

¹⁰then your barns will be filled with plenty,

  and your vats will be bursting with wine.

¹¹My child, do not despise the Lord's discipline

  or be weary of his reproof,

¹²for the Lord reproves the one he loves,

  as a father the son in whom he delights.

¹³Happy are those who find wisdom,

  and those who get understanding,

¹⁴for her income is better than silver,

  and her revenue better than gold.

¹⁵She is more precious than jewels,

  and nothing you desire can compare with her.

¹⁶Long life is in her right hand;

  in her left hand are riches and honor.

¹⁷Her ways are ways of pleasantness,

  and all her paths are peace.

¹⁸She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;

  those who hold her fast are called happy.

¹⁹The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;

  by understanding he established the heavens;

²⁰by his knowledge the deeps broke open,

  and the clouds drop down the dew.

²¹My child, do not let these escape from your sight:

  keep sound wisdom and prudence,

²²and they will be life for your soul

  and adornment for your neck.

²³Then you will walk on your way securely

  and your foot will not stumble.

²⁴If you sit down,^a you will not be afraid;

  when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

²⁵Do not be afraid of sudden panic,

  or of the storm that strikes the wicked;

²⁶for the Lord will be your confidence

and will keep your foot from being caught.

²⁷Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,^a

  when it is in your power to do it.

²⁸Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again,

  tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you.

²⁹Do not plan harm against your neighbor

  who lives trustingly beside you.

³⁰Do not quarrel with anyone without cause,

  when no harm has been done to you.

³¹Do not envy the violent

  and do not choose any of their ways;

³²for the perverse are an abomination to the Lord,

  but the upright are in his confidence.

³³The Lord's curse is on the house of the wicked,

  but he blesses the abode of the righteous.

³⁴Toward the scorners he is scornful,

  but to the humble he shows favor.

³⁵The wise will inherit honor,

  but stubborn fools, disgrace.

4

Listen, children, to a father's instruction,

  and be attentive, that you may gain^b insight;

²for I give you good precepts:

  do not forsake my teaching.

³When I was a son with my father,

  tender, and my mother's favorite,

⁴he taught me, and said to me,

  “Let your heart hold fast my words;

keep my commandments, and live.

⁵Get wisdom; get insight: do not forget, nor turn away

  from the words of my mouth.

⁶Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;

  love her, and she will guard you.

⁷The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,

  and whatever else you get, get insight.

⁸Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;

  she will honor you if you embrace her.

⁹She will place on your head a fair garland;

  she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”

¹⁰Hear, my child, and accept my words,

  that the years of your life may be many.

¹¹I have taught you the way of wisdom;

  I have led you in the paths of uprightness.

¹²When you walk, your step will not be hampered;

  and if you run, you will not stumble.

¹³Keep hold of instruction; do not let go;

  guard her, for she is your life.

¹⁴Do not enter the path of the wicked,

  and do not walk in the way of evildoers.

¹⁵Avoid it; do not go on it;

  turn away from it and pass on.

¹⁶For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;

  they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.

¹⁷For they eat the bread of wickedness

  and drink the wine of violence.

¹⁸But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,

  which shines brighter and brighter until full day.

¹⁹The way of the wicked is like deep darkness;

  they do not know what they stumble over.

²⁰My child, be attentive to my words;

  incline your ear to my sayings.

²¹Do not let them escape from your sight;

  keep them within your heart.

²²For they are life to those who find them,

  and healing to all their flesh.

²³Keep your heart with all vigilance,

  for from it flow the springs of life.

²⁴Put away from you crooked speech,

  and put devious talk far from you.

²⁵Let your eyes look directly forward,

  and your gaze be straight before you.

²⁶Keep straight the path of your feet,

  and all your ways will be sure.

²⁷Do not swerve to the right or to the left;

  turn your foot away from evil.

5

My child, be attentive to my wisdom;

  incline your ear to my understanding,

²so that you may hold on to prudence,

  and your lips may guard knowledge.

³For the lips of a loose^a woman drip honey,

  and her speech is smoother than oil;

⁴but in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

  sharp as a two-edged sword.

⁵Her feet go down to death;

  her steps follow the path to Sheol.

⁶She does not keep straight to the path of life;

  her ways wander, and she does not know it.

⁷And now, my child,^b listen to me,

  and do not depart from the words of my mouth.

⁸Keep your way far from her,

  and do not go near the door of her house;

⁹or you will give your honor to others,

  and your years to the merciless,

¹⁰and strangers will take their fill of your wealth,

  and your labors will go to the house of an alien;

¹¹and at the end of your life you will groan,

  when your flesh and body are consumed,

¹²and you say, “Oh, how I hated discipline,

  and my heart despised reproof!

¹³I did not listen to the voice of my teachers

  or incline my ear to my instructors.

¹⁴Now I am at the point of utter ruin

  in the public assembly.”

¹⁵Drink water from your own cistern,

  flowing water from your own well.

¹⁶Should your springs be scattered abroad,

  streams of water in the streets?

¹⁷Let them be for yourself alone,

  and not for sharing with strangers.

¹⁸Let your fountain be blessed,

  and rejoice in the wife of your youth,

¹⁹a lovely deer, a graceful doe.

  May her breasts satisfy you at all times;

may you be intoxicated always by her love.

²⁰Why should you be intoxicated, my son, by another woman

  and embrace the bosom of an adulteress?

²¹For human ways are under the eyes of the Lord,

  and he examines all their paths.

²²The iniquities of the wicked ensnare them,

  and they are caught in the toils of their sin.

²³They die for lack of discipline,

  and because of their great folly they are lost.

6

My child, if you have given your pledge to your neighbor,

  if you have bound yourself to another,^a

²you are snared by the utterance of your lips, ^b

  caught by the words of your mouth.

³So do this, my child, and save yourself,

  for you have come into your neighbor's power:

go, hurry,^c and plead with your neighbor.

⁴Give your eyes no sleep

  and your eyelids no slumber;

⁵save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter,^d

  like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

⁶Go to the ant, you lazybones;

  consider its ways, and be wise.

⁷Without having any chief

  or officer or ruler,

⁸it prepares its food in summer,

  and gathers its sustenance in harvest.

⁹How long will you lie there, O lazybones?

  When will you rise from your sleep?

¹⁰A little sleep, a little slumber,

  a little folding of the hands to rest,

¹¹and poverty will come upon you like a robber,

  and want, like an armed warrior.

¹²A scoundrel and a villain

  goes around with crooked speech,

¹³winking the eyes, shuffling the feet,

  pointing the fingers,

¹⁴with perverted mind devising evil,

  continually sowing discord;

¹⁵on such a one calamity will descend suddenly;

  in a moment, damage beyond repair.

¹⁶There are six things that the Lord hates,

  seven that are an abomination to him:

¹⁷haughty eyes, a lying tongue,

  and hands that shed innocent blood,

¹⁸a heart that devises wicked plans,

  feet that hurry to run to evil,

¹⁹a lying witness who testifies falsely,

  and one who sows discord in a family.

²⁰My child, keep your father's commandment,

  and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

²¹Bind them upon your heart always;

  tie them around your neck.

²²When you walk, they^a will lead you;

  when you lie down, they^a will watch over you;

and when you awake, they^a will talk with you.

²³For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,

  and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,

²⁴to preserve you from the wife of another,^b

  from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.

²⁵Do not desire her beauty in your heart,

  and do not let her capture you with her eyelashes;

²⁶for a prostitute's fee is only a loaf of bread,^c

  but the wife of another stalks a man's very life.

²⁷Can fire be carried in the bosom

  without burning one's clothes?

²⁸Or can one walk on hot coals

  without scorching the feet?

²⁹So is he who sleeps with his neighbor's wife;

  no one who touches her will go unpunished.

³⁰Thieves are not despised who steal only

  to satisfy their appetite when they are hungry.

³¹Yet if they are caught, they will pay sevenfold;

  they will forfeit all the goods of their house.

³²But he who commits adultery has no sense;

  he who does it destroys himself.

³³He will get wounds and dishonor,

  and his disgrace will not be wiped away.

³⁴For jealousy arouses a husband's fury,

  and he shows no restraint when he takes revenge.

³⁵He will accept no compensation,

  and refuses a bribe no matter how great.

7

My child, keep my words

  and store up my commandments with you;

²keep my commandments and live,

  keep my teachings as the apple of your eye;

³bind them on your fingers,

  write them on the tablet of your heart.

⁴Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”

  and call insight your intimate friend,

⁵that they may keep you from the loose^d woman,

  from the adulteress with her smooth words.

⁶For at the window of my house

  I looked out through my lattice,

⁷and I saw among the simple ones,

  I observed among the youths,

a young man without sense,

⁸passing along the street near her corner,

  taking the road to her house

⁹in the twilight, in the evening,

  at the time of night and darkness.

¹⁰Then a woman comes toward him,

  decked out like a prostitute, wily of heart.^a

¹¹She is loud and wayward;

  her feet do not stay at home;

¹²now in the street, now in the squares,

  and at every corner she lies in wait.

¹³She seizes him and kisses him,

  and with impudent face she says to him:

¹⁴“I had to offer sacrifices,

  and today I have paid my vows;

¹⁵so now I have come out to meet you,

  to seek you eagerly, and I have found you!

¹⁶I have decked my couch with coverings,

  colored spreads of Egyptian linen;

¹⁷I have perfumed my bed with myrrh,

  aloes, and cinnamon.

¹⁸Come, let us take our fill of love until morning;

  let us delight ourselves with love.

¹⁹For my husband is not at home;

  he has gone on a long journey.

²⁰He took a bag of money with him;

  he will not come home until full moon.”

²¹With much seductive speech she persuades him;

  with her smooth talk she compels him.

²²Right away he follows her,

  and goes like an ox to the slaughter,

or bounds like a stag toward the trap^b

²³until an arrow pierces its entrails.

  He is like a bird rushing into a snare,

not knowing that it will cost him his life.

²⁴And now, my children, listen to me,

  and be attentive to the words of my mouth.

²⁵Do not let your hearts turn aside to her ways;

  do not stray into her paths.

²⁶For many are those she has laid low,

  and numerous are her victims.

²⁷Her house is the way to Sheol,

  going down to the chambers of death.

8

Does not wisdom call,

  and does not understanding raise her voice?

²On the heights, beside the way,

  at the crossroads she takes her stand;

³beside the gates in front of the town,

  at the entrance of the portals she cries out:

⁴“To you, O people, I call,

  and my cry is to all that live.

⁵O simple ones, learn prudence;

  acquire intelligence, you who lack it.

⁶Hear, for I will speak noble things,

  and from my lips will come what is right;

⁷for my mouth will utter truth;

  wickedness is an abomination to my lips.

⁸All the words of my mouth are righteous;

  there is nothing twisted or crooked in them.

⁹They are all straight to one who understands

  and right to those who find knowledge.

¹⁰Take my instruction instead of silver,

  and knowledge rather than choice gold;

¹¹for wisdom is better than jewels,

  and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.

¹²I, wisdom, live with prudence,^a

  and I attain knowledge and discretion.

¹³The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.

  Pride and arrogance and the way of evil

and perverted speech I hate.

¹⁴I have good advice and sound wisdom;

  I have insight, I have strength.

¹⁵By me kings reign,

  and rulers decree what is just;

¹⁶by me rulers rule,

  and nobles, all who govern rightly.

¹⁷I love those who love me,

  and those who seek me diligently find me.

¹⁸Riches and honor are with me,

  enduring wealth and prosperity.

¹⁹My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,

  and my yield than choice silver.

²⁰I walk in the way of righteousness,

  along the paths of justice,

²¹endowing with wealth those who love me,

  and filling their treasuries.

²²The Lord created me at the beginning^b of his work,^c

  the first of his acts of long ago.

²³Ages ago I was set up,

  at the first, before the beginning of the earth.

²⁴When there were no depths I was brought forth,

  when there were no springs abounding with water.

²⁵Before the mountains had been shaped,

  before the hills, I was brought forth—

²⁶when he had not yet made earth and fields,^a

  or the world's first bits of soil.

²⁷When he established the heavens, I was there,

  when he drew a circle on the face of the deep,

²⁸when he made firm the skies above,

  when he established the fountains of the deep,

²⁹when he assigned to the sea its limit,

  so that the waters might not transgress his command,

when he marked out the foundations of the earth,

³⁰then I was beside him, like a master worker;^a

  and I was daily his^b delight,

rejoicing before him always,

³¹rejoicing in his inhabited world

  and delighting in the human race.

³²“And now, my children, listen to me:

  happy are those who keep my ways.

³³Hear instruction and be wise,

  and do not neglect it.

³⁴Happy is the one who listens to me,

  watching daily at my gates,

waiting beside my doors.

³⁵For whoever finds me finds life

  and obtains favor from the Lord;

³⁶but those who miss me injure themselves;

  all who hate me love death.”

9

Wisdom has built her house,

  she has hewn her seven pillars.

²She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine,

  she has also set her table.

³She has sent out her servant-girls, she calls

  from the highest places in the town,

⁴“You that are simple, turn in here!”

  To those without sense she says,

⁵“Come, eat of my bread

  and drink of the wine I have mixed.

⁶Lay aside immaturity,^c and live,

  and walk in the way of insight.”

⁷Whoever corrects a scoffer wins abuse;

  whoever rebukes the wicked gets hurt.

⁸A scoffer who is rebuked will only hate you;

  the wise, when rebuked, will love you.

⁹Give instruction^d to the wise, and they will become wiser still;

  teach the righteous and they will gain in learning.

¹⁰The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,

  and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

¹¹For by me your days will be multiplied,

  and years will be added to your life.

¹²If you are wise, you are wise for yourself;

  if you scoff, you alone will bear it.

¹³The foolish woman is loud;

  she is ignorant and knows nothing.

¹⁴She sits at the door of her house,

  on a seat at the high places of the town,

¹⁵calling to those who pass by,

  who are going straight on their way,

¹⁶“You who are simple, turn in here!”

  And to those without sense she says,

¹⁷“Stolen water is sweet,

  and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”

¹⁸But they do not know that the dead^e are there,

  that her guests are in the depths of Sheol.

¹⁰ The proverbs of Solomon.

A wise child makes a glad father,

  but a foolish child is a mother's grief.

²Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,

  but righteousness delivers from death.

³The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry,

  but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.

⁴A slack hand causes poverty,

  but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

⁵A child who gathers in summer is prudent,

  but a child who sleeps in harvest brings shame.

⁶Blessings are on the head of the righteous,

  but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

⁷The memory of the righteous is a blessing,

  but the name of the wicked will rot.

⁸The wise of heart will heed commandments,

  but a babbling fool will come to ruin.

⁹Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,

  but whoever follows perverse ways will be found out.

¹⁰Whoever winks the eye causes trouble,

  but the one who rebukes boldly makes peace.^a

¹¹The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,

  but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

¹²Hatred stirs up strife,

  but love covers all offenses.

¹³On the lips of one who has understanding wisdom is found,

  but a rod is for the back of one who lacks sense.

¹⁴The wise lay up knowledge,

  but the babbling of a fool brings ruin near.

¹⁵The wealth of the rich is their fortress;

  the poverty of the poor is their ruin.

¹⁶The wage of the righteous leads to life,

  the gain of the wicked to sin.

¹⁷Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life,

  but one who rejects a rebuke goes astray.

¹⁸Lying lips conceal hatred,

  and whoever utters slander is a fool.

¹⁹When words are many, transgression is not lacking,

  but the prudent are restrained in speech.

²⁰The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;

  the mind of the wicked is of little worth.

²¹The lips of the righteous feed many,

  but fools die for lack of sense.

²²The blessing of the Lord makes rich,

  and he adds no sorrow with it. ^a

²³Doing wrong is like sport to a fool,

  but wise conduct is pleasure to a person of understanding.

²⁴What the wicked dread will come upon them,

  but the desire of the righteous will be granted.

²⁵When the tempest passes, the wicked are no more,

  but the righteous are established forever.

²⁶Like vinegar to the teeth, and smoke to the eyes,

  so are the lazy to their employers.

²⁷The fear of the Lord prolongs life,

  but the years of the wicked will be short.

²⁸The hope of the righteous ends in gladness,

  but the expectation of the wicked comes to nothing.

²⁹The way of the Lord is a stronghold for the upright,

  but destruction for evildoers.

³⁰The righteous will never be removed,

  but the wicked will not remain in the land.

³¹The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,

  but the perverse tongue will be cut off.

³²The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,

  but the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.

11

A false balance is an abomination to the Lord,

  but an accurate weight is his delight.

²When pride comes, then comes disgrace;

  but wisdom is with the humble.

³The integrity of the upright guides them,

  but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them.

⁴Riches do not profit in the day of wrath,

  but righteousness delivers from death.

⁵The righteousness of the blameless keeps their ways straight,

  but the wicked fall by their own wickedness.

⁶The righteousness of the upright saves them,

  but the treacherous are taken captive by their schemes.

⁷When the wicked die, their hope perishes,

  and the expectation of the godless comes to nothing.

⁸The righteous are delivered from trouble,

  and the wicked get into it instead.

⁹With their mouths the godless would destroy their neighbors,

  but by knowledge the righteous are delivered.

¹⁰When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices;

  and when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.

¹¹By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted,

  but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.

¹²Whoever belittles another lacks sense,

  but an intelligent person remains silent.

¹³A gossip goes about telling secrets,

  but one who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a confidence.

¹⁴Where there is no guidance, a nation^b falls,

  but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.

¹⁵To guarantee loans for a stranger brings trouble,

  but there is safety in refusing to do so.

¹⁶A gracious woman gets honor,

  but she who hates virtue is covered with shame.^a

The timid become destitute,^b

but the aggressive gain riches.

¹⁷Those who are kind reward themselves,

  but the cruel do themselves harm.

¹⁸The wicked earn no real gain,

  but those who sow righteousness get a true reward.

¹⁹Whoever is steadfast in righteousness will live,

  but whoever pursues evil will die.

²⁰Crooked minds are an abomination to the Lord,

  but those of blameless ways are his delight.

²¹Be assured, the wicked will not go unpunished,

  but those who are righteous will escape.

²²Like a gold ring in a pig's snout

  is a beautiful woman without good sense.

²³The desire of the righteous ends only in good;

  the expectation of the wicked in wrath.

²⁴Some give freely, yet grow all the richer;

  others withhold what is due, and only suffer want.

²⁵A generous person will be enriched,

  and one who gives water will get water.

²⁶The people curse those who hold back grain,

  but a blessing is on the head of those who sell it.

²⁷Whoever diligently seeks good seeks favor,

  but evil comes to the one who searches for it.

²⁸Those who trust in their riches will wither,^c

  but the righteous will flourish like green leaves.

²⁹Those who trouble their households will inherit wind,

  and the fool will be servant to the wise.

³⁰The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life,

  but violence^d takes lives away.

³¹If the righteous are repaid on earth,

  how much more the wicked and the sinner!

12

Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,

  but those who hate to be rebuked are stupid.

²The good obtain favor from the Lord,

  but those who devise evil he condemns.

³No one finds security by wickedness,

  but the root of the righteous will never be moved.

⁴A good wife is the crown of her husband,

  but she who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones.

⁵The thoughts of the righteous are just;

  the advice of the wicked is treacherous.

⁶The words of the wicked are a deadly ambush,

  but the speech of the upright delivers them.

⁷The wicked are overthrown and are no more,

  but the house of the righteous will stand.

⁸One is commended for good sense,

  but a perverse mind is despised.

⁹Better to be despised and have a servant,

  than to be self-important and lack food.

¹⁰The righteous know the needs of their animals,

  but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.

¹¹Those who till their land will have plenty of food,

  but those who follow worthless pursuits have no sense.

¹²The wicked covet the proceeds of wickedness,^a

  but the root of the righteous bears fruit.

¹³The evil are ensnared by the transgression of their lips,

  but the righteous escape from trouble.

¹⁴From the fruit of the mouth one is filled with good things,

  and manual labor has its reward.

¹⁵Fools think their own way is right,

  but the wise listen to advice.

¹⁶Fools show their anger at once,

  but the prudent ignore an insult.

¹⁷Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence,

  but a false witness speaks deceitfully.

¹⁸Rash words are like sword thrusts,

  but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

¹⁹Truthful lips endure forever,

  but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.

²⁰Deceit is in the mind of those who plan evil,

  but those who counsel peace have joy.

²¹No harm happens to the righteous,

  but the wicked are filled with trouble.

²²Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,

  but those who act faithfully are his delight.

²³One who is clever conceals knowledge,

  but the mind of a fool^b broadcasts folly.

²⁴The hand of the diligent will rule,

  while the lazy will be put to forced labor.

²⁵Anxiety weighs down the human heart,

  but a good word cheers it up.

²⁶The righteous gives good advice to friends,^c

  but the way of the wicked leads astray.

²⁷The lazy do not roast^d their game,

  but the diligent obtain precious wealth.^d

²⁸In the path of righteousness there is life,

  in walking its path there is no death.

13

A wise child loves discipline,^e

  but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

²From the fruit of their words good persons eat good things,

  but the desire of the treacherous is for wrongdoing.

³Those who guard their mouths preserve their lives;

  those who open wide their lips come to ruin.

⁴The appetite of the lazy craves, and gets nothing,

  while the appetite of the diligent is richly supplied.

⁵The righteous hate falsehood,

  but the wicked act shamefully and disgracefully.

⁶Righteousness guards one whose way is upright,

  but sin overthrows the wicked.

⁷Some pretend to be rich, yet have nothing;

  others pretend to be poor, yet have great wealth.

⁸Wealth is a ransom for a person's life,

  but the poor get no threats.

⁹The light of the righteous rejoices,

  but the lamp of the wicked goes out.

¹⁰By insolence the heedless make strife,

  but wisdom is with those who take advice.

¹¹Wealth hastily gotten^a will dwindle,

  but those who gather little by little will increase it.

¹²Hope deferred makes the heart sick,

  but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life.

¹³Those who despise the word bring destruction on themselves,

  but those who respect the commandment will be rewarded.

¹⁴The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,

  so that one may avoid the snares of death.

¹⁵Good sense wins favor,

  but the way of the faithless is their ruin.^b

¹⁶The clever do all things intelligently,

  but the fool displays folly.

¹⁷A bad messenger brings trouble,

  but a faithful envoy, healing.

¹⁸Poverty and disgrace are for the one who ignores instruction,

  but one who heeds reproof is honored.

¹⁹A desire realized is sweet to the soul,

  but to turn away from evil is an abomination to fools.

²⁰Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise,

  but the companion of fools suffers harm.

²¹Misfortune pursues sinners,

  but prosperity rewards the righteous.

²²The good leave an inheritance to their children's children,

  but the sinner's wealth is laid up for the righteous.

²³The field of the poor may yield much food,

  but it is swept away through injustice.

²⁴Those who spare the rod hate their children,

  but those who love them are diligent to discipline them.

²⁵The righteous have enough to satisfy their appetite,

  but the belly of the wicked is empty.

14

The wise woman^c builds her house,

  but the foolish tears it down with her own hands.

²Those who walk uprightly fear the Lord,

  but one who is devious in conduct despises him.

³The talk of fools is a rod for their backs,^d

  but the lips of the wise preserve them.

⁴Where there are no oxen, there is no grain;

  abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.

⁵A faithful witness does not lie,

  but a false witness breathes out lies.

⁶A scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,

  but knowledge is easy for one who understands.

⁷Leave the presence of a fool,

  for there you do not find words of knowledge.

⁸It is the wisdom of the clever to understand where they go,

  but the folly of fools misleads.

⁹Fools mock at the guilt offering,^a

  but the upright enjoy God's favor.

¹⁰The heart knows its own bitterness,

  and no stranger shares its joy.

¹¹The house of the wicked is destroyed,

  but the tent of the upright flourishes.

¹²There is a way that seems right to a person,

  but its end is the way to death.^b

¹³Even in laughter the heart is sad,

  and the end of joy is grief.

¹⁴The perverse get what their ways deserve,

  and the good, what their deeds deserve.^c

¹⁵The simple believe everything,

  but the clever consider their steps.

¹⁶The wise are cautious and turn away from evil,

  but the fool throws off restraint and is careless.

¹⁷One who is quick-tempered acts foolishly,

  and the schemer is hated.

¹⁸The simple are adorned with^d folly,

  but the clever are crowned with knowledge.

¹⁹The evil bow down before the good,

  the wicked at the gates of the righteous.

²⁰The poor are disliked even by their neighbors,

  but the rich have many friends.

²¹Those who despise their neighbors are sinners,

  but happy are those who are kind to the poor.

²²Do they not err that plan evil?

  Those who plan good find loyalty and faithfulness.

²³In all toil there is profit,

  but mere talk leads only to poverty.

²⁴The crown of the wise is their wisdom,^e

  but folly is the garland^f of fools.

²⁵A truthful witness saves lives,

  but one who utters lies is a betrayer.

²⁶In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,

  and one's children will have a refuge.

²⁷The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,

  so that one may avoid the snares of death.

²⁸The glory of a king is a multitude of people;

  without people a prince is ruined.

²⁹Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding,

  but one who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

³⁰A tranquil mind gives life to the flesh,

  but passion makes the bones rot.

³¹Those who oppress the poor insult their Maker,

  but those who are kind to the needy honor him.

³²The wicked are overthrown by their evildoing,

  but the righteous find a refuge in their integrity.^g

³³Wisdom is at home in the mind of one who has understanding,

  but it is not^h known in the heart of fools.

³⁴Righteousness exalts a nation,

  but sin is a reproach to any people.

³⁵A servant who deals wisely has the king's favor,

  but his wrath falls on one who acts shamefully.

15

A soft answer turns away wrath,

  but a harsh word stirs up anger.

²The tongue of the wise dispenses knowledge,^c

  but the mouths of fools pour out folly.

³The eyes of the Lord are in every place,

  keeping watch on the evil and the good.

⁴A gentle tongue is a tree of life,

  but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.

⁵A fool despises a parent's instruction,

  but the one who heeds admonition is prudent.

⁶In the house of the righteous there is much treasure,

  but trouble befalls the income of the wicked.

⁷The lips of the wise spread knowledge;

  not so the minds of fools.

⁸The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,

  but the prayer of the upright is his delight.

⁹The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,

  but he loves the one who pursues righteousness.

¹⁰There is severe discipline for one who forsakes the way,

  but one who hates a rebuke will die.

¹¹Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the Lord,

  how much more human hearts!

¹²Scoffers do not like to be rebuked;

  they will not go to the wise.

¹³A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance,

  but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.

¹⁴The mind of one who has understanding seeks knowledge,

  but the mouths of fools feed on folly.

¹⁵All the days of the poor are hard,

  but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.

¹⁶Better is a little with the fear of the Lord

  than great treasure and trouble with it.

¹⁷Better is a dinner of vegetables where love is

  than a fatted ox and hatred with it.

¹⁸Those who are hot-tempered stir up strife,

  but those who are slow to anger calm contention.

¹⁹The way of the lazy is overgrown with thorns,

  but the path of the upright is a level highway.

²⁰A wise child makes a glad father,

  but the foolish despise their mothers.

²¹Folly is a joy to one who has no sense,

  but a person of understanding walks straight ahead.

²²Without counsel, plans go wrong,

  but with many advisers they succeed.

²³To make an apt answer is a joy to anyone,

  and a word in season, how good it is!

²⁴For the wise the path of life leads upward,

  in order to avoid Sheol below.

²⁵The Lord tears down the house of the proud,

  but maintains the widow's boundaries.

²⁶Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord,

  but gracious words are pure.

²⁷Those who are greedy for unjust gain make trouble for their households,

  but those who hate bribes will live.

²⁸The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer,

  but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil.

²⁹The Lord is far from the wicked,

  but he hears the prayer of the righteous.

³⁰The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,

  and good news refreshes the body.

³¹The ear that heeds wholesome admonition

  will lodge among the wise.

³²Those who ignore instruction despise themselves,

  but those who heed admonition gain understanding.

³³The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom,

  and humility goes before honor.

16

The plans of the mind belong to mortals,

  but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.

²All one's ways may be pure in one's own eyes,

  but the Lord weighs the spirit.

³Commit your work to the Lord,

  and your plans will be established.

⁴The Lord has made everything for its purpose,

  even the wicked for the day of trouble.

⁵All those who are arrogant are an abomination to the Lord;

  be assured, they will not go unpunished.

⁶By loyalty and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for,

  and by the fear of the Lord one avoids evil.

⁷When the ways of people please the Lord,

  he causes even their enemies to be at peace with them.

⁸Better is a little with righteousness

  than large income with injustice.

⁹The human mind plans the way,

  but the Lord directs the steps.

¹⁰Inspired decisions are on the lips of a king;

  his mouth does not sin in judgment.

¹¹Honest balances and scales are the Lord's;

  all the weights in the bag are his work.

¹²It is an abomination to kings to do evil,

  for the throne is established by righteousness.

¹³Righteous lips are the delight of a king,

  and he loves those who speak what is right.

¹⁴A king's wrath is a messenger of death,

  and whoever is wise will appease it.

¹⁵In the light of a king's face there is life,

  and his favor is like the clouds that bring the spring rain.

¹⁶How much better to get wisdom than gold!

  To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

¹⁷The highway of the upright avoids evil;

  those who guard their way preserve their lives.

¹⁸Pride goes before destruction,

  and a haughty spirit before a fall.

¹⁹It is better to be of a lowly spirit among the poor

  than to divide the spoil with the proud.

²⁰Those who are attentive to a matter will prosper,

  and happy are those who trust in the Lord.

²¹The wise of heart is called perceptive,

  and pleasant speech increases persuasiveness.

²²Wisdom is a fountain of life to one who has it,

  but folly is the punishment of fools.

²³The mind of the wise makes their speech judicious,

  and adds persuasiveness to their lips.

²⁴Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,

  sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

²⁵Sometimes there is a way that seems to be right,

  but in the end it is the way to death.

²⁶The appetite of workers works for them;

  their hunger urges them on.

²⁷Scoundrels concoct evil,

  and their speech is like a scorching fire.

²⁸A perverse person spreads strife,

  and a whisperer separates close friends.

²⁹The violent entice their neighbors,

  and lead them in a way that is not good.

³⁰One who winks the eyes plans^a perverse things;

  one who compresses the lips brings evil to pass.

³¹Gray hair is a crown of glory;

  it is gained in a righteous life.

³²One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty,

  and one whose temper is controlled than one who captures a city.

³³The lot is cast into the lap,

  but the decision is the Lord's alone.

17

Better is a dry morsel with quiet

  than a house full of feasting with strife.

²A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully,

  and will share the inheritance as one of the family.

³The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,

  but the Lord tests the heart.

⁴An evildoer listens to wicked lips;

  and a liar gives heed to a mischievous tongue.

⁵Those who mock the poor insult their Maker;

  those who are glad at calamity will not go unpunished.

⁶Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,

  and the glory of children is their parents.

⁷Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;

  still less is false speech to a ruler.^b

⁸A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of those who give it;

  wherever they turn they prosper.

⁹One who forgives an affront fosters friendship,

  but one who dwells on disputes will alienate a friend.

¹⁰A rebuke strikes deeper into a discerning person

  than a hundred blows into a fool.

¹¹Evil people seek only rebellion,

  but a cruel messenger will be sent against them.

¹²Better to meet a she-bear robbed of its cubs

  than to confront a fool immersed in folly.

¹³Evil will not depart from the house

  of one who returns evil for good.

¹⁴The beginning of strife is like letting out water;

  so stop before the quarrel breaks out.

¹⁵One who justifies the wicked and one who condemns the righteous

  are both alike an abomination to the Lord.

¹⁶Why should fools have a price in hand

  to buy wisdom, when they have no mind to learn?

¹⁷A friend loves at all times,

  and kinsfolk are born to share adversity.

¹⁸It is senseless to give a pledge,

  to become surety for a neighbor.

¹⁹One who loves transgression loves strife;

  one who builds a high threshold invites broken bones.

²⁰The crooked of mind do not prosper,

  and the perverse of tongue fall into calamity.

²¹The one who begets a fool gets trouble;

  the parent of a fool has no joy.

²²A cheerful heart is a good medicine,

  but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.

²³The wicked accept a concealed bribe

  to pervert the ways of justice.

²⁴The discerning person looks to wisdom,

  but the eyes of a fool to the ends of the earth.

²⁵Foolish children are a grief to their father

  and bitterness to her who bore them.

²⁶To impose a fine on the innocent is not right,

  or to flog the noble for their integrity.

²⁷One who spares words is knowledgeable;

  one who is cool in spirit has understanding.

²⁸Even fools who keep silent are considered wise;

  when they close their lips, they are deemed intelligent.

18

The one who lives alone is self- indulgent,

  showing contempt for all who have sound judgment.^a

²A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,

  but only in expressing personal opinion.

³When wickedness comes, contempt comes also;

  and with dishonor comes disgrace.

⁴The words of the mouth are deep waters;

  the fountain of wisdom is a gushing stream.

⁵It is not right to be partial to the guilty,

  or to subvert the innocent in judgment.

⁶A fool's lips bring strife,

  and a fool's mouth invites a flogging.

⁷The mouths of fools are their ruin,

  and their lips a snare to themselves.

⁸The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;

  they go down into the inner parts of the body.

⁹One who is slack in work

  is close kin to a vandal.

¹⁰The name of the Lord is a strong tower;

  the righteous run into it and are safe.

¹¹The wealth of the rich is their strong city;

  in their imagination it is like a high wall.

¹²Before destruction one's heart is haughty,

  but humility goes before honor.

¹³If one gives answer before hearing,

  it is folly and shame.

¹⁴The human spirit will endure sickness;

  but a broken spirit—who can bear?

¹⁵An intelligent mind acquires knowledge,

  and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.

¹⁶A gift opens doors;

  it gives access to the great.

¹⁷The one who first states a case seems right,

  until the other comes and cross-examines.

¹⁸Casting the lot puts an end to disputes

  and decides between powerful contenders.

¹⁹An ally offended is stronger than a city;^a

  such quarreling is like the bars of a castle.

²⁰From the fruit of the mouth one's stomach is satisfied;

  the yield of the lips brings satisfaction.

²¹Death and life are in the power of the tongue,

  and those who love it will eat its fruits.

²²He who finds a wife finds a good thing,

  and obtains favor from the Lord.

²³The poor use entreaties,

  but the rich answer roughly.

²⁴Some^b friends play at friendship^c

  but a true friend sticks closer than one's nearest kin.

19

Better the poor walking in integrity

  than one perverse of speech who is a fool.

²Desire without knowledge is not good,

  and one who moves too hurriedly misses the way.

³One's own folly leads to ruin,

  yet the heart rages against the Lord.

⁴Wealth brings many friends,

  but the poor are left friendless.

⁵A false witness will not go unpunished,

  and a liar will not escape.

⁶Many seek the favor of the generous,

  and everyone is a friend to a giver of gifts.

⁷If the poor are hated even by their kin,

  how much more are they shunned by their friends!

When they call after them, they are not there.^d

⁸To get wisdom is to love oneself;

  to keep understanding is to prosper.

⁹A false witness will not go unpunished,

  and the liar will perish.

¹⁰It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury,

  much less for a slave to rule over princes.

¹¹Those with good sense are slow to anger,

  and it is their glory to overlook an offense.

¹²A king's anger is like the growling of a lion,

  but his favor is like dew on the grass.

¹³A stupid child is ruin to a father,

  and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.

¹⁴House and wealth are inherited from parents,

  but a prudent wife is from the Lord.

¹⁵Laziness brings on deep sleep;

  an idle person will suffer hunger.

¹⁶Those who keep the commandment will live;

  those who are heedless of their ways will die.

¹⁷Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord,

  and will be repaid in full.

¹⁸Discipline your children while there is hope;

  do not set your heart on their destruction.

¹⁹A violent tempered person will pay the penalty;

  if you effect a rescue, you will only have to do it again.^d

²⁰Listen to advice and accept instruction,

  that you may gain wisdom for the future.

²¹The human mind may devise many plans,

  but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established.

²²What is desirable in a person is loyalty,

  and it is better to be poor than a liar.

²³The fear of the Lord is life indeed;

  filled with it one rests secure

and suffers no harm.

²⁴The lazy person buries a hand in the dish,

  and will not even bring it back to the mouth.

²⁵Strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence;

  reprove the intelligent, and they will gain knowledge.

²⁶Those who do violence to their father and chase away their mother

  are children who cause shame and bring reproach.

²⁷Cease straying, my child, from the words of knowledge,

  in order that you may hear instruction.

²⁸A worthless witness mocks at justice,

  and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.

²⁹Condemnation is ready for scoffers,

  and flogging for the backs of fools.

20

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler,

  and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.

²The dread anger of a king is like the growling of a lion;

  anyone who provokes him to anger forfeits life itself.

³It is honorable to refrain from strife,

  but every fool is quick to quarrel.

⁴The lazy person does not plow in season;

  harvest comes, and there is nothing to be found.

⁵The purposes in the human mind are like deep water,

  but the intelligent will draw them out.

⁶Many proclaim themselves loyal,

  but who can find one worthy of trust?

⁷The righteous walk in integrity—

  happy are the children who follow them!

⁸A king who sits on the throne of judgment

  winnows all evil with his eyes.

⁹Who can say, “I have made my heart clean;

  I am pure from my sin”?

¹⁰Diverse weights and diverse measures

  are both alike an abomination to the Lord.

¹¹Even children make themselves known by their acts,

  by whether what they do is pure and right.

¹²The hearing ear and the seeing eye—

  the Lord has made them both.

¹³Do not love sleep, or else you will come to poverty;

  open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.

¹⁴“Bad, bad,” says the buyer,

  then goes away and boasts.

¹⁵There is gold, and abundance of costly stones;

  but the lips informed by knowledge are a precious jewel.

¹⁶Take the garment of one who has given surety for a stranger;

  seize the pledge given as surety for foreigners.

¹⁷Bread gained by deceit is sweet,

  but afterward the mouth will be full of gravel.

¹⁸Plans are established by taking advice;

  wage war by following wise guidance.

¹⁹A gossip reveals secrets;

  therefore do not associate with a babbler.

²⁰If you curse father or mother,

  your lamp will go out in utter darkness.

²¹An estate quickly acquired in the beginning

  will not be blessed in the end.

²²Do not say, “I will repay evil”;

  wait for the Lord, and he will help you.

²³Differing weights are an abomination to the Lord,

  and false scales are not good.

²⁴All our steps are ordered by the Lord;

  how then can we understand our own ways?

²⁵It is a snare for one to say rashly, “It is holy,”

  and begin to reflect only after making a vow.

²⁶A wise king winnows the wicked,

  and drives the wheel over them.

²⁷The human spirit is the lamp of the Lord,

  searching every inmost part.

²⁸Loyalty and faithfulness preserve the king,

  and his throne is upheld by righteousness.^a

²⁹The glory of youths is their strength,

  but the beauty of the aged is their gray hair.

³⁰Blows that wound cleanse away evil;

  beatings make clean the innermost parts.

21

The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;

  he turns it wherever he will.

²All deeds are right in the sight of the doer,

  but the Lord weighs the heart.

³To do righteousness and justice

  is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

⁴Haughty eyes and a proud heart—

  the lamp of the wicked—are sin.

⁵The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,

  but everyone who is hasty comes only to want.

⁶The getting of treasures by a lying tongue

  is a fleeting vapor and a snare^b of death.

⁷The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,

  because they refuse to do what is just.

⁸The way of the guilty is crooked,

  but the conduct of the pure is right.

⁹It is better to live in a corner of the housetop

  than in a house shared with a contentious wife.

¹⁰The souls of the wicked desire evil;

  their neighbors find no mercy in their eyes.

¹¹When a scoffer is punished, the simple become wiser;

  when the wise are instructed, they increase in knowledge.

¹²The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked;

  he casts the wicked down to ruin.

¹³If you close your ear to the cry of the poor,

  you will cry out and not be heard.

¹⁴A gift in secret averts anger;

  and a concealed bribe in the bosom, strong wrath.

¹⁵When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous,

  but dismay to evildoers.

¹⁶Whoever wanders from the way of understanding

  will rest in the assembly of the dead.

¹⁷Whoever loves pleasure will suffer want;

  whoever loves wine and oil will not be rich.

¹⁸The wicked is a ransom for the righteous,

  and the faithless for the upright.

¹⁹It is better to live in a desert land

  than with a contentious and fretful wife.

²⁰Precious treasure remains^a in the house of the wise,

  but the fool devours it.

²¹Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness

  will find life^b and honor.

²²One wise person went up against a city of warriors

  and brought down the stronghold in which they trusted.

²³To watch over mouth and tongue

  is to keep out of trouble.

²⁴The proud, haughty person, named “Scoffer,”

  acts with arrogant pride.

²⁵The craving of the lazy person is fatal,

  for lazy hands refuse to labor.

²⁶All day long the wicked covet,^c

  but the righteous give and do not hold back.

²⁷The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;

  how much more when brought with evil intent.

²⁸A false witness will perish,

  but a good listener will testify successfully.

²⁹The wicked put on a bold face,

  but the upright give thought to^d their ways.

³⁰No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel,

  can avail against the Lord.

³¹The horse is made ready for the day of battle,

  but the victory belongs to the Lord.

22

A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,

  and favor is better than silver or gold.

²The rich and the poor have this in common:

  the Lord is the maker of them all.

³The clever see danger and hide;

  but the simple go on, and suffer for it.

⁴The reward for humility and fear of the Lord

  is riches and honor and life.

⁵Thorns and snares are in the way of the perverse;

  the cautious will keep far from them.

⁶Train children in the right way,

  and when old, they will not stray.

⁷The rich rule over the poor,

  and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

⁸Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity,

  and the rod of anger will fail.

⁹Those who are generous are blessed,

  for they share their bread with the poor.

¹⁰Drive out a scoffer, and strife goes out;

  quarreling and abuse will cease.

¹¹Those who love a pure heart and are gracious in speech

  will have the king as a friend.

¹²The eyes of the Lord keep watch over knowledge,

  but he overthrows the words of the faithless.

¹³The lazy person says, “There is a lion outside!

  I shall be killed in the streets!”

¹⁴The mouth of a loose^a woman is a deep pit;

  he with whom the Lord is angry falls into it.

¹⁵Folly is bound up in the heart of a boy,

  but the rod of discipline drives it far away.

¹⁶Oppressing the poor in order to enrich oneself,

  and giving to the rich, will lead only to loss.

¹⁷The words of the wise:

Incline your ear and hear my words,^b

and apply your mind to my teaching;

¹⁸for it will be pleasant if you keep them within you,

  if all of them are ready on your lips.

¹⁹So that your trust may be in the Lord,

  I have made them known to you today—yes, to you.

²⁰Have I not written for you thirty sayings

  of admonition and knowledge,

²¹to show you what is right and true,

  so that you may give a true answer to those who sent you?

²²Do not rob the poor because they are poor,

  or crush the afflicted at the gate;

²³for the Lord pleads their cause

  and despoils of life those who despoil them.

²⁴Make no friends with those given to anger,

  and do not associate with hotheads,

²⁵or you may learn their ways

  and entangle yourself in a snare.

²⁶Do not be one of those who give pledges,

  who become surety for debts.

²⁷If you have nothing with which to pay,

  why should your bed be taken from under you?

²⁸Do not remove the ancient landmark

  that your ancestors set up.

²⁹Do you see those who are skillful in their work?

  They will serve kings;

they will not serve common people.

23

When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

  observe carefully what^c is before you,

²and put a knife to your throat

  if you have a big appetite.

³Do not desire the ruler's^d delicacies,

  for they are deceptive food.

⁴Do not wear yourself out to get rich;

  be wise enough to desist.

⁵When your eyes light upon it, it is gone;

  for suddenly it takes wings to itself,

flying like an eagle toward heaven.

⁶Do not eat the bread of the stingy;

  do not desire their delicacies;

⁷for like a hair in the throat, so are they.^a

  “Eat and drink!” they say to you;

but they do not mean it.

⁸You will vomit up the little you have eaten,

  and you will waste your pleasant words.

⁹Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,

  who will only despise the wisdom of your words.

¹⁰Do not remove an ancient landmark

  or encroach on the fields of orphans,

¹¹for their redeemer is strong;

  he will plead their cause against you.

¹²Apply your mind to instruction

  and your ear to words of knowledge.

¹³Do not withhold discipline from your children;

  if you beat them with a rod, they will not die.

¹⁴If you beat them with the rod,

  you will save their lives from Sheol.

¹⁵My child, if your heart is wise,

  my heart too will be glad.

¹⁶My soul will rejoice

  when your lips speak what is right.

¹⁷Do not let your heart envy sinners,

  but always continue in the fear of the Lord.

¹⁸Surely there is a future,

  and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁹Hear, my child, and be wise,

  and direct your mind in the way.

²⁰Do not be among winebibbers,

  or among gluttonous eaters of meat;

²¹for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,

  and drowsiness will clothe them with rags.

²²Listen to your father who begot you,

  and do not despise your mother when she is old.

²³Buy truth, and do not sell it;

  buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding.

²⁴The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice;

  he who begets a wise son will be glad in him.

²⁵Let your father and mother be glad;

  let her who bore you rejoice.

²⁶My child, give me your heart,

  and let your eyes observe^b my ways.

²⁷For a prostitute is a deep pit;

  an adulteress^c is a narrow well.

²⁸She lies in wait like a robber

  and increases the number of the faithless.

²⁹Who has woe? Who has sorrow?

  Who has strife? Who has complaining?

Who has wounds without cause?

Who has redness of eyes?

³⁰Those who linger late over wine,

  those who keep trying mixed wines.

³¹Do not look at wine when it is red,

  when it sparkles in the cup

and goes down smoothly.

³²At the last it bites like a serpent,

  and stings like an adder.

³³Your eyes will see strange things,

  and your mind utter perverse things.

³⁴You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,

  like one who lies on the top of a mast.^a

³⁵“They struck me,” you will say,^b “but I was not hurt;

  they beat me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake?

I will seek another drink.”

24

Do not envy the wicked,

  nor desire to be with them;

²for their minds devise violence,

  and their lips talk of mischief.

³By wisdom a house is built,

  and by understanding it is established;

⁴by knowledge the rooms are filled

  with all precious and pleasant riches.

⁵Wise warriors are mightier than strong ones,^c

  and those who have knowledge than those who have strength;

⁶for by wise guidance you can wage your war,

  and in abundance of counselors there is victory.

⁷Wisdom is too high for fools;

  in the gate they do not open their mouths.

⁸Whoever plans to do evil

  will be called a mischief-maker.

⁹The devising of folly is sin,

  and the scoffer is an abomination to all.

¹⁰If you faint in the day of adversity,

  your strength being small;

¹¹if you hold back from rescuing those taken away to death,

  those who go staggering to the slaughter;

¹²if you say, “Look, we did not know this”—

  does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?

Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it?

And will he not repay all according to their deeds?

¹³My child, eat honey, for it is good,

  and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste.

¹⁴Know that wisdom is such to your soul;

  if you find it, you will find a future,

and your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁵Do not lie in wait like an outlaw against the home of the righteous;

  do no violence to the place where the righteous live;

¹⁶for though they fall seven times, they will rise again;

  but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.

¹⁷Do not rejoice when your enemies fall,

  and do not let your heart be glad when they stumble,

¹⁸or else the Lord will see it and be displeased,

  and turn away his anger from them.

¹⁹Do not fret because of evildoers.

  Do not envy the wicked;

²⁰for the evil have no future;

  the lamp of the wicked will go out.

²¹My child, fear the Lord and the king,

  and do not disobey either of them;^d

²²for disaster comes from them suddenly,

  and who knows the ruin that both can bring?

²³These also are sayings of the wise:

Partiality in judging is not good.

²⁴Whoever says to the wicked, “You are innocent,”

  will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations;

²⁵but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight,

  and a good blessing will come upon them.

²⁶One who gives an honest answer

  gives a kiss on the lips.

²⁷Prepare your work outside,

  get everything ready for you in the field;

and after that build your house.

²⁸Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause,

  and do not deceive with your lips.

²⁹Do not say, “I will do to others as they have done to me;

  I will pay them back for what they have done.”

³⁰I passed by the field of one who was lazy,

  by the vineyard of a stupid person;

³¹and see, it was all overgrown with thorns;

  the ground was covered with nettles,

and its stone wall was broken down.

³²Then I saw and considered it;

  I looked and received instruction.

³³A little sleep, a little slumber,

  a little folding of the hands to rest,

³⁴and poverty will come upon you like a robber,

  and want, like an armed warrior.

²⁵ These are other proverbs of Solomon that the officials of King Hezekiah of Judah copied.

²It is the glory of God to conceal things,

  but the glory of kings is to search things out.

³Like the heavens for height, like the earth for depth,

  so the mind of kings is unsearchable.

⁴Take away the dross from the silver,

  and the smith has material for a vessel;

⁵take away the wicked from the presence of the king,

  and his throne will be established in righteousness.

⁶Do not put yourself forward in the king's presence

  or stand in the place of the great;

⁷for it is better to be told, “Come up here,”

  than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.

What your eyes have seen

⁸do not hastily bring into court;

  for^a what will you do in the end,

when your neighbor puts you to shame?

⁹Argue your case with your neighbor directly,

  and do not disclose another's secret;

¹⁰or else someone who hears you will bring shame upon you,

  and your ill repute will have no end.

¹¹A word fitly spoken

  is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.

¹²Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold

  is a wise rebuke to a listening ear.

¹³Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest

  are faithful messengers to those who send them;

they refresh the spirit of their masters.

¹⁴Like clouds and wind without rain

  is one who boasts of a gift never given.

¹⁵With patience a ruler may be persuaded,

  and a soft tongue can break bones.

¹⁶If you have found honey, eat only enough for you,

  or else, having too much, you will vomit it.

¹⁷Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor's house,

  otherwise the neighbor will become weary of you and hate you.

¹⁸Like a war club, a sword, or a sharp arrow

  is one who bears false witness against a neighbor.

¹⁹Like a bad tooth or a lame foot

  is trust in a faithless person in time of trouble.

²⁰Like vinegar on a wound^a

  is one who sings songs to a heavy heart.

Like a moth in clothing or a worm in wood,

sorrow gnaws at the human heart.^b

²¹If your enemies are hungry, give them bread to eat;

  and if they are thirsty, give them water to drink;

²²for you will heap coals of fire on their heads,

  and the Lord will reward you.

²³The north wind produces rain,

  and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

²⁴It is better to live in a corner of the housetop

  than in a house shared with a contentious wife.

²⁵Like cold water to a thirsty soul,

  so is good news from a far country.

²⁶Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain

  are the righteous who give way before the wicked.

²⁷It is not good to eat much honey,

  or to seek honor on top of honor.

²⁸Like a city breached, without walls,

  is one who lacks self-control.

26

Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,

  so honor is not fitting for a fool.

²Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,

  an undeserved curse goes nowhere.

³A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

  and a rod for the back of fools.

⁴Do not answer fools according to their folly,

  or you will be a fool yourself.

⁵Answer fools according to their folly,

  or they will be wise in their own eyes.

⁶It is like cutting off one's foot and drinking down violence,

  to send a message by a fool.

⁷The legs of a disabled person hang limp;

  so does a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

⁸It is like binding a stone in a sling

  to give honor to a fool.

⁹Like a thornbush brandished by the hand of a drunkard

  is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

¹⁰Like an archer who wounds everybody

  is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.^a

¹¹Like a dog that returns to its vomit

  is a fool who reverts to his folly.

¹²Do you see persons wise in their own eyes?

  There is more hope for fools than for them.

¹³The lazy person says, “There is a lion in the road!

  There is a lion in the streets!”

¹⁴As a door turns on its hinges,

  so does a lazy person in bed.

¹⁵The lazy person buries a hand in the dish,

  and is too tired to bring it back to the mouth.

¹⁶The lazy person is wiser in self-esteem

  than seven who can answer discreetly.

¹⁷Like somebody who takes a passing dog by the ears

  is one who meddles in the quarrel of another.

¹⁸Like a maniac who shoots deadly firebrands and arrows,

¹⁹so is one who deceives a neighbor

  and says, “I am only joking!”

²⁰For lack of wood the fire goes out,

  and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.

²¹As charcoal is to hot embers and wood to fire,

  so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife.

²²The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels;

  they go down into the inner parts of the body.

²³Like the glaze^b covering an earthen vessel

  are smooth^c lips with an evil heart.

²⁴An enemy dissembles in speaking

  while harboring deceit within;

²⁵when an enemy speaks graciously, do not believe it,

  for there are seven abominations concealed within;

²⁶though hatred is covered with guile,

  the enemy's wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

²⁷Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,

  and a stone will come back on the one who starts it rolling.

²⁸A lying tongue hates its victims,

  and a flattering mouth works ruin.

27

Do not boast about tomorrow,

  for you do not know what a day may bring.

²Let another praise you, and not your own mouth—

  a stranger, and not your own lips.

³A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,

  but a fool's provocation is heavier than both.

⁴Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,

  but who is able to stand before jealousy?

⁵Better is open rebuke

  than hidden love.

⁶Well meant are the wounds a friend inflicts,

  but profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

⁷The sated appetite spurns honey,

  but to a ravenous appetite even the bitter is sweet.

⁸Like a bird that strays from its nest

  is one who strays from home.

⁹Perfume and incense make the heart glad,

  but the soul is torn by trouble.^a

¹⁰Do not forsake your friend or the friend of your parent;

  do not go to the house of your kindred in the day of your calamity.

Better is a neighbor who is nearby

than kindred who are far away.

¹¹Be wise, my child, and make my heart glad,

  so that I may answer whoever reproaches me.

¹²The clever see danger and hide;

  but the simple go on, and suffer for it.

¹³Take the garment of one who has given surety for a stranger;

  seize the pledge given as surety for foreigners.^b

¹⁴Whoever blesses a neighbor with a loud voice,

  rising early in the morning,

will be counted as cursing.

¹⁵A continual dripping on a rainy day

  and a contentious wife are alike;

¹⁶to restrain her is to restrain the wind

  or to grasp oil in the right hand.^c

¹⁷Iron sharpens iron,

  and one person sharpens the wits^d of another.

¹⁸Anyone who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,

  and anyone who takes care of a master will be honored.

¹⁹Just as water reflects the face,

  so one human heart reflects another.

²⁰Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied,

  and human eyes are never satisfied.

²¹The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,

  so a person is tested^e by being praised.

²²Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle

  along with crushed grain,

but the folly will not be driven out.

²³Know well the condition of your flocks,

  and give attention to your herds;

²⁴for riches do not last forever,

  nor a crown for all generations.

²⁵When the grass is gone, and new growth appears,

  and the herbage of the mountains is gathered,

²⁶the lambs will provide your clothing,

  and the goats the price of a field;

²⁷there will be enough goats’ milk for your food,

  for the food of your household

and nourishment for your servant-girls.

28

The wicked flee when no one pursues,

  but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

²When a land rebels

  it has many rulers;

but with an intelligent ruler

there is lasting order.^c

³A ruler^f who oppresses the poor

  is a beating rain that leaves no food.

⁴Those who forsake the law praise the wicked,

  but those who keep the law struggle against them.

⁵The evil do not understand justice,

  but those who seek the Lord understand it completely.

⁶Better to be poor and walk in integrity

  than to be crooked in one's ways even though rich.

⁷Those who keep the law are wise children,

  but companions of gluttons shame their parents.

⁸One who augments wealth by exorbitant interest

  gathers it for another who is kind to the poor.

⁹When one will not listen to the law,

  even one's prayers are an abomination.

¹⁰Those who mislead the upright into evil ways

  will fall into pits of their own making,

but the blameless will have a goodly inheritance.

¹¹The rich is wise in self-esteem,

  but an intelligent poor person sees through the pose.

¹²When the righteous triumph, there is great glory,

  but when the wicked prevail, people go into hiding.

¹³No one who conceals transgressions will prosper,

  but one who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

¹⁴Happy is the one who is never without fear,

  but one who is hard-hearted will fall into calamity.

¹⁵Like a roaring lion or a charging bear

  is a wicked ruler over a poor people.

¹⁶A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor;

  but one who hates unjust gain will enjoy a long life.

¹⁷If someone is burdened with the blood of another,

  let that killer be a fugitive until death;

let no one offer assistance.

¹⁸One who walks in integrity will be safe,

  but whoever follows crooked ways will fall into the Pit.^a

¹⁹Anyone who tills the land will have plenty of bread,

  but one who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.

²⁰The faithful will abound with blessings,

  but one who is in a hurry to be rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To show partiality is not good—

  yet for a piece of bread a person may do wrong.

²²The miser is in a hurry to get rich

  and does not know that loss is sure to come.

²³Whoever rebukes a person will afterward find more favor

  than one who flatters with the tongue.

²⁴Anyone who robs father or mother

  and says, “That is no crime,”

is partner to a thug.

²⁵The greedy person stirs up strife,

  but whoever trusts in the Lord will be enriched.

²⁶Those who trust in their own wits are fools;

  but those who walk in wisdom come through safely.

²⁷Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing,

  but one who turns a blind eye will get many a curse.

²⁸When the wicked prevail, people go into hiding;

  but when they perish, the righteous increase.

29

One who is often reproved, yet

  remains stubborn,

will suddenly be broken beyond healing.

²When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice;

  but when the wicked rule, the people groan.

³A child who loves wisdom makes a parent glad,

  but to keep company with prostitutes is to squander one's substance.

⁴By justice a king gives stability to the land,

  but one who makes heavy exactions ruins it.

⁵Whoever flatters a neighbor

  is spreading a net for the neighbor's feet.

⁶In the transgression of the evil there is a snare,

  but the righteous sing and rejoice.

⁷The righteous know the rights of the poor;

  the wicked have no such understanding.

⁸Scoffers set a city aflame,

  but the wise turn away wrath.

⁹If the wise go to law with fools,

  there is ranting and ridicule without relief.

¹⁰The bloodthirsty hate the blameless,

  and they seek the life of the upright.

¹¹A fool gives full vent to anger,

  but the wise quietly holds it back.

¹²If a ruler listens to falsehood,

  all his officials will be wicked.

¹³The poor and the oppressor have this in common:

  the Lord gives light to the eyes of both.

¹⁴If a king judges the poor with equity,

  his throne will be established forever.

¹⁵The rod and reproof give wisdom,

  but a mother is disgraced by a neglected child.

¹⁶When the wicked are in authority, transgression increases,

  but the righteous will look upon their downfall.

¹⁷Discipline your children, and they will give you rest;

  they will give delight to your heart.

¹⁸Where there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint,

  but happy are those who keep the law.

¹⁹By mere words servants are not disciplined,

  for though they understand, they will not give heed.

²⁰Do you see someone who is hasty in speech?

  There is more hope for a fool than for anyone like that.

²¹A slave pampered from childhood

  will come to a bad end.^a

²²One given to anger stirs up strife,

  and the hothead causes much transgression.

²³A person's pride will bring humiliation,

  but one who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor.

²⁴To be a partner of a thief is to hate one's own life;

  one hears the victim's curse, but discloses nothing.^b

²⁵The fear of others^a lays a snare,

  but one who trusts in the Lord is secure.

²⁶Many seek the favor of a ruler,

  but it is from the Lord that one gets justice.

²⁷The unjust are an abomination to the righteous,

  but the upright are an abomination to the wicked.

³⁰ The words of Agur son of Jakeh. An oracle.

Thus says the man: I am weary, O God,

  I am weary, O God. How can I prevail?^b

²Surely I am too stupid to be human;

  I do not have human understanding.

³I have not learned wisdom,

  nor have I knowledge of the holy ones.^c

⁴Who has ascended to heaven and come down?

  Who has gathered the wind in the hollow of the hand?

Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment?

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is the person's name?

And what is the name of the person's child?

Surely you know!

⁵Every word of God proves true;

  he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

⁶Do not add to his words,

  or else he will rebuke you, and you will be found a liar.

⁷Two things I ask of you;

  do not deny them to me before I die:

⁸Remove far from me falsehood and lying;

  give me neither poverty nor riches;

feed me with the food that I need,

⁹or I shall be full, and deny you,

  and say, “Who is the Lord?”

or I shall be poor, and steal,

and profane the name of my God.

¹⁰Do not slander a servant to a master,

  or the servant will curse you, and you will be held guilty.

¹¹There are those who curse their fathers

  and do not bless their mothers.

¹²There are those who are pure in their own eyes

  yet are not cleansed of their filthiness.

¹³There are those—how lofty are their eyes,

  how high their eyelids lift!—

¹⁴there are those whose teeth are swords,

  whose teeth are knives,

to devour the poor from off the earth,

the needy from among mortals.

¹⁵The leech^d has two daughters;

  “Give, give,” they cry.

Three things are never satisfied;

four never say, “Enough”:

¹⁶Sheol, the barren womb,

  the earth ever thirsty for water,

and the fire that never says, “Enough.”^a

¹⁷The eye that mocks a father

  and scorns to obey a mother

will be pecked out by the ravens of the valley

and eaten by the vultures.

¹⁸Three things are too wonderful for me;

  four I do not understand:

¹⁹the way of an eagle in the sky,

  the way of a snake on a rock,

the way of a ship on the high seas,

and the way of a man with a girl.

²⁰This is the way of an adulteress:

  she eats, and wipes her mouth,

and says, “I have done no wrong.”

²¹Under three things the earth trembles;

  under four it cannot bear up:

²²a slave when he becomes king,

  and a fool when glutted with food;

²³an unloved woman when she gets a husband,

  and a maid when she succeeds her mistress.

²⁴Four things on earth are small,

  yet they are exceedingly wise:

²⁵the ants are a people without strength,

  yet they provide their food in the summer;

²⁶the badgers are a people without power,

  yet they make their homes in the rocks;

²⁷the locusts have no king,

  yet all of them march in rank;

²⁸the lizard^b can be grasped in the hand,

  yet it is found in kings’ palaces.

²⁹Three things are stately in their stride;

  four are stately in their gait:

³⁰the lion, which is mightiest among wild animals

  and does not turn back before any;

³¹the strutting rooster,^c the he-goat,

  and a king striding before^a his people.

³²If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,

  or if you have been devising evil,

put your hand on your mouth.

³³For as pressing milk produces curds,

  and pressing the nose produces blood,

so pressing anger produces strife.

³¹ The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him:

²No, my son! No, son of my womb!

  No, son of my vows!

³Do not give your strength to women,

  your ways to those who destroy kings.

⁴It is not for kings, O Lemuel,

  it is not for kings to drink wine,

or for rulers to desire^a strong drink;

⁵or else they will drink and forget what has been decreed,

  and will pervert the rights of all the afflicted.

⁶Give strong drink to one who is perishing,

  and wine to those in bitter distress;

⁷let them drink and forget their poverty,

  and remember their misery no more.

⁸Speak out for those who cannot speak,

  for the rights of all the destitute.^b

⁹Speak out, judge righteously,

  defend the rights of the poor and needy.

¹⁰A capable wife who can find?

  She is far more precious than jewels.

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her,

  and he will have no lack of gain.

¹²She does him good, and not harm,

  all the days of her life.

¹³She seeks wool and flax,

  and works with willing hands.

¹⁴She is like the ships of the merchant,

  she brings her food from far away.

¹⁵She rises while it is still night

  and provides food for her household

and tasks for her servant-girls.

¹⁶She considers a field and buys it;

  with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

¹⁷She girds herself with strength,

  and makes her arms strong.

¹⁸She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.

  Her lamp does not go out at night.

¹⁹She puts her hands to the distaff,

  and her hands hold the spindle.

²⁰She opens her hand to the poor,

  and reaches out her hands to the needy.

²¹She is not afraid for her household when it snows,

  for all her household are clothed in crimson.

²²She makes herself coverings;

  her clothing is fine linen and purple.

²³Her husband is known in the city gates,

  taking his seat among the elders of the land.

²⁴She makes linen garments and sells them;

  she supplies the merchant with sashes.

²⁵Strength and dignity are her clothing,

  and she laughs at the time to come.

²⁶She opens her mouth with wisdom,

  and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

²⁷She looks well to the ways of her household,

  and does not eat the bread of idleness.

²⁸Her children rise up and call her happy;

  her husband too, and he praises her:

²⁹“Many women have done excellently,

  but you surpass them all.”

³⁰Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,

  but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

³¹Give her a share in the fruit of her hands,

  and let her works praise her in the city gates.

1.1–9.18: The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel. 1.1–7: Title and Prologue. 1: Solomon, see Introduction. 2–6: The book's aims and audience. 2: Instruction (Heb “musar”), authoritative verbal or physical correction or warning. 3: Righteousness, justice, and equity, encompass honest and just behaviors (cf. 2.9). 4: Proverbs, like many ancient Near Eastern wisdom texts, is intended primarily for young men approaching adulthood. Simple … young are naïve and prone to foolishness, but teachable. 5: Let the wise … discerning summons advanced students to study the book. 6: Figure, crafted speech, perhaps a poem or parable (Hab 2.6; Sir 47.17); riddles, puzzling speech that requires skill to decipher (e.g., Judg 14.14–19). 7: The book's motto. Fear of the Lord is reverence for and obedience to God that motivates virtuous behavior and fosters individual and communal well-being (e.g., 2.5; 8.13; 9.10; 10.27; 14.2,26–27; 15.16,33; 16.6). The expression frames chs 1–9 (1.7; 9.10) and the book as a whole (31.30). Beginning (Heb “reʾshit”) can be understood temporally (i.e., starting point) and qualitatively (i.e., best expression). Thus wisdom begins with and leads to fear of the Lord.

1.8–19: Warning about a street gang. 8–9: Chapters 1–9 are a father's instructions to his son(s), the setting of most ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature and several other proverbs in the book (19.27; 23.15–16,19; 24.13,21; 27.11; cf. Eccl 12.12). Your mother's teaching (cf. 6.20) makes clear this is household education. The father begins most instructions with a call to attention (e.g., 3.1–2,21–22; 4.1–2,20–22; 5.1–2,7; 6.20; 7.1–3,24). 9: Fair garland … pendants. Wisdom is described frequently as an adornment for the body, suggesting its value and beauty; adornments may also represent and remind the wearer of important commitments (e.g., 3.1,21–22; 4.9; 6.20–21; 7.1–3; Sir 6.29–31). See similar language for the commandments (e.g., Deut 6.6–8; Ex 13.9). 10: Sinners, lit., “those who miss the mark” and stray from wise paths. 12: Sheol … Pit, also called Abaddon (“Destruction,” cf. 15.11), the underworld and realm of the dead, characterized by an insatiable hunger for human life (e.g., 27.20; 30.15–16; cf. Hab 2.5; Isa 5.14). 14: Lot, a stone or dice cast to divide spoils (16.33; 18.18; e.g., Ps 22.18) and a metaphor for fate (e.g., Ps 16.5; Isa 57.6). 15: Way … paths, a metaphor for a pattern of behavior, one's course in life. Chapters 1–9 distinguish between two kinds of paths: the way of wisdom/righteousness/life and the way of folly/wickedness/death (e.g., 2.8–9,12–13,15,18–20; 3.6,17,23). 17: A two-line proverb. The bird can represent the youth, who should now recognize and avoid the gang's trap, and the gang, who spread and bait the net only to plunge into it. 18–19: Such is the end, wickedness is self-destructive (e.g., 5.22–23). Gain, profits acquired unjustly (e.g., 15.27; 28.16; Ex 18.21; 1 Sam 8.3). Proverbs is always suspicious of quick money (e.g., 13.11; 28.20,22; 21.6).

1.20–33: Wisdom's first speech. Wisdom, personified as a woman, cries out in the street … the squares … the busiest corner … the entrance of the city gates, the hub of city life. City gates and nearby squares would bustle with merchants and people coming and going, while elders arbitrated matters of justice (e.g., Deut 21.19; 25.7; Ruth 4.1–12). Wisdom here resembles a prophet; she calls to a specific community, and announces and justifies judgment against it (e.g., Jer 7; 20; Zech 7). See also 3.13–20; 4.1–9; 5.15–20; 7.4–5; 8.1–9.6. 22: Simple, see 1.4n. Scoffers are arrogant and mock anyone who tries to teach them (e.g., 9.7–8; 13.1; 14.6; 15.12; 21.4). Fools are thickheaded and rely on their misguided wits (e.g., 14.16; 28.26; 29.11). Wisdom challenges the confused affections of all three. 23: Reproof, a critical rebuke intended to change a person's behavior; a valued form of instruction in Proverbs (e.g., 1.30; 3.11; 5.12; 12.1; 15.5,31–32; 29.1). 28: Seek … find, a motif for the search for wisdom (e.g., 2.4–5; 3.13; 8.17,35). 31–33: Eat the fruit of their way, a frequent metaphor for the act-consequence or retributive worldview (e.g., 13.2; 14.14; 18.20–21).

2.1–22: Search for wisdom. A twenty-two-line chapter, the number of letters in the Hebrew alphabet (cf. 31.10–31), that describes the search for wisdom as a process of collaboration: if the youth seeks wisdom wholeheartedly, then God grants it, and the youth enjoys wisdom's advantages. 1–4: The search. 2: Heart (Heb “leb”), the inner self, seat of cognition (i.e., the mind) and emotion, the conscience (e.g., v. 10; 3.1; 4.4; 16.23; 23.33). 4: Comparison of wisdom favorably to silver and other precious metals, hidden treasures, and jewels signals its rarity and surpassing value (e.g., 3.14–15; 8.10–11,19; cf. Job 28.15–19). 5–11: Wisdom is divine gift. 5: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Knowledge of God, recognizing God's ways and conducting oneself accordingly (cf. 9.10; Hos 4.1–2; 6.6; Jer 22.16; Isa 58.2). 6: From God's mouth, the gift or spirit of discernment and understanding (cf. Job 22.22; 32.8; Sir 6.18–37; 11.15; 24.3). 8–9: Paths … way, see 1.15n. Righteousness, justice, and equity, see 1.3n. 10: Heart, see v. 2; soul (Heb “nephesh”), the throat and windpipe, seat of appetites, emotions, and desires (e.g., 3.22; 21.10; Song 1.7; 3.1; 6.12; Job 30.25). 12–19: Wisdom's protection. 16–19: The first description of the “strange” woman (5.1–23; 6.20–35; 7.1–27; 9.13–18; cf. 22.14; 23.27). The father identifies her as “other” without saying exactly what makes her so. 16: Loose (Heb “zarah”), an outsider to family or community, often considered threatening or forbidden (e.g., Deut 25.5; Hos 7.8–9; Isa 29.5; Jer 2.25). Adulteress (Heb “nokriyyah”), lit., a foreigner, usually a non-Israelite, but possibly anyone outside of one's family (e.g., Deut 17.15; Judg 19.12; Gen 31.15). Smooth, i.e., flattering but false, cf. 5.3; 6.24; 7.21. 17: Partner of her youth … sacred covenant may refer to her husband and marriage agreement (cf. Mal 2.14), and to God and divine law (cf. Jer 3.4; Deut 31.26; Josh 3.3). 18: Shades, the dead who inhabit Sheol (see 1.12n.). 21–22: The land, a specific region (e.g., the Promised Land, Deut 4.10), the world (Isa 18.3), or “this world” (i.e., the land of the living, Ps 37.8–11). 22: Treacherous, i.e., deceptive and unreliable (11.3,6; translated faithless in 21.18; 22.12; 25.19).

3.1–35: The sages’ worldview. The chapter highlights how the sages understand the world to work, namely, that by God's wisdom, God created the world, giving it shape, meaningful order, and coherence that God continues to uphold. The wise and righteous align themselves with God's wisdom and flourish as a result; the foolish and wicked suffer and are expelled eventually from the world. Should the wicked prosper from time to time, as they do, it is an exception and not the rule (e.g., 10:1–2n.). 1–12: Trust and honor God, six two-verse commands. 2: Length of days and years of life, wisdom is associated with health and longevity (e.g., 3.18; 8.25; 9.11). 3: Loyalty and faithfulness is God's toward the youth (cf., Gen 24.27; Ruth 2.20). On instruction as adornment, see 1.9n. Write … on the tablet of your heart, make the teachings indelibly part of oneself; see 2.2n.; Jer 31.33–34. 7: Wise in your own eyes, overly confident about one's insight, self-deluded (cf. 26.5,16; 28.11,26; Isa 5.21; Jer 9.23–24). The wise are humble (e.g., 11.2; 15.33; 18.12; 22.4; Sir 3.17–24). 8: Refreshment for your body, lit., “drink for your bones.” Moist bones signify vitality (e.g., Job 21.23–24; Isa 58.11); dry bones denote despair (17.22; Ezek 37.1–14). 9–10: Israel dedicated the first fruits of harvest to God in thanksgiving (Ex 23.15–16,19; Lev 23.9–14; Deut 26.1–11). Mention of religious practices and festivals is rare in Proverbs but frequent in other ancient Near Eastern wisdom literature.

3.13–20: Tribute to Wisdom framed by the word happy (Heb “ʾashre”), i.e., fortunate or blessed (vv. 13,18). Happy proverbs or beatitudes commend an attribute or experience by observing the well-being of its possessor (e.g., 8.32,34; 28.14; Job 5.17; Ps 1.1–3; Mt 5.3–11; Lk 6.20–23). 14–15: Silver … gold … jewels, see 2.4n. 16: In her right hand … left hand evokes Egyptian depictions of gods holding symbols of their blessings. Maat, goddess of truth and justice, holds in one hand a scepter that represents prosperity and honor and, in the other, the ankh or symbol of life. 18: Tree of life, a mythological image in the ancient Near East. Typically, the tree is in bloom with animals or people gathered around it to revere, touch, or eat from it. In the Hebrew Bible, the tree of life appears only in Proverbs and in Genesis in the garden of Eden (Gen 2.9; 3.22–24). Proverbs identifies the tree with other sources of well-being, including righteous speech (11.30), a fulfilled desire (13.12), and a gentle tongue (15.4). Revelation 22.2 attributes healing properties to the tree of life in the city of God's new creation. 19–20: Wisdom as the instrument or agent by which God created the world; see 8.22–31; Ps 104.24; Jer 10.12; 51.15.

3.21–35: Wisdom's benefits, five prohibitions, and different fates. 21–26: Wisdom's security (e.g., 1.33; 2.7–8; 4.11–12). 22: Adornment, see 1.9n. 23: Way, see 1.15n. Fools and the wicked stumble on their paths (e.g., 1.10–19; 4.19; 5.22). 25: Panic … storm, see 1.26–27; Isa 47.11. 27–32: Five prohibitions about how not to treat others. 32: Abomination to the Lord, what God loathes, often wrongs that go unnoticed and for which reparations are difficult to obtain (e.g., false weights and measures [11.1; 20.10,23], lying [12.22)], scoffing [24.9], and corrupting justice [17.15]). 33–35: Fates of the wicked and upright. 33: House, variously the structure, its inhabitants, all of a person's property, and descendants (e.g., Gen 7.1; 1 Sam 27.3). 34: Humility, see 3.7n.

4.1–9: Get Wisdom. The father recalls his father's instruction. 1: Children (lit., “sons”), the address of more than one son occurs occasionally in chs 1–9 (5.7; 7.24; 8.32–33). 5,7: Get (Heb “qanah”), i.e., to buy with cash or exchange of goods (e.g., 17.16; Gen 47.19). The verb also refers to marriage (Ruth 4.5,10). Most marriages in the ancient Near East were negotiated as business arrangements between two families. 6–8: Do not forsake … love … embrace depicts Wisdom as a beloved wife (5.15–20; 7.4; cf. 31.10–31). 9: Garland … crown, symbols of favor, authority, and marriage (cf. Isa 61.10; 62.3; Song 3.11). On Wisdom as adornment, see 1.9n.

4.10–19: Two paths. 11: Way … paths, see 1.15n. 13: She is your life. Reference to the masculine noun instruction (see 1.2n.) in the feminine suggests it is a name for Wisdom (cf. 4.6–8). 17: Eat … drink, what people consume, literally and metaphorically, reveals their character (e.g., 9.5,17; 23.3,6; 31.27; cf. Job 15.16; 34.7). 18–19: Light … dark reinforces the contrast between the two paths, as do hazards on the way of the wicked (cf. Job 18.8–11).

4.20–27: Anatomy of the wise features five organs of the body particularly important in Proverbs: ears, eyes, heart, mouth, and feet. 23: Heart, see 2.2n.

5.1–14: The “strange” woman see 2.16–19. 3: Honey, a sweetener and an antibiotic in medicines and ointments; symbolic for sensual delight and enlightenment (e.g., 5.3; 16.24; 24.13; 25.16,27; Sir 24.20; cf. 1 Sam 14.24–30). Her speech initially resembles a lover's, delightfully sweet and smooth (e.g., Song 4.11; 5.16; 7.9). 4: Wormwood, a bitter plant (e.g., Jer 9.15; 23.15; Lam 3.19; Am 6.12). 5: Sheol, see 1.12n. 6: Path … ways, see 1.15n. Fools and the wicked are willfully oblivious to where they are going (e.g., 4.19; 12.15). 9–10: Others … alien, undeserving “others” not in the youth's family.

5.15–23: The wife of your youth described as water and waterworks, metaphors for female lovers in ancient Near Eastern love poetry (e.g., Song 4.12,15). Eating and drinking are metaphors for sex (9.17). Later wisdom texts identify Wisdom as the wife of one's youth (e.g., Sir 15.2–3; Wis 8.2). 15: Cistern, a reservoir to store runoff rainwater. 16–17: Scattered abroad … in the streets, a warning that the husband must be sexually exclusive with his wife or risk that she will not remain his alone (e.g., Job 31.9–10; Sir 25.25). 19–20: Deer … doe, animal imagery for lovers is common in ancient love poetry (e.g., Song 2.9,17; 4.5; 7.3). 21: Eyes of the Lord, see 15.3; 22.12; Zech 4.10. 22–23: See 1.10–19.

6.1–19: Admonitions. 1–5: Caution against providing surety (i.e., guaranteeing loans). Proverbs regards the practice as too risky, particularly when the debtor is a stranger (11.15; 17.18; 20.16; 22.26–27; but cf. Sir 8.13). 4: Cf. Ps 132.4. 6–8: Go to the ant, one of many proverbs that teach by observing the natural world (e.g., 30.18–19,24–28,29–31; Job 12.7–9; cf. 1 Kings 4.33). 9–11: Warnings about laziness (vs. diligence) are frequent in book (10.4,26; 12.24,27; 13.4; 15.19; 18.9; 19.15,24; 20.4; 21.25; 22.13; 24.30–34; 26.13–16). 12–15: Caution about the scoundrel, a person of questionable character. 13: Body language reveals character. Winking the eyes, i.e., regarding others with envy or hatred (Ps 35.19), or squinting while scheming trouble (10.10; 16.30). 16–19: Six … seven, a numerical proverb (see 30.1–33n.) about abominations to God (see 3.32n.). 17: Haughty eyes indicate arrogance (e.g., 21.4; 30.13). Hands that shed innocent blood, i.e., commit murder (e.g., Deut 19.10–13; 21.1–9; Jer 7.5–7). Heart, see 2.2n.

6.20–35: Warning against adultery defined in ancient Israel as sex between an engaged or married woman and any man who is not her husband. 20: Father … mother, see 1.8–9n. 21: On Wisdom as adornment, see 1.9n. 22: They, lit., “she.” Parental instructions are personified as a woman who cares for her companion constantly (e.g., 4.6). 23: Teaching as a lamp … light recalls the psalmist's similar description of God's word (Ps 119.105). 24–26,29: The “strange” woman (see 2.16n.) is described as “the evil woman” (see textual note a, on the next page) and another's wife. 25: Capture you with her eyelashes. A woman who “traps” her lover with her eyes and hair is a trope in ancient Near Eastern love poetry (e.g., Song 7.5; cf. Sir 26.9). 26: Comparison of a notably low prostitute's fee (less than in Gen 38.17; cf. Sir 26.22) to the high cost of adultery suggests the warning is not about sex principally but the damage done by adultery to family and community, especially in patrilineal cultures (i.e., those tracing descent through the male line) like ancient Israel. Adultery raises questions about paternity and risks the passing of the family inheritance to illegitimate heirs. Deut 22.22 and Lev 20.10 designate adultery a capital offense. 29–32: Sevenfold, an extreme penalty for a petty thief (cf. Ex 22.1–4,7). 33–35: Jealousy drives the wronged husband to physically and unrelentingly attack the adulterer; see 27.4.

7.1–27: Another warning about the “strange” woman (see 2.16–22; 5.1–23; 6.20–35). 2: The apple of your eye or pupil, the center and means of vision, a metaphor for what one loves and protects (e.g., Deut 32.10; Ps 17.8). 3: On teaching as adornment, see 1.9n. 4: Sister, a term of endearment for a female lover in ancient Near Eastern love poetry (e.g., Song 4.9–10,12; 5.1–2). 5: Loose … adulteress, see 2.16n. 6: Peering through a window … lattice with expectation or curiosity (Gen 26.8; Judg 5.28; 2 Sam 6.16; 2 Kings 9.30–32). 7: Simple … youths, see 1.4n. 8–9: Twilight … evening, when people still move about the city. Night and darkness, when people, including lovers, can move discreetly and conceal themselves (e.g., Gen 30.15–17; Song 3.1–4; Job 24.15). 10: Decked out like a prostitute, perhaps she covers her face with a veil (Gen 38.14–15; cf. Job 24.15). 11: Loud, see 9.13. Feet, perhaps a play on words, since feet is a euphemism for genitalia (e.g., Deut 28.57; Ezek 16.25). 12: Street … squares, the woman and Wisdom frequent the same places; see 1.20–21; 8.2–3; 9.3,14. 14–20: Her invitation. 14: Sacrifices … vows suggests she is pious and honest (e.g., Pss 50.14; 66.13; Isa 19.21; Jon 2.9). Sacrifices of well-being (so Hebrew, cf. Lev 7.15–17; 19.5) implies she has fresh meat for dinner, a rarity (see 9.2n.); to eat with her helps her to fulfill her religious obligation. 16–17: Her bed is thick with luxurious fabrics and sensual aromas: linen from Egypt (e.g., Isa 3.23; Ezek 16.10,13); myrrh, an aromatic resin (Ps 45.9; Song 1.13; 4.14; 5.5,13); aloe from India; and cinnamon from Sri Lanka (Ex 30.23; Song 4.14). 18: Take our fill, eating and drinking are metaphors for sex (cf. 9.17; 30.20; Song 5.1). 21: Smooth talk, see 5.1n. 24: Children, see 4.1n. 27: Sheol, see 1.12n.

8.1–36: Wisdom's self-revelation. The most developed poem about Wisdom in chs 1–9 (see 1.20–33; 3.13–18; 4.5–9; 7.4–5). Compare Sir 24.1–22; Wis 7.7–10.18. 2–3: Heights, perhaps the elevated administrative section of ancient cities (cf. 9.3,14). Way … crossroads … gates, see 1.20–21n. 4–5: She calls first to everyone (people … all who live) and then, as in 1.22, to the simple (see 1.4n.) and fools (you who lack it). 6–11: The integrity of Wisdom's speech. 7: Abomination (i.e., something loathed); see 3.32n. 10–11: See 2.4n. 12–14: Wisdom's character. 13: Fear of the Lord, see. 1.7n. Her affections mirror God's. 15–16: Wisdom inspires all just government; see 16.12–13n.; cf. Solomon's prayer for wisdom (1 Kings 3.6–15). 17: Love … seek … find, she reciprocates affection and is accessible to those who search for her (in contrast, see Job 28). 18–21: Wisdom's benefits. 19: See 2.4n. 20: Way … paths, see 1.15n. 22–31: Wisdom, God, and creation (see 3.19–20). Wisdom is clear that she was with God at creation, but the exact nature of their relationship and her role is uncertain. 22: The meaning of the Heb verb (“qanah”) translated created is debated. Usually translated “to acquire” (see 4.5,7n.), it can also mean “to create,” particularly when God is the subject (e.g., Gen 14.19; Deut 32.6; Ps 139.13). 23: Set up is likewise contested, perhaps “poured out” (Heb “nasak”), as with the anointing of a king (see Ps 2.6), or “woven, formed” (Heb “sakak”), as in knit together (see Ps 139.13; Job 10.11). 24: Depths, i.e., the primeval ocean (Gen 1.2). 27: Circle on the face of the deep, i.e., the horizon. 28–29: Cf. Job 38.8–10; Ps 104.9. 30: Master worker (Heb “ʾamon”) is also unclear. Alternative translations are “faithful one” and “nurtured one, child.” 32: My children, see 1.8–9n. 34: At my gates … my doors, where a lover waits expectantly for his beloved in ancient Near Eastern love poetry (e.g., Song 2.9; Sir 14.20,22–25).

9.1–6: Wisdom's house and invitation. To build a house(hold) is a mark of wisdom, see 14.1n.; 24.3. 1: Seven pillars, a round number that connotes many, completeness (e.g., 6.16–19; 24.16; 26.16). 2: Slaughtered her animals … mixed her wine. Meat was a delicacy reserved for special occasions; see Gen 18.7–8; 43.16; 1 Sam 25.2–35. Wine was mixed with spices; see 9.5; Song 8.2. 3: Highest places, see 8.2n. 4: Simple, see 1.4n.; 1.22. 5: Immaturity is described as an impediment one can choose to discard, see 1.22n.

9.7–12: Counsel for teachers. 7–8: Scoffer, see 1.22n. 10: Reiteration of the book's motto; see 1.7n. 11: By me, first-person-singular speech suggests that this is a misplaced conclusion to wisdom's invitation (vv. 1–6; cf. 8.15–16). Days … years, see 3.2n.

9.13–18: Folly's house and invitation. 14: High places, see 8.2n. She and Wisdom are in many of the same places; see v. 3. 16: The first line of her invitation is identical to Wisdom's (v. 4). Simple, see 1.4n. 17: Stolen water, a metaphor for a woman who is engaged or married to another man; see 5.15–23n. Eating and drinking are metaphors for sex (cf. 7.18; 30.20; Song 5.1). 18: Dead, see 2.18n. Sheol, see 1.12n.

10.1–22.16: The proverbs of Solomon. Comprised predominantly of two-line proverbs, the oldest section of Proverbs can be divided into 10.1–15.33, which features antithetical proverbs, and 16.1–22.16, which includes a mix of proverbial forms. 10.1: Proverbs of Solomon, see Introduction. Many proverbs name the effects of wise and foolish sons (NRSV “child”) on their parents (e.g., 17.21,25; 19.26; 23.15–16,24–25; 27.11; 28.7; 29.3). 2–3: In the sages’ worldview, the wise and righteous align themselves with God's wisdom and flourish as a result. The foolish and wicked suffer and are expelled eventually from the world; see v. 30; 11.4; 12.3,7; cf. Job 21.18; 27.13–23; Ps 1.4. 2: Unjust gain, see 1.18–9n. 4: Laziness, see 6.9–11n. 5: See v. 1n.; cf. 6.6–8. 6: Blessings … on the head reveal favor; cf. 11.26; Gen 49.26; Deut 33.16. 7: The sages emphasize the value of a good name in life and after death, see 22.1; Eccl 7.1; Job 18.13,15–19; Sir 41.11–13; cf. Isa 56.5; Ps 112.6. 8: Fools talk and refuse to listen, see v. 14; 12.23; cf. Eccl 10.12–14a. 9: Walks … ways, see 1.15n. 10: Winks the eye, see 6.13n. 11: Fountain of life, a metaphor for the mouth (i.e., speech) of the righteous, wise teaching (13.14), fear of the Lord (14.27; see 1.7n.), and wisdom (16.22). 13: Rod, physical discipline was part of ancient Near Eastern education (e.g., 13.24; 17.10; 19.29; 22.15; 23.13; 26.3). 15: Wealth and poverty are important and complicated topics in Proverbs. Wealth can be an unqualified benefit (e.g., v. 22; 22.4; 24.3–4) and a liability (e.g., 11.4,28; cf. Eccl 5.13–16; 6.1–2). The sages at times attribute poverty to laziness (e.g., v. 4; 6.9–11n.; 12.24; 20.13; 24.33–34), but elsewhere point to violence, extortion, and deceit (e.g., 11.1,16; 13.23; 21.6). 17: Instruction, see 1.2n. Path, see 1.15n. 18–20: Wise versus foolish speech is a persistent theme, e.g., vv. 6,11. 20: Choice silver, see 8.19n. A tongue is the shape of a bar of precious metal (e.g., Josh 7.21,24). 24–25: See 10.2–3n. 26: Lazy, see 6.9–11n. 27: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. 30: See 2.21–22n.

11.1: Justice in the marketplace requires use of reliable weights and measures; see 16.11; 20.10,23; cf. Lev 19.35–36; Deut 25.13–16; Am 8.5; Mic 6.1–11; Ezek 45.10; Hos 12.7. Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 2: Pride precedes a fall, cf. 16.18; 18.3,12. Humility, see 3.7n. 3–8: Fates of the righteous and the wicked; see 10.2–3n. 3: Treacherous, see 2.22n. 4: See 10.2. Day of wrath, when God judges all nations and exacts punishment on a cosmic scale (Job 21.30; Zeph 1.15,18; Ezek 7.19; cf. Ps 49.7). 9–11: Effects of the righteous and wicked on others, cf. 28.12; 29.2. 12–13: Silence as smart, in contrast to belittling and gossiping about others (e.g., 25.9–10). 13: Gossip, see 16.28n. 14: Wise, strategic advice can be a matter of survival, see 15.22; 20.18; 24.6. 15: See 6.1–5n. 16: MT juxtaposes lines a and d for the comparison of a gracious woman with aggressive men; NRSV follows the Septuagint, which adds lines b and c. 18–19,21: See 10.2–3n. 20: Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 22: Pig, considered an unclean animal (see Deut 14.8). 24–25: A paradox of generosity, cf. Eccl 11.1–2. 26: Those who hold back grain, wealthy landholders or officials who regulate food distribution and hold back for more profit (e.g., Gen 42.6; Deut 2.28; Am 8.5–6). Blessing on the head, see 10.6n. 28: On the righteous as flourishing trees, see v. 30; Pss 1.3; 92.12–14. 29: House, see 3.33n. 30: Tree of life, see 3.18n.; cf. v. 28.

12:1: The objects of affections matter; see 1.22n. Discipline (see 1.2n.), one form of which is reproof (see 1.23n.). 2–3: See 10.2–3n. Root of the righteous, see 11.28n. 4: Good wife, lit., “woman of substance” (Heb “ʾeshet ḥayil”; see 31.3n.,10–31). Several proverbs encourage finding such a wife; see 14.1; 19.14; 18.22. Crown, a symbol of dignity; used elsewhere to describe wisdom and her benefits (4.9; 14.24; cf. Sir 6.31), gray hair (16.31), and grandchildren (17.6). Bones, see 3.8n. 6: See 1.10–19. 7: See 10.2–3n. 9: Heb “qalah” (be despised) usually means “to be of little account, lightly esteemed” (e.g., Isa 3.5; 16.14). One of many “better than” or relative proverbs (e.g., 15.16–17; 16.8,19,32; 17.1,12; 19.1,22; 21.9,19; 22.1; 25.24; 27.5,10c; 28.6); cf. Eccl 4.6,13; 7.1–3; 9.4; Sir 10.27. 10: See 27.23–27n.; cf. Ex 23.12; Deut 22.6; 25.4. 11: See 28.19; for a different claim, cf. 13.23. 12: Root of the righteous, see 11.28n. 13: See 10.2–3n. 14: Words and thoughts were thought to be stored in the belly; hence descriptions of speech as fruit or food; see 13.2; 18.8 (=26.22), 20–21. 15: See 3.7n. 16: Many proverbs urge self-restraint and patience, particularly with regard to anger (14.17,29; 15.18; 17.27; 19.11; 25.15,28). 17: Honest evidence … false witness, one of many proverbs that urge telling the truth in everyday and legal settings; see 6.19; 14.5,25; 19.5,9; 21.28; 24.28; 25.18. 18: Speech as a weapon, cf. 25.18; 26.18–19; 30.14. 22: Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 24: Diligent … lazy, see 6.9–11n. 25: Anxiety and the need for good cheer, cf. 15.13; 17.22; 18.14. Heart, see 2.2n.

13.1 Discipline, see 1.2n. Scoffer, see 1.22n. 2: See 12.14n. 4: Lazy … diligent, see 10.4n. 7–8: Ironies about wealth and poverty, see 10.15n. 9: Lamp, a metaphor for life (e.g., 20.20; 24.20; Job 18.5–6). 11: Wealth hastily gotten, see 1.18–19n. 12: Tree of life, see 3.18n. 13: See 10.2–3n.; cf. v. 18. 14: Fountain of life, see 10.11n. 15: Faithless, see 2.22n. 17: Messengers were essential and highly valued in the ancient world. People relied on them to represent and communicate for them across vast distances, see 22.21; 25.13; 26.6. 18: See v. 13. 19: See v. 12. Soul, see 2.10n. 21–22: Punishment and reward extend to future generations; see Job 27.3–18. 23: Poverty, see 10.15n. 24: Rod, see 10.13n.

14.1: A wise woman who builds a house complements proverbs about the good wife (see 12.4n.), and evokes Wisdom (9.1–6) and the woman of substance (31.10–31; cf. 14.1). 2: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. 3: In the fool's mouth is a rod of pride (so Hebrew) that can harm others (cf. 10.31). 4: Oxen, draft animals in the ancient Near East. Farmers used wooden-frame plows pulled by oxen to plow the fields (cf. Deut 22.10; 1 Kings 19.19). 5: Faithful witness, see 12.17n. 6: Scoffer, see 1.22n. Surprisingly here the scoffer seeks wisdom (cf. 1.28). 9: Guilt offering, see Lev 5.14–6.1–7. 10,13: Heart, see 2.22n. 11: See 10.2–3n. 12: See 16.25. 13: Incongruities like joy and pain can coexist, (e.g., Eccl 7.1–4). 15: Simple, see 1.4n. 17: Quick-tempered, see 12.16n. 18–19: Esteem brought by wisdom. 18: On wisdom as adornment, see 1.9n. Crowned, see 12.4n. 20–21: One proverb about common social reactions to the rich and poor (v. 20), and a second that condemns it (v. 21; see 10.15n.; cf. v. 31; 17.5; 22.22; 29.13). 24: Crown, see 12.4n. 26–27: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Fountain of life, see 10.11n. 28: The first of many proverbs about kings (e.g., 14.35; 16.10,12–15; 19.12; 20.2,8,26,28). 29: Anger, see 12.16n. 30: Bones, see 3.8n. 31: That everyone shares the same creator motivates respect for and generosity to the poor; see 17.5; 19.17; 21.13; 22.2; 29.13 (cf. 22.16; 28.27).

15.1,4: Gentle speech, see 25.15n. 3: Eyes of the Lord, see 5.21n. 4: Tree of life, see 3.18n. 8–9: Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 8: Proverbs refers rarely to worship and rituals; see v. 29; 3.9–10; 7.14; 15.29; 21.3,27; 28.9. 11: Sheol and Abaddon, see 1.12n. Heart, see 2.22n. 12: Scoffers, see 1.22n. 16–17: Better than, see 12.9n. Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Meat was a rare delicacy; see 9.2. 18: Anger, see 12.16n. 19: Path … way, see 1.15n. 20: See 10.1n. 22: See 11.14n. 23: An apt answer (i.e., fitting for the time); see 25.11–12n.; cf. Eccl 3.1–9. 24: Sheol, see 1.12n. 25: Moving boundary stones that marked the ownership of land was illegal; see 22.28; 23.10–11; 25.25; Deut 19.14; 27.17; Isa 5.8; Hos 5.10. On divine protection of widows, among the most vulnerable members of society, see Pss 68.5; 146.9. Light to the eyes, see 15.30n. 26: Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 27: Unjust gain, see 1.18–19n. Bribes, see 17.8n. 30: Refreshes the body, lit., “fattens the bones,” see 3.8n. 33: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Humility is a prerequisite for honor; see 3.7n.

16.1–9: Proverbs about God's sovereignty. 1: Mind (see 2.2n.) and tongue are connected intimately (e.g., 10.20; 16.23; 17.20); see v. 9. 2: Ways, see 1.15n. In one's own eyes, see 3.7n. Spirit (Heb “ruaḥ”), lit., “breath,” a person's temperament (cf. 1.23; 15.13; 18.14). The Lord weighs, i.e., examines (21.2; 24.12; cf. 17.3). 4: Its purpose, i.e., when God has need of it; see Sir 39.16–35. 5: Arrogant, see 3.7n. Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 6: Loyalty and faithfulness, see 3.33; 14.22. Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. 8: Better than, see 12.9n. 9: See v. 1. 10–15: Proverbs about the king. 11: Balances … scales, see 11.1n. 12–13: Abomination to kings, i.e., they loathe it. Kings were responsible for establishing and maintaining justice (e.g., 20.8; 25.5; 29.4, 14). 14: The king's wrath was ferocious and potentially devastating (cf. 14.35; 19.12; 20.2; 24.21–22). 15: Spring rain to nourish the first crops was considered a blessing from God (Deut 11.14; Joel 2.23; cf. Jer 3.3). 16–24: Various virtues. 16: Gold … silver, see 2.4n. 18–19: See 11.2n. 21: Pleasant speech, lit., “sweet lips”; see v. 24. Contrast the strange woman's flattering speech (see 2.16n.; 5.3; 7.5,22). 22: Fountain of life, see 10.11n. 24: Soul, see 2.10n. 25: See 14.12. 26: The relentless press of hunger, see Eccl 6.7. 27–30: Three dangerous types of people (cf. 6.12–19). 27: Scoundrel, see 6.12–15. Scorching speech, see 26.18–19. 28: Whisperer, i.e., a gossip; see 11.13; 17.9; 18.8; 20.19; 26.22; Sir 27.16–21. 30: Body language hints at character. Winks the eyes, see 6.13n. 31: Crown, see 12.4n. 32: See 14.29n. 33: Lot, see 1.14n.

17.1: Better than, see 12.9n.; cf. 15.16–17. 2: Wisdom can upset household and communal codes; see 19.10; 30.21–23. 3: Crucible, a container used to extract precious metals from ore. The metal is melted at high heat, refined by pouring off its impurities or dross (cf. 25.4–5), and tested for purity (cf. 27.21). 5: See 14.31n. 6: Crown, see 12.4n. 7: Not becoming, i.e., not fitting, incongruous, cf. 19.10; 26.1. 8: Belief that a bribe is effective proves to be self-delusion—so in the eyes (cf. 3.7n.). Gifts can be useful to gain favor (e.g., 18.18; 19.6; 21.14), but bribes used toward wrong ends are forbidden (see v. 23; 15.27; cf. Ex 23.8; Deut 16.19). 9: See 10.12. 10: Rebuke, see 1.23n. The law forbade more than forty blows for any offense (Deut 25.1–3). 12: She-bear robbed of her cubs, the epitome of fierce, unrelenting rage (2 Sam 17.8; Hos 13.8). 15: Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 18: Surety, see 6.1–5n. 20: See 10.2–3n. 21,25: See 10.1n. 22: Spirit, see 16.2n. Bones, see 3.8n. 23: See v. 8n. 27–28: Silence is a virtue of the wise (e.g., 10.19; 12.23; 13.3; 15.28), but not a fail-safe indication of wisdom.

18.1: Lives alone, i.e., deliberately separates from the community. 2: See 12.23; Eccl 10.3. 3: See 11.2n. 4: Mouth, see 10.11n. Deep waters denote quantity, cool refreshment, and mystery—even chaos (20.5; cf. Ps 64.6). 5: To be partial, see 24.23–25n.; cf. 17.26. 6–8: Effects of foolish speech, see 10.13–14; 12.13; 13.3; 14.3,8. 8: See 26.22. On words as food, see 12.14n. Whisperer, see 16.28n. 9: Slack in work, see 6.9–11n. 10–11: A proverb pair that contrasts the certain security of the name of the Lord (e.g., Pss 20.2; 54.3; 61.3) to the unreliable security of wealth (cf. 10.15–16; 11.4; 28.11). 12: Haughty, see 11.2n. Humility, see 3.7n. 14: See 17.22n. 16: See 17.8n. 17–18: Warning to hear all sides of a dispute before making a decision. Some disputes may require lots to decide them (see 1.14n.), i.e., trusting divine guidance. 19: Bars of a castle, perhaps iron bars used to secure the gates (e.g., 1 Sam 23.7). 20–21: See v. 8n. 22: See 12.4n. 23: Observation or condemnation of callousness to the poor; see 14.31n.

19.1 Better than, see 12.9n. 3: Fools refuse to take responsibility for themselves (cf. Sir 15.11–20). 4: The impact of wealth on relationships; see vv. 6–7; 14.20–21; 10.15n. 5: False witness, see 12.17n. See v. 9. 8: See 10.2–3n.; cf. 15.32. 10: Not fitting, see 17.7n. A portrait of the world turned upside down; see 30.21–22; Eccl 10.6–7. 11: Anger, see 12.16n. 12: Royal wrath and favor as forces of nature (cf. 16.14–15; 20.2). Kings were associated with lions in the ancient Near East (e.g., Judg 14.5–6; 1 Sam 7.34–36; 1 Kings 10.19–20; Jer 50.17; Ezek 32.2–3). 13–14: Sources of household suffering and joy from a male perspective. Contentious wife, see 21.9,19; 25.24; 27.15–16. Wise wife, see 12.4n. 15: Laziness, see 6.9–11n. 16: Commandment (Heb “mitswah”) in Proverbs typically refers to wisdom instruction (e.g., 2.1; 3.1; 4.4; 6.20,23; 13.13). 17: See 14.31n. 19: Violent tempered, see 12.16n. 21: God's sovereignty, see 16.1–9; 20.24; 21.30–31. 22: Better than, see 12.9n. 23: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. 24: Laziness, see 6.9–11n., cf. 26.15. 25: Scoffer … simple, see 1.22n.; 9.7–12; 15.12; 21.11. 26: See 28.24n.

20.1: Wine and strong drink (distilled wine or beer) personified as types of troublemakers they create. Proverbs condemns drunkenness but not drinking alcohol (cf. 9.2,5; 23.19–21,29–35; 31.4–7; Sir 31.30–31,39–40). 2: King's anger, see 19.12n. 4: Lazy, see 6.9–11n. 5: Deep water, see 18.4n. 6: Who can find, a rhetorical question that suggests trustworthy people are few and far between (cf. 31.10; Eccl 7.24). 7: See 13.22. 8: Winnow, to throw threshed grain into the air with a wooden shovel or fork so the wind can separate its components— grain, straw, chaff—by weight (Ps 1.4; Isa 41.15–16). 10: Weights … measures, see 11.1n.; cf. v. 23. Abomination to the Lord, see 3.32n. 13: Do not love sleep, see 6.9–11n. 14: A haggler dismisses a product to lower its price, and then boasts about his cunning (cf. 25.14; 27.2). 15: Gold … stones … jewel, see 2.4n. 16: Surety, see 6.1–5n.; cf. 27.13. 17: Bread gained by deceit, i.e., stolen food or a steady diet of dishonesty; cf. 9.17; 8.18; 26.22. 18: See 11.14n. 19: Gossip, see 16.28n. 20: Cursing parents was a capital offense; see Ex 21.17; Lev 20.9; cf. Deut 27.16. Lamp will go out, see 13.9n. 21: Quickly acquired, i.e., inalienable family property wrongfully seized from another (e.g., 1 Kings 21) or claimed prematurely; see 1.18–19n. 22: Even pondering revenge is forbidden; retribution belongs to God. See 24.29; cf. Lev 19.18; Ex 23.4; Rom 12.20–21. 23: See v. 10; 11.1n. 24: See 16.1,3–4, 9; 21.30–31. 25: It is holy, a vow that consecrates a treasured item to God and offers it to the temple. Vows must be paid (cf. Num 30.3; Deut 23.22–24; Ps 50.14; Eccl 4.17–5.5; Sir 18.22–23). 26: See v. 8. Wheel, the heavy wheel or drum rolled over grain to thresh it (Isa 28.27). 27: Lamp, see 13.9n. 28: See 16.12–13n.; 25.5; 29.14. 29: See 16.31. 30: Physical discipline was part of ancient Near Eastern education; see 10.13n.

21.1–2: God directs and examines human hearts. Streams of water, channels used to irrigate dry land (cf. Isa 32.2). Weighs the heart, see 16.2n. 4: Lamp, see 13.9n. 5–7: Comparisons of diligent and deceitful and violent means and ends. 6: Unjustly acquired wealth, see 1.18–19n. Fleeting vapor (Heb “hebel”), i.e., ephemeral (e.g., Ps 144.4; Job 7.16; Eccl 1.2 [“vanity”]). 7: See 10.2–3n. 9: Contentious wife, see 19.13–14n. 11: See 19.25. 12: Righteous One, i.e., God; see 22.12; Isa 24.16. 13: See 14.31n. 14: Gift … bribe, see 17.8n. 16: Assembly of the dead, i.e., Sheol, see 1.12n. 18: Ransom, a payment to buy someone out of trouble; the person can be innocent (e.g., 6.35; Ex 30.12,15–16; Num 31.50; Isa 43.3). Faithless, see 2.22n. See 11.8. 19: See v. 9. 22: Wisdom proves stronger than physical and military might, see 20.18; 24.5–6; Eccl 9.13–18. 23: See 13.3; 18.21. 24: Scoffer, see 1.22n. 25: Lazy, see 6.9–11n. 27: Abomination, see 3.32n. 28: False witness, see 12.17n. 29: Bold face, i.e., defiant, see 7.13. 30–31: Limits of human wisdom before God, see 16.1–9; 19.21.

22.1: Good name, see 10.7n. 2: See 14.31n. 3: See 27.12. 4–5: See 10.2–3n. 4: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. 7: Economic disparities fuel disparities in power and position; see 6.1–5. 8: Sow … reap, a metaphor for acts and consequences (e.g., 1.31; 11.18). 10: Scoffer, see 1.22n. 12: Faithless, see 2.22n. 13: No excuse is too absurd for the lazy; see 26.13. 14: Loose, i.e., “strange” woman, see 2.16n.; cf. 23.27. 15: Rod of discipline, see 10.13n. 16: Give to the rich, perhaps as a gift or bribe, see 17.8n.

22.17–24.22: The words of the wise. An artful adaptation of the Egyptian Instruction of Amenemope; see Introduction. Sages in the ancient Near East honed their thoughts on the wisdom literature of neighboring cultures (see 30.1–33; 31.1–9). 17–21: Direct address and a call to attention recall chs 1–9; see 1.8–9n.; cf. 23.19. 20: Thirty sayings, the number of instructions contained in Amenemope. 21: Give a true answer to those who sent you, i.e., be an honest and reliable messenger; see 13.17n. 22–23: Poor, see 14.31n. At the gate, the site of the market and legal proceedings, see 1.20–21n. 24–25: Cautions about anger, see 12.16n. Amenemope warns about the “heated man” or hothead. 26–27: Surety, see 6.1–5n. The law stipulated that debtors’ cloaks had to be returned to them at night (e.g., Ex 22.25–26; Deut 24.12–13), but no provision existed for guarantors. 28: Ancient landmark, see 15.25n.; cf. 23.10–11. 23.1–3: Warning against showing envy or greed in the presence of superiors (cf. Sir 31.12–32.13). 4–5: Cautions about undue striving for wealth which then proves fleeting, see Eccl 2.1–11; 4.7–8; 5.10–17. 6–8: The stingy host, see Sir 31.12–21. 10–11: Ancient landmark, see 15.25n., 22.28. Redeemer, a relative obligated to protect another family member, usually by buying back ancestral land sold or forfeited, buying out of slavery, or avenging his murder (e.g., Lev 25.25; Ruth 4.3–4). God is the redeemer for those without one (e.g., Deut 10.17–18; Ps 68.4–6). 13–14: Discipline (Heb “musar”), see 1.2n. The rod, see 10.13n. Sheol, see 1.12n. 15–16: Parental joy (see 10.1n.) used to motivate behavior; cf. vv. 22–25. 17–18: One of several cautions about envying wrongdoers (e.g., 3.31; 24.1,19–20; cf. Pss 37.1; 73). Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Wisdom and longevity, see 3.2n. 19–21: Gluttony and drunkenness characterize a rebellious son in Deut 21.20. The language may be standard for rebellious behavior, see 28.7. 22–25: See vv. 15–16. 23: Buy wisdom, see 4.5,7n. 26–28: Brief warnings about the “strange” woman in chs 1–9 (see esp. 6.26; 7.10). Deep pit evokes Sheol; see 1.12n.; cf. 22.14. Lies in wait, see 1.11; 7.12. 29–35: Warning against drunkenness; see 20.1n. 29–30: Perhaps an old riddle (see 1.6n.). Mixed wines, see 9.2n. 34–35: Drunkenness is compared to seasickness, and clinging to the rigging on the mast as the ship tosses about. 24.1–2: Envy, see 23.17–18n.; cf. vv. 19–20. 3–4: Wisdom is necessary to build a house; see 3.33n. Wisdom builds a house (9.1–6), as does the woman of substance (31.10–31; cf. 14.1). 5–6: See 21.22n. 6: Wise guidance, see 11.14n. 7: Gate, the site of the market and legal proceedings; see 1.20–21n. 8–9: Scoffer, see 1.22n. 10–12: Warning against failure to act when others are in peril. Weighs the heart, see 16.2n.; cf. 21.2. 13–14: Honey, see 5.3n. Soul, see 2.10n. 15–16: See 1.10–19; 7.12,21–27. Seven signifies many, completeness. The righteous know hardship but get up again; see Pss 20.7–8; 34.19. 17–18: Caution against enjoyment of another's suffering, see Job 31.29; Ps 35.11–16,19. 19–20: Envy, see 23.17–18n.; cf. vv. 1–2. Lamp, see 13.9n.; cf. 21.4. 21–22: Fear of the Lord, see 1.7n. Royal anger, see 16.14n.

24.23–34: These also are sayings of the wise. An appendix to the words of the wise in 22.17–24.22. 23–25: Warnings against distorting justice. 23: Partiality in judging, i.e., judging on the basis of recognition or impression (e.g., Deut 1.16–17; 16.19–20). 26: Kiss on the lips, a gesture of devotion and respect. 27: The importance of priorities to ensure success (e.g., 6.6–8). 28: False witness, see 12.17n. 29: See 20.22n. 30–34: Lazy, see 6.9–11n. For construction of a vineyard, see Isa 5.1–2.

25.1–29.27: These are other proverbs of Solomon that the officials of King Hezekiah of Judah copied. 1: Solomon, see Introduction. Hezekiah, king of Judah from ca. 715–687 bce, was renowned for instituting religious and political reforms (2 Kings 18.1–20.21). Officials, likely court scribes who transmitted proverbs by collecting, copying, and editing them. Like 10.1–22.16, this section has two subunits, chs 25–27 and 28–29. 2–7: Proverbs about God, the king, and the royal court. 2–3: Divine concealment and mystery, see Deut 29.29. 4–5: Dross, impurities separated from metal by smelting (i.e., melting at high temperatures; the impurities float to the surface and can be skimmed or poured off). King … righteousness, see 16.12–13n. 6–7b: Caution against self-promotion; see 22.29; Sir 11.1; 13.9–10. 7c–10: On gossip, see 16.28n. 11–12: Beauty and value of eloquence. 12: Rebuke, see 1.23n. On wisdom as jewelry, see 1.9n. 13: Harvest of wheat and barley was in the heat of early summer (May-June; e.g., Ruth 2.22). Messenger, see 13.17n. 15: The power of patient counsel, see 12.18; 15.1,4; 16.24. 16–17: Caution against too much of a good thing; see v. 27; Sir 37.27–31. Honey, see 5.3n. 18: False witness, see 12.17n. 19: Faithless, see 2.22n. 21–22: Heap coals of fire on their heads, a metaphor for causing pain, likely here shame in the face of kindness. Warnings against seeking revenge, see 20.22n.; cf. Lev 19.18; Ex 23.4; Rom 12.20–21. 23: Rain as unpleasant, see 19.13; 28.3. 24: Contentious wife, see 19.13–14n. 25: Good news brought by a messenger, see 13.17n. Soul, see 2.10n. 27: See vv. 6–7b,16–17. Honey, see 5.3n.; 25.16. 28: Self-control, see 16.32; 29.11. 26.1–12: Proverbs about fools. 1: Not suitable, see 17.7n. 3: Rod, see 10.13n. 4–5: Contradictory proverbs about whether to speak to fools. The wise must discern which proverb is appropriate in a given circumstance (e.g., 15.23; 25.11). 6: Message, see 13.17n. 11: Dog, regarded in the ancient Near East as a dirty scavenger; ancient Israelites did not commonly domesticate dogs (e.g., 26.17; 1 Kings 21.19,23–24; Eccl 9.4; but see Job 30.1). 12: Wise in their own eyes, see 3.7n. 13–16: The lazy person (see 6.9–11n.). 13: See 22.13. 15: See 19.24. 16: Seven, a round number signifying many (e.g., 6.16–19; 24.16). 17–28: Proverbs about various troublemakers. 17: Dog, see v.11n. 18–19: Firebrands (i.e., deadly darts). Deception as a weapon, see 25.18. 20–22: Fire, a metaphor for conflict. 22: See 18.8n. 23–25: False friends. 23: Glaze, lit., “silver of dross,” a cheap coating that makes a vessel appear attractive and valuable, but actually cheapens and weakens it. Smooth, lit., “burning”; see v. 18. 27: See Eccl 10.8–9; Sir 27.25–27. 27.2: Another … stranger, terms used negatively to describe the “strange” woman in chs 1–9; see 2.16n. 3–4: Anger, see 12.16n.; cf. Sir 22.14–15. Proverbs always portrays jealousy as destructive (e.g., 6.34–35; 14.30; cf. Song 8.6–7). 5–6: Rebuke, see 1.23n. 7: Honey, see 5.3n. 9b: Sweetness of a friend's advice (see textual note a), see 16.21; 24.13–14. 10: Friendship in times of crisis, see 17.17; 18.24. 11: See 23.15–16n.; cf. Ps 127.4–5; Sir 30.2. 12: See 22.3. 13: Surety, see 6.1–5n.; cf. 20.16. 15–16: Contentious wife, see 19.13–14n. 18: Eat its fruit, see 1.31–33n. 20: Sheol … Abaddon, see 1.12n. 21–22: See 17.3n. 23–27: A concluding poem (cf. 24.30–34) that elaborates on 12.10.

28.1–29.27: Similar to 10.1–15.33, a series of largely antithetical proverbs that contrast the righteous and wicked. Persistent is concern about power and just government. 28.1: Flee when no one pursues suggests fear and guilt (cf. Lev 26.17,36). Bold as a lion, cf. 19.12n. 3: A poor person who oppresses the poor (so Hebrew; see textual note f) makes sense; the downtrodden can take advantage of one another. 4: Law (Heb “torah”) in Proverbs refers to wisdom instruction (e.g., 3.1; 4.4; 6.20,23) and may evoke the law of Moses. 6: See 19.1n.; cf. 15.16; 16.8. 7: Law, see v. 4n. Gluttons, see 23.19–21n. 8: Israelites were not to charge interest on loans to one another (Ex 22.25; Deut 23.19–20; Ezek 18.8,13; cf. Neh 5.1–13). 9: Abomination, see 3.32n. 10: Fall into pits of their own making, see 1.10–19. 11: Self-esteem, lit., “wise in his own eyes”; see 3.7n. Sees through the pose, lit., “searches him out”; see 25.2. 12: Public well-being hinges on who has power; see v. 28; 29.2,16. 13: The only clear reference to repentance and mercy in the book; see Pss 32; 103.13; Isa 49.15; Jer 6.23. 14: Some fears promote well-being. Hard-hearted, i.e., obstinate; see 29.1; cf. Ex 7.3; Ps 95.8; Ezek 3.7. 15–16: Two proverbs about unjust rulers. 15: Lion, 28.1n. 16: Unjust gain, see 10.2n. 17: Be a fugitive until death, lit., “flee to a pit,” likely an allusion to Sheol, see 1.12n. 19: See 12.11n. 20: Hurry to be rich, see 1.18–19n.; v. 22; cf. Sir 11.10. 21: Partiality, see 24.23–24n. 22: Hurry to get rich, see 1.18–19n.; cf. v. 20. 23: Rebuke, see 1.23n. Flatters, lit., “makes the tongue smooth,” see 2.16; 5.3; 7.5; 29.5. 24: Crimes against father or mother are particularly egregious; see 19.26; 20.20; 30.11,17. 27: Generosity to the poor, see 14.31n. 28: See v. 12n. 29.1: Reproof, see 1.23n. Stubborn, see 28.14n. 2: See 28.12n. 3: See 10.1n. Keeps company with prostitutes … squander, see 31.3; Sir 9.1–9. 5–6: Flattery, see 28.23n. The wicked ensnare themselves; see 1.10–19; 12.13. 7: Rights of the poor, justice and legal rights due to them (e.g., 31.5,8; Deut 17.8; Isa 10.2; Jer 5.28). 11: Anger, see 12.16n. 13: See 14.31n. Give light to the eyes, i.e., give life; see 15.30. 14: See 16.12–13n. 15: Rod, see 10.13n. Reproof, see 1.23n. 16: See 28.12n. 17: Delight to your heart, lit., “delicacies for your appetite” (Heb “nephesh”; see 2.10n.). 18: There is no prophecy (Heb “ḥazon”), i.e., vision or revelation; see 1 Sam 3.1; Ps 74.9; Lam 2.9; Ezek 7.26. Law, see 28.4n. 20: See 26.12. Proverbs cautions against haste (e.g., 19.2; 21.5), particularly when speaking (e.g., 10.19; 17.27). 22: See 15.18n. 23: Pride, see 11.2n. Lowly in spirit, i.e., humble, see 3.7n. 24: Hears the victim's curse, i.e., the victim's charge of the crime, which requires those who know something about the matter to testify or be subject to punishment (Lev 5.1; cf. Judg 17.2–3). 27: Abomination, see 3.32n.

30.1–33: The words of Agur, son of Jaqeh, an otherwise unknown sage. The latter portion of the chapter (vv. 15–33) is comprised largely of numerical proverbs, in which two numbers occur in parallel (x and x+1) and the second number governs the content (vv. 15–16,18–19,21–23,24–28,29–31; cf. 6.16–19; Job 5.19–22; Sir 25.7–11). 1: The Hebrew of this verse is difficult, prompting the slight emendation of one word (NRSV oracle) to read “the Massaite,” that is, as the ethnic designation of a north Arabian people descended from Ishmael (Gen 25.14; 1 Chr 1.30; cf. 31.1n.). Thus says the man, lit., “oracle of the man,” a phrase found elsewhere in the last words of David (2 Sam 23.1) and oracles of Balaam (Num 24.3–15). An oracle is a genre common to prophecy, an utterance inspired by God (e.g., Jer 23.4, 11–12; Isa 56.8; Zech 12.1). 2–3: Stupid, brutish, more like an animal than like God; see 12.1; Pss 22.6; 73.22; 92.5–6; Job 25.4–6. 4: Rhetorical questions to which the answer is “only God”; see Job 38–41; Isa 40.12–14. Child, lit., “son,” a student of wisdom: in this case, Agur. See 1.8–9n. 5–6: True, i.e., pure, as with precious metals refined by smelting. Do not add, see Deut 4.2; 12.32. 7–9: The only prayer in Proverbs. 10: Slander, accusations made secretly against another; see Ps 101.5. 11–14: A list of wretched people. Cursing one's parents was a capital offense; see Ex 21.17; Deut 27.16. 13: High or lifted eyes, see 6.17n. 15–16: Leech, a blood-sucking worm with two daughters, or suckers to attach and draw blood. Sheol, see 1.12n. 17: Ravens … vultures, carrion birds. 18–19: A numerical proverb about four ways, or movements, that are graceful without evident mechanics and (usually) leave no trace behind (cf. Wis 5.9–12). Heb “ʿalmah” (NRSV girl) is a “young woman”; see Gen 24.43; Ex 2.8; Song 1.3; 6.8; Isa 7.14. 20: Eating is a metaphor for sex; see 9.17n. 21–23: World-turned-upsidedown situations, see 19.10. Maid … mistress, see Hagar and Sarah (Gen 16; 21) and Rachel and Bilhah (Gen 30.1–23). 24–28: Small and wise creatures, described as people. Ant, see 6.6–8n. Without leadership, locusts move swiftly in vast swarms (e.g., Ex 10; Judg 6.5; Joel 2.7–8). 29–31: King as lion, see 19.12n. 32–33: Anger, see 12.16n.

31.1–9: The words of Lemuel, king of Massa, which his mother taught him the only known ancient Near Eastern wisdom text attributed to a woman, though Proverbs refers to mothers as teachers (1.8; 6.20; 31.26). 1: Lemuel is otherwise unknown in the Hebrew Bible and, like Agur (30.1–33), is likely a Massaite (Heb “massaʾ” can be translated as oracle or as the ethnic designation Massaite, see 30.1n.). 2: Son of my vows, compare Hannah's vow (1 Sam 1.11,28). 3: Heb “ḥayil” (strength, cf. v. 10) refers variously to physical strength (e.g., 1 Sam 2.4; Eccl 10.10), wealth and property (e.g., 13.22; Isa 30.6; Jer 15.13), capacity (e.g., Gen 47.6; Ex 18.21), and bravery (e.g., Judg 11.1; 1 Chr 5.24). Men with “ḥayil” in the Hebrew Bible tend to be well regarded and affluent—as kings, landowners, and persons who serve with courage and loyalty, often in the military (e.g., Ex 18.25; Ruth 2.1; 2 Sam 23.20; 2 Kings 15.20). They are persons of “substance,” namely, strength, capacity, wealth, and skill. See 31.10–31. 4–7: See 20.1n. Inebriated leaders pose particular dangers to the community (e.g., Esth 1.5–22; Eccl 10.16–17; Isa 5.11–12,22–23). 8–9: Those who cannot speak, the most vulnerable in society; see 16.12–13n.

31:10–31: The woman of substance an alphabetic acrostic (each successive line begins with the next letter of the twenty-two-letter Hebrew alphabet) that celebrates the attributes and activities of a woman with “ḥayil” (v. 10; see 12.4n., 31.3n.). Her activities are consistent with those of affluent and moderately wealthy women of the commercial class in the postexilic period. She also closely resembles Wisdom in chs 1–9; see Introduction. 10: Who can find (see 20.6n.) suggests that such a woman is rare (only elsewhere in 12.4; Ruth 3.11). Like Wisdom, her value surpasses that of jewels, see 2.4n. 11–12: Gain, i.e., loot (1.13; 16.19), hints at the woman's warriorlike traits (vv. 15,17). 13: Spinning and weaving were emblematic of women's skill in the ancient Near East (vv. 19,21–22,24; e.g., Judg 16.14). 16: She independently identifies and purchases property, and plants a vineyard to make it productive, see 20.30–34n. 17: Girds herself, tucks up the skirts of a garment to prepare for difficult work; often done by warriors (e.g., Ex 12.11; 2 Kings 4.29; 9.1; Deut 1.41; 1 Sam 25.13). 19: Distaff … spindle, tools for spinning and weaving; see v. 13n. 21–22: Crimson … fine linen … purple, marks of wealth, quality, and luxury; see 2 Sam 1.24; Jer 4.30; Isa 3.23. Coverings are elegant covers, like those of the “strange” woman in 7.16. 23: City gates, the center of commerce and justice; see 1.21n. 26: Compare Wisdom's teaching, 8.6–10. 27: Bread of idleness, see 4.17n. 28: Rise up, a gesture that signals the importance of their declaration (e.g., Jer 1.17; Mic 6.1). 30: The woman is the epitome of fear of the Lord; see 1.7n.

^a Gk: Heb are the ways

^a Heb strange

^b Cn: Heb house

^a Gk: Heb lie down

^a Heb from its owners

^b Heb know

^a Heb strange

^b Gk Vg: Heb children

^a Or a stranger

^b Cn Compare Gk Syr: Heb the words of your mouth

^c Or humble yourself

^d Cn: Heb from the hand

^a Heb it

^b Gk: MT the evil woman

^c Cn Compare Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb for because of a harlot to a piece of bread

^d Heb strange

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Cn Compare Gk: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Or me as the beginning

^c Heb way

^a Another reading is little child

^b Gk: Heb lacks his

^c Or simpleness

^d Heb lacks instruction

^e Heb shades

^a Gk: Heb but a babbling fool will come to ruin

^a Or and toil adds nothing to it

^b Or an army

^a Compare Gk Syr: Heb lacks but she … shame

^b Gk: Heb lacks The timid … destitute

^c Cn: Heb fall

^d Cn Compare Gk Syr: Heb a wise man

^a Or covet the catch of the wicked

^b Heb the heart of fools

^c Syr: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^d Meaning of Heb uncertain

^e Cn: Heb A wise child the discipline of his father

^a Gk Vg: Heb from vanity

^b Cn Compare Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb is enduring

^c Heb Wisdom of women

^d Cn: Heb a rod of pride

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Heb ways of death

^c Cn: Heb from upon him

^d Or inherit

^e Cn Compare Gk: Heb riches

^f Cn: Heb is the folly

^g Gk Syr: Heb in their death

^h Gk Syr: Heb lacks not

^c Cn: Heb makes knowledge good

^a Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb to plan

^b Or a noble person

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Gk Syr Vg Tg: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Syr Tg: Heb A man of

^c Cn Compare Syr Vg Tg: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^d Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Gk: Heb loyalty

^b Gk: Heb seekers

^a Gk: Heb and oil

^b Gk: Heb life and righteousness

^c Gk: Heb all day long one covets covetously

^d Another reading is establish

^a Heb strange

^b Cn Compare Gk: Heb Incline your ear, and hear the words of the wise

^c Or who

^d Heb his

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Another reading is delight in

^c Heb an alien woman

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Gk Syr Vg Tg: Heb lacks you will say

^c Gk Compare Syr Tg: Heb A wise man is strength

^d Gk: Heb do not associate with those who change

^a Cn: Heb or else

^a Gk: Heb Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, like vinegar on lye

^b Gk Syr Tg: Heb lacks Like a moth … human heart

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Cn: Heb silver of dross

^c Gk: Heb burning

^a Gk: Heb the sweetness of a friend is better than one’s own counsel

^b Vg and 20.16: Heb for a foreign woman

^c Meaning of Heb uncertain

^d Heb face

^e Heb lacks is tested

^f Cn: Heb A poor person

^a Syr: Heb fall all at once

^a Vg: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Or human fear

^b Or I am spent. Meaning of Heb uncertain

^c Or Holy One

^d Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Meaning of Heb uncertain

^b Or spider

^c Gk Syr Tg Compare Vg: Meaning of Heb uncertain

^a Cn: Heb where

^b Heb all children of passing away