Proverbs 9:7–11

Footnotes

1. 13 The active participle יֹסֵר (yoser) describes one who tries to correct by means of instruction and discipline; it is paralleled by the Hiphil participle which refers to someone who rebukes or reproves another. Anyone trying this on these types of people would be inviting trouble.
2. 14 Heb “receives for himself.”
3. 15 The word means “dishonor” or “disgrace.” It is paralleled with מוּמוֹ (mumo), translated “abuse.” The latter term means “blemish,” although some would emend the text to read “reproach.” The is figurative but not impossible to interpret: Whoever tries to rebuke a wicked person will receive only insults and perhaps physical attack.
4. 16 The verb “receives” is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.
5. 17 In view of the expected response for reproof, the text now uses a negated jussive to advise against the attempt. This is paralleled antithetically by the imperative in the second colon. This imperative is in an understood conditional clause: “if you reprove a wise person.”
6. 18 Heb “lest he hate you.” The particle פֶּן (pen, “lest”) expresses fear or precaution (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 79, §476). The antonyms “love” and “hate” suggest that the latter means “reject” and the former means “choosing and embracing.”
7. 19 The noun “instruction” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation.
8. 20 The parallelism shows what Proverbs will repeatedly stress, that the wise person is the righteous person.
9. 21 The Hiphil verb normally means “to cause to know, make known”; but here the context suggests “to teach” (so many English versions).
10. 22 The term “his” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for the sake of smoothness and clarity.
11. 23 The difference between תְּחִלַּת (tékhillat) here and רֵאשִׁית (re’shit) of 1:7, if there is any substantial difference, is that this term refers to the starting point of wisdom, and the earlier one indicates the primary place of wisdom (K&D 16:202).
12. 24 Heb “fear of the Lord.”
13. 25 Heb “knowledge of the Holy One” (so , , , , ).
14. 26 The word is in the plural in the Hebrew (literally “holy ones”; “the holy”). It was translated “holy men” in . But it probably was meant to signify the majestic nature of the Lord. As J. H. Greenstone says, he is “all-holy” (Proverbs, 94). This is an example of the plural of majesty, one of the honorific uses of the plural (see §7.4.3b).
15. 27 The preposition בּ (bet) here may have the causal sense (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 45, §247), although it could also be means (Williams, 44, §243).
16. 28 The verb וְיוֹסִיפוּ (véyosifu) is the Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural; but because there is no expressed subject the verb may be taken as a passive.