Mishle 6:1-19

1 Beni (my son), if thou put up collateral for thy re’a, if thou hast shaken hands in pledge with a zar (stranger),

2 Thou art snared with the words of thy peh (mouth), thou art trapped with the words of thy peh (mouth).

3 Do this now, beni (my son), and deliver thyself, since thou art come into the palm of thy re’a; go, humble thyself, and plead with thy re’a.

4 Give not sheynah to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.

5 Deliver thyself as a gazelle from the yad [of the hunter], and as a tzippor (bird) from the yad of the fowler.

6 Go to the nemalah (ant), thou atzel (sluggard, lazy one); consider her drakhim (ways), and be chacham (wise);

7 Which having no katzin (officer, leader) or shoter (policeman) or moshel,

8 Prepareth her lechem in the kayitz (summer), and gathereth her food in the katzir (harvest).

9 Ad mosai wilt thou lie down, O atzel (sluggard, lazy one)? When wilt thou arise out of thy sheynah (sleep)?

10 Yet a little sheynot (sleep [pl.]), a little slumber, a little folding of the yadayim to sleep;

11 So shall thy poverty come as a prowler, and thy need as an ish mogen (man of armor).

12 A worthless person, a wicked man, walketh with a perverse peh (mouth).

13 He winketh with his eyes, he shuffleth with his regel, he pointeth with his fingers;

14 Tahpukhot (perversity) is in his lev, he deviseth rah continually; he stirs up midanim (contention, strife, discord [pl.]).

15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be destoyed without marpeh (remedy).

16 These shesh (six) things doth Hashem hate; indeed, shevah (seven) are an abomination unto His Nefesh;

17 Haughty eyes, a lashon sheker, and hands guilty of shefach dahm naki,

18 A lev that deviseth wicked machshevot (plans), raglayim that are swift in running to ra’ah,

19 An ed sheker that speaketh lies, and he that soweth midanim (contention, strife, discords) among achim.

Mishle 6:1-19 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PROVERBS 6

In this chapter the wise man dissuades from rash suretyship; exposes the sin of idleness; describes a wicked man; makes mention of seven things hateful to God; exhorts to attend to parental instructions and precepts, and cautions against adultery. Suretyship is described, Pr 6:1; and represented as a snare and a net, in which men are taken, Pr 6:2; and advice is given what to do in such a case, for safety in it, and deliverance from it, Pr 6:3-5; The sin of slothfulness is exposed, by observing the industry of the ant, Pr 6:6-8; by expostulating with the sluggard for his continuance in sloth, and by mimicking him, Pr 6:9,10; and by the poverty it brings upon him, Pr 6:11. Then a naughty wicked man is described, by his mouth, eyes, feet, fingers, and heart, whose ruin is sudden and inevitable, Pr 6:11-15. The seven things hateful to God are particularly named, Pr 6:16-19. And next the exhortation in some preceding chapters is reassumed, to attend to the instructions of parents; which will be found ornamental, pleasant, and useful, Pr 6:20-23. Especially to preserve from the lewd woman cautioned against, Pr 6:24,25; whose company is dissuaded from; on account of the extreme poverty and distress she brings persons to, and even danger of life, Pr 6:26; from the unavoidable ruin such come into, Pr 6:27-29; from the sin of uncleanness being greater than that of theft, Pr 6:30,31; from the folly the adulterer betrays; from the destruction of his soul, and the disgrace he brings on himself, Pr 6:32,33; and from the rage and irreconcilable offence of the husband of the adulteress, Pr 6:34,35.