Proverbs 10 marks a dramatic shift in the book's form. The extended speeches, personified figures, and narrative sequences of chapters 1-9 give way to individual two-line proverbs — sharp, self-contained observations arranged with minimal visible connection between them. This is the beginning of the 'Proverbs of Solomon' collection (10:1-22:16), which contains 375 proverbs. Nearly every verse in chapter 10 is an antithetic parallelism: the first line makes a statement, and the second line states its opposite, almost always connected by the word 'but.' The dominant themes are the righteous versus the wicked, the wise versus the foolish, the diligent versus the lazy, and the power of speech.
What Makes This Chapter Remarkable
The abrupt formal transition from chapter 9's dramatic banquet scene to chapter 10's staccato proverbs is itself meaningful. The prologue trained the reader to think; now the reader must apply that training to compressed, often ambiguous statements that offer no explanation. Each proverb is a seed that requires the reader's own wisdom to germinate. The antithetic structure that dominates this chapter is the poetic engine of the entire middle section of Proverbs — line A makes a claim, and line B reverses it. The 'but' (Hebrew ve- with adversative force) is the hinge on which wisdom turns. The chapter's opening verse is its dedication: 'A wise son brings joy to a father, but a foolish son is grief to his mother.' The personal, familial setting grounds the cosmic wisdom of chapters 1-9 in the daily reality of household life.
Translation Friction
The retributive theology of chapter 10 is stated with absolute confidence: the righteous prosper, the wicked perish, the diligent grow rich, the lazy become poor. This framework will be severely tested by Job, Ecclesiastes, and many psalms of lament. Proverbs 10 presents the general pattern without acknowledging the exceptions. Read as iron laws, these proverbs are demonstrably false; read as general observations about how life tends to work in a morally ordered universe, they are profound. The reader must supply the nuance that the proverbs deliberately omit.
Connections
The 'Proverbs of Solomon' superscription (v1a) connects to 1:1 and to the later collection headers at 22:17, 24:23, 25:1, 30:1, and 31:1. The righteous/wicked contrast throughout the chapter extends Psalm 1's two-ways theology into specific domains: speech, wealth, labor, and family. The lips/tongue/mouth vocabulary (vv6, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21, 31, 32) makes speech the chapter's dominant concern — fully half the verses address what comes out of a person's mouth.
The proverbs of Solomon.
A wise son brings joy to his father,
but a foolish son is grief to his mother.
KJV The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The superscription mishle Shelomoh ('proverbs of Solomon') marks the beginning of the main collection. The first proverb grounds everything in the family: the ben chakham ('wise son') produces simchah ('joy') for the father, while the ben kesil ('foolish son') produces tugat ('grief, sorrow') for the mother. The asymmetry of father/mother rather than father/father is typical of Proverbs' inclusive parallelism — both parents are affected, though named separately.
Treasures gained by wickedness profit nothing,
but righteousness delivers from death.
KJV Treasures of wickedness profit nothing: but righteousness delivereth from death.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Otsrot resha ('treasures of wickedness') — wealth acquired through evil means — lo yo'ilu ('do not profit, provide no benefit'). Against this, tsedaqah ('righteousness') tatsil mimmavet ('delivers from death'). The proverb compresses a massive theological claim into a single line: moral character, not material wealth, determines survival.
The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry,
but He thrusts aside the craving of the wicked.
KJV The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
YHWH lo yar'iv ('the LORD will not cause to hunger') the nefesh tsaddiq ('soul/appetite of the righteous'). God actively provides for the righteous. Conversely, havvat resha'im yehdof ('the desire/craving of the wicked He pushes away, He repels'). The verb hadaf ('to push, to thrust, to drive away') is forceful — God actively resists the wicked's desires.
A slack hand makes for poverty,
but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
KJV He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The double meaning of remiyyah ('slack' and 'deceitful') links laziness to dishonesty — both are forms of failure to do what the situation requires. The sluggard and the fraud are, at root, the same character.
A son who gathers in summer acts wisely,
but a son who sleeps through harvest brings shame.
KJV He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The ant lesson of 6:6-8 returns in proverbial form. The oger baqqayits ('one who gathers in summer') is a ben maskil ('a prudent/wise son'). The nirdam baqqatsir ('one who sleeps deeply during harvest') is a ben mevish ('a son who causes shame, who brings disgrace'). Harvest is time-sensitive — the grain will rot or fall if not gathered promptly. Sleeping through harvest is not merely lazy but destructive.
Blessings crown the head of the righteous,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
KJV Blessings are upon the head of the just: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Berakhot ('blessings') rest on the rosh tsaddiq ('head of the righteous') like a crown. The pi resha'im ('mouth of the wicked') yekhasseh chamas ('covers/conceals violence'). The wicked person's mouth is a cover for violence — what comes out as words hides what lives within as malice. The contrast between visible blessing and concealed violence is sharp.
The memory of the righteous is a blessing,
but the name of the wicked will rot.
KJV The memory of the just is blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
In Hebrew culture, the shem ('name') is not a label but an identity — it carries the person's character and reputation forward through time. A rotting name is a rotting legacy. The most feared fate in ancient Israel was not death but being forgotten or remembered with disgust.
The wise in heart accept commands,
but a babbling fool will come to ruin.
KJV The wise in heart will receive commandments: but a prating fool shall fall.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Chakham lev ('wise of heart') yiqqach mitsvot ('receives/accepts commands') — the wise are teachable, willing to take direction. The evil sefatayim ('fool of lips, babbling fool') yillabet ('will be tripped up, will stumble, will come to ruin'). The contrast is between receiving (wise) and producing without receiving (fool). The fool talks when he should listen and stumbles because his mouth is open when his ears should be.
Whoever walks with integrity walks securely,
but whoever makes their ways crooked will be found out.
KJV He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Holekh battom ('the one walking in integrity/wholeness') yelekh betach ('walks securely, walks confidently'). The tom ('integrity') produces betach ('security') — the honest person has nothing to hide and therefore nothing to fear. The me'aqqesh derakhav ('the one who makes crooked his ways') yivvadea ('will be known, will be found out, will be exposed'). The crooked cannot stay hidden forever.
Whoever winks with the eye causes pain,
and a babbling fool will come to ruin.
KJV He that winketh with the eye causeth sorrow: but a prating fool shall fall.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Qorets ayin ('one who winks the eye') echoes the troublemaker of 6:13. The wink signals deception and conspiracy. The second line repeats 10:8b exactly — the babbling fool appears twice in this chapter, reinforcing the danger of uncontrolled speech.
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,
but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
KJV The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Pi tsaddiq ('the mouth of the righteous') is a meqor chayyim ('fountain/source of life'). The same meqor ('source, spring') imagery from 4:23 ('springs of life') now flows through the righteous person's speech. Words from the righteous give life. The second line repeats verse 6b — the wicked mouth covers violence.
Hatred stirs up conflicts,
but love covers all offenses.
KJV Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.
Notes & Key Terms
1 term
Key Terms
אַהֲבָהahavah
"love"—love, affection, devotion; both human and divine; the active commitment to another's good
Ahavah in Proverbs is not primarily emotional but volitional — it is the choice to act in another person's interest. Here it is contrasted with sin'ah ('hatred'), which acts to damage. Love covers; hatred exposes.
Translator Notes
The covering of pesha'im ('offenses, transgressions, rebellions') by love is not denial or enabling but a choice about what to do with information. The hateful person uses offenses as weapons; the loving person uses discretion as a shield.
On the lips of the discerning, wisdom is found,
but a rod is for the back of the one who lacks sense.
KJV In the lips of him that hath understanding wisdom is found: but a rod is for the back of him that is void of understanding.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
The navon ('discerning person') carries wisdom on his lips — it is available, ready, findable. The chasar lev ('one lacking sense/heart') receives a shevet ('rod, staff') on the gev ('back'). What the wise communicate through words, the fool must learn through pain. The rod is not cruelty but the only pedagogy the fool's closed ears will accept.
The wise store up knowledge,
but the mouth of the fool invites ruin.
KJV Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Chakhamim yitspe'nu da'at ('the wise treasure/store up knowledge') — the same verb tsaphan from 2:1. The wise accumulate knowledge like savings. The pi evil ('mouth of the fool') is mechittah qerovah ('near destruction, destruction is close'). The fool's mouth is not a fountain of life (v11) but a proximity alarm for catastrophe.
The wealth of the rich is their fortified city;
the poverty of the poor is their ruin.
KJV The rich man's wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Hon ashir ('the wealth of the rich person') is qiryat uzzo ('his city of strength, his fortified city') — wealth provides protection, security, a wall against misfortune. Mechittat dallim resham ('the ruin of the poor is their poverty') — poverty is not merely uncomfortable but destructive, leaving the poor exposed to every threat the wealthy are shielded from. The proverb observes without prescribing — it does not say this arrangement is just, only that it exists.
The earnings of the righteous lead to life;
the income of the wicked leads to sin.
KJV The labour of the righteous tendeth to life: the fruit of the wicked to sin.
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Translator Notes
Pe'ullat tsaddiq ('the work/wages of the righteous') leads lechayyim ('to life'). Tevu'at rasha ('the produce/income of the wicked') leads lechatta't ('to sin'). Wealth itself is morally neutral — what matters is whose hands it is in. In the hands of the righteous, earnings produce more life; in the hands of the wicked, income funds more sin.
Whoever heeds discipline is on the path to life,
but whoever ignores correction goes astray.
KJV He is in the way of life that keepeth instruction: but he that refuseth reproof erreth.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Shomer musar ('the one who guards discipline') is on an orach lechayyim ('path to life'). The ozev tokhachat ('the one who abandons correction') mat'eh ('wanders, leads astray, causes to err'). The hinge between life and death is not talent or luck but the willingness to be corrected.
Whoever conceals hatred has lying lips,
and whoever spreads slander is a fool.
KJV He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Two speech-sins: mekhasseh sin'ah ('concealing hatred') behind siftei shaqer ('lips of falsehood') — pretending friendship while harboring malice. And motsi dibbah ('spreading slander, putting out a bad report'). Both are foolish because both corrupt the social fabric that sustains community.
Where words are many, sin is not absent;
but whoever restrains his lips acts wisely.
KJV In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Berov devarim lo yechdal pasha ('in a multitude of words, transgression does not cease') — the more you talk, the more likely you are to sin. The probability of offense increases with volume. Vechosekh sefatav maskil ('but the one who holds back his lips is prudent'). Restraint of speech is a hallmark of wisdom throughout Proverbs. The wise speak less not because they know less but because they know enough to be careful.
The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;
the heart of the wicked is worth little.
KJV The tongue of the just is as choice silver: the heart of the wicked is little worth.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Leshon tsaddiq ('the tongue of the righteous') is keseph nivchar ('choice silver, selected silver') — refined, tested, valuable. Lev resha'im ('the heart of the wicked') is kim'at ('like a little, worth little, nearly nothing'). The righteous person's speech is precious metal; the wicked person's entire inner life is nearly worthless.
The lips of the righteous nourish many,
but fools die for lack of sense.
KJV The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Siftei tsaddiq yir'u rabbim ('the lips of the righteous shepherd/feed many') — the verb ra'ah ('to shepherd, to feed, to tend') applies pastoral imagery to speech. The righteous person's words feed the community as a shepherd feeds a flock. Evilim bachsar lev yamutu ('fools die in their lack of heart'). The absence of the heart/sense that wisdom provides is literally fatal.
The blessing of the LORD — it makes rich,
and He adds no sorrow with it.
KJV The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Birkat YHWH hi ta'ashir ('the blessing of the LORD — it enriches'). The pronoun hi ('it') is emphatic: the blessing itself does the work. Velo yosif etsev immah ('and He does not add pain/toil/sorrow with it'). Wealth from God comes without the etsev ('pain, toil, grief') that accompanies wealth gained through overwork or dishonesty. This is not a promise that the blessed never suffer but that God's blessing does not carry a hidden cost.
Doing wickedness is like sport to a fool,
but wisdom is natural to a person of understanding.
KJV It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Kisechoq likhsil asot zimmah ('like laughter/sport to a fool is doing wickedness') — the fool treats evil as entertainment, as a game. But chokmah le-ish tevunah ('wisdom belongs to a person of understanding') — wisdom comes as naturally to the discerning as depravity comes to the fool. What each finds easy reveals what each is.
What the wicked dread will come upon them,
but the desire of the righteous will be granted.
KJV The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.
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Translator Notes
Megorat rasha ('the dread/fear of the wicked person') hi tevo'ennu ('it will come upon him') — the wicked person's worst fear becomes reality. Ta'avat tsaddiqim yitten ('the desire of the righteous He gives, He grants'). The proverb asserts a moral symmetry: dread comes true for the wicked; desire comes true for the righteous.
When the storm passes, the wicked are gone,
but the righteous stand on an everlasting foundation.
KJV As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Ka'avor sufah ('when the whirlwind passes through') ve-ein rasha ('the wicked is no more, the wicked has vanished'). The storm imagery from 1:27 returns: the wicked are swept away like chaff. Vetsaddiq yesod olam ('but the righteous is a foundation of eternity') — the righteous person is as permanent as a building's foundation. The storm test separates the rooted from the rootless — echoing Jesus' later parable of the house on the rock (Matthew 7:24-27).
Like vinegar to the teeth
and smoke to the eyes,
so is the sluggard to those who send him.
KJV As vinegar to the teeth, and as smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to them that send him.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Two sensory irritants: chomets ('vinegar') that sets the teeth on edge and ashan ('smoke') that stings the eyes. The atsel ('sluggard') produces the same effect on those who rely on him — persistent, low-grade irritation that makes everything harder. The sluggard does not merely fail to perform; he actively aggravates everyone depending on him.
The fear of the LORD adds days,
but the years of the wicked are cut short.
KJV The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Yirat YHWH tosif yamim ('the fear of the LORD adds days') — long life again as the fruit of right relationship with God. Ushenot resha'im tiqtsornah ('but the years of the wicked will be shortened, cut short'). The verb qatsar ('to be short, to reap, to harvest early') suggests premature death — the wicked do not live out their allotted years.
The hope of the righteous brings joy,
but the expectation of the wicked will perish.
KJV The hope of the righteous shall be gladness: but the expectation of the wicked shall perish.
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Translator Notes
Tocheleth tsaddiqim simchah ('the hope/waiting of the righteous is joy') — what the righteous wait for arrives, producing simchah ('gladness, joy'). Tiqvat resha'im toved ('the hope/cord/expectation of the wicked perishes'). The tiqvah can mean both 'hope' and 'cord, line' — the wicked person's lifeline snaps.
The way of the LORD is a stronghold for the blameless,
but destruction for evildoers.
KJV The way of the LORD is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Derekh YHWH ('the way of the LORD') is ma'oz ('stronghold, refuge, fortress') for the tam ('blameless, person of integrity') but mechittah ('destruction, ruin') for po'ale aven ('workers of iniquity'). The same divine way functions as both protection and destruction depending on who encounters it.
The righteous will never be shaken,
but the wicked will not inhabit the land.
KJV The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth.
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Translator Notes
Tsaddiq le-olam bal yimmot ('the righteous person forever will not be moved, will not totter') echoes Psalm 15:5 and Psalm 16:8. Urshe'aim lo yishkenu erets ('but the wicked will not dwell in the land') reprises 2:21-22 — the land-theology of Deuteronomy applied to individual ethics.
The mouth of the righteous bears the fruit of wisdom,
but the perverse tongue will be cut off.
KJV The mouth of the just bringeth forth wisdom: but the froward tongue shall be cut out.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Pi tsaddiq yanuv chokmah ('the mouth of the righteous buds/bears fruit of wisdom') — the verb nuv ('to bear fruit, to flourish, to sprout') presents the righteous mouth as a fruit tree, connecting to the tree-of-life imagery of 3:18. Ulshon tahpukhot tikkaret ('but the tongue of perversity will be cut off') — the karath ('to cut off') is the language of covenant severance and death.
The lips of the righteous know what is fitting,
but the mouth of the wicked speaks perversity.
KJV The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable: but the mouth of the wicked speaketh frowardness.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
Siftei tsaddiq yed'un ratson ('the lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, what is fitting, what pleases'). The verb yada ('to know') applied to lips means they have the discernment to speak the right word at the right time. Pi resha'im tahpukhot ('the mouth of the wicked — perversity'). The chapter ends as it has run: righteous speech gives life; wicked speech inverts reality. The thirty-two verses have returned again and again to the same point: what comes out of the mouth reveals and determines who you are.