C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch on Proverbs 11:23
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Proverbs11:23
Pro 11:23 23 The desire of the righteous is nothing but good, The expectation of the godless is presumption.
This is usually explained with Fleischer: If the righteous wish for anything, their wish reaches to no other than a fortunate issue; but if the godless hope for anything, then there is to them in the end as their portion, not the good they hoped for, but wrath (Pro 10:28, cf. Pro 11:4). However, that עברה is at once to be understood thus, as in יום עברה, and that the phrase is to be rendered: the hope of the godless is God’s wrath, is doubtful. But עברה denotes also want of moderation, and particularly in the form of presumption, Pro 21:24, Isa 16:6; and thus we gain the thought that the desire of the righteous is directed only to that which is good, and thus to an object that is attainable because well-pleasing to God, while on the contrary the hope of the godless consists only in the suggestions of their presumption, and thus is vain self-deceit. The punctuation תאות צדיקים is contrary to rule; correct texts have תאות צדיקים, for Dechî stands before Athnach only if the Athnach-word has two syllables (Torath Emeth, p. 43; Accentssystem, xviii. §4).
C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament, Proverbs 11:23. Public domain.
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