to separate mentally (or distinguish) · preposition + verb, hiphil infinitive construct
proverb
מָ֭שָׁלMa.shol
H4912
properly · noun, common masculine singular absolute
interpretation
וּמְלִיצָ֑הu.me.li.Tzah
H4426
an aphorism · conjunction + noun, common feminine singular absolute
words
דִּבְרֵ֥יdiv.Rei
H1697
a word · noun, common masculine plural construct
wise
חֲ֝כָמִ֗יםcha.kha.Mim
H2450
wise · adjective, masculine plural absolute
sayings
וְחִידֹתָֽםve.chi.do.Tam
H2420
a puzzle · conjunction + noun, common feminine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Psalms 78:2 I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old:
Mark 4:11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are…
Psalms 49:4 I will incline mine ear to a parable: I will open my dark saying upon the harp.
Acts 8:30-31 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
Hebrews 5:14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and…
Mark 4:34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
Ecclesiastes 12:11 The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.
Matthew 13:10-17 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 1:1-6
We have here an introduction to this book, which some think was prefixed by the collector and publisher, as Ezra; but it is rather supposed to have been penned by Solomon himself, who, in the beginning of his book, proposes his end in writing it, that he might keep to his business, and closely pursue that end. We are here told,
I. Who wrote these wise sayings, Pro 1:1. They are the proverbs of Solomon. 1. His name signifies peaceable, and the character both of his spirit and of his reign answered to it; both were peaceable. David, whose life was full of troubles, wrote a book of devotion; for is any afflicted? let him pray. Solomon, who lived quietly, wrote a book of instruction; for when th…
To understand--so as to . . . such will be the result.
interpretation--(Compare Margin).
words of the wise--(Compare Pro 1:2).
dark sayings--(Compare Psa 49:4; Joh 16:25; and see Introduction, Part I).
John Gill on Proverbs 1:6
To understand a proverb, and the interpretation,.... This may be connected either with the first verse, "the proverbs of Solomon", &c. are written, as for the above ends and purposes, so for these; or with Proverbs 1:5, a wise and understanding man, by hearkening and attending to what is here delivered, will not only attain to wise counsels, but to the understanding of proverbial sayings, and to see into the "elegancy" (m), the eloquence and beauty of them, as the word signifies; and be able to interpret them to others in a clear, plain, way and manner;
the words of the wise, and their dark sayings; the words and doctrines, not of the wise philosophers and sages of the Heathen world, but of…
The external title, i.e., the Synagogue name, of the whole collection of Proverbs is משׁלי (Mishle), the word with which it commences. Origen (Euseb. h. e. vi. 25) uses the name Μισλώθ, i.e., משׁלות, which occurs in the Talmud and Midrash as the designation of the book, from its contents. In a similar way, the names given to the Psalter, תּהלּים and תּהלּות, are interchanged.
This external title is followed by one which the Book of Proverbs, viewed as to its gradual formation, and first the older portion, gives to itself. It reaches from Pro 1:1 to Pro 1:6, and names not only the contents and the author of the book, but also commends it in regard to the service which it is capable of render…
The Church Fathers
He will comprehend a proverb and a parable, etc. This humility was given to the disciples by the wisdom that taught them in the flesh so that they could understand both its parables, which the crowds could not comprehend, and the enigmas of the prophets and the law, that is, the obscure sayings that they would spiritually perceive and elucidate for their listeners. And also to the succeeding teachers of the Church, the same secrets of spiritual understanding were unlocked to those who sought and knocked earnestly.
It is universally admitted that the name of "proverb," in its scriptural use, is not applied with regard to the evident sense, but is used with a view to some hidden meaning, as the Gospel thus gives the name of "proverbs" to dark and obscure sayings; so that the "proverb," if one were to set forth the interpretation of the name by a definition, is a form of speech which, by means of one set of ideas immediately presented, points to something else which is hidden, or a form of speech which does not point out the aim of the thought directly, but gives its instruction by an indirect signification.
We must observe that not every time something is named "darkness" is it taken in a bad sense; there are times when it has also been used in a good sense. It is because the heterodox did not make this distinction that they accepted the most irreverent doctrines concerning the Creator and withdrew from him and abandoned themselves to the fictions of myths. We must now point out, therefore, how and when the term darkness is understood in a good sense.Darkness, storm clouds and thunderstorms are said to surround God in Exodus, and in Psalm 17 it says, God "made darkness his hiding place, his tent around him, dark water in the clouds of the air." … But if someone takes offense at such interpretations, let him be persuaded both from the dark sayings and the dark, hidden, invisible treasures given to Christ by God.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Parable — (Gr. parabole), a placing beside; a comparison; equivalent to the Heb. mashal, a similitude. In the Old Testament this is used to denote (1) a proverb (1 Sam. 10:12; 24:13; 2 Chr. 7:20), (2) a…
Young Men · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Proverbs help the wise person to understand riddles. Here the Hebrew word (khidoth) indicates enigmas or paradoxes—difficult sayings that require interpretation (cp. Judg 14:14).
Rashi on Proverbs 1:6
to understand an allegory and a figure That they should direct their attention to understand the verses through two methods: the allegory and the figure. They should understand what he compares to the figure, but they should not neglect the figure itself, for that, too, requires understanding. When he states, “To save you from a strange woman and a foreign one” (2:16), idolatry is meant; this is the allegory, and also the figure—for he expressed his allegory in terms of a woman—should be understood by it, [meaning that] you shall beware of a strange woman (other editions: a harlot).
the words of the wise and their riddles Those who interpret the Torah metaphorically, full verses and ellipti…
