Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 23:2
put a knife--an Eastern figure for putting restraint on the appetite.
blockversewordysbillionaire.aiyourlistWhiteboardAppquizieunschoolblockversewordysbillionaire.aiyourlistWhiteboardAppquizieunschoolAnd put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite.
| Word | Hebrew | Strong’s | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| put | וְשַׂמְתָּ֣ ve.sam.Ta | H7760 | to put (used in a great variety of applications · conjunction + verb, qal sequential perfect, 2nd person masculine singular |
| knife | שַׂכִּ֣ין sa.Kin | H7915 | a knife (as pointed or edged) · noun, common masculine singular absolute |
| throat | בְּלֹעֶ֑ךָ be.lo.'E.kha | H3930 | the gullet · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 2nd person masculine singular |
| given | בַּ֖עַל Ba.'al | H1167 | a master · noun, common masculine singular construct |
| appetite | נֶ֣פֶשׁ Ne.fesh | H5315 | properly · noun, common feminine singular absolute |
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 from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
put a knife--an Eastern figure for putting restraint on the appetite.
And put a knife to thy throat,.... Refrain from too much talk at the table; give not too loose to thy tongue, but bridle it, considering in whose presence thou art; do not use too much freedom, either with the ruler or fellow guests; which, when persons have ate and drank well, they are too apt to do, and sometimes say things offensive to one or the other; it is good for a man to be upon his guard; see Ecclesiastes 5:2. Or restrain thine appetite; deny thyself of some things agreeable, that would lead thee to what might be hurtful, at least if indulged to excess: put as it were a knife unto thine appetite, and mortify it; which is the same as cutting off a right hand, or plucking out a right…
Read the whole note in the consolePro 22:29, which speaks of a high position near the king, is appropriately followed by a hexastich referring to the slipperiness of the smooth ground of the king's court. 1 When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, Consider well whom thou hast before thee. 2 And put thy knife to thy throat If thou art a man of good appetite. 3 Be not lustful after his dainties, Because it is deceitful food. The ל of ללחום is that of end: ad cibum capiendum, thus as one invited by him to his table; in prose the expression would be לאכל לחם; לחם, to eat, is poet., Pro 4:17; Pro 9:5. The fut. תּבין clothes the admonition in the form of a wish or counsel; the infin. intens. בּין makes it urgent: consider well him w…
Read the whole note in the consoleSaying 6: Many proverbs address young men in government service. A ruler’s rich fare might tempt a novice to overindulge through lack of self-control. But he will be vulnerable when sated.
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).
and you shall put a knife into your jaw Heb. בלועך, into your jaw. If you see that he is stingy, do not eat of his [food]. if you are a man with a hearty appetite If you are a glutton and long to eat, it is better that you thrust a knife between your teeth. Our Sages expounded this as referring to a disciple sitting before his teacher. If he knows that his teacher will give him an answer for everything he asks, let him investigate the subtle points and ask concerning his tradition, but if not, let him keep his peace.
Henry, Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, Clarke, Gill, Calvin and Keil & Delitzsch are in the public domain; Tyndale Open Study Notes © Tyndale House Publishers, CC BY-SA 4.0 — all from the Free Use Bible API (bible.helloao.org). Rashi: the Rosenbaum & Silbermann Pentateuch (public domain) and the Judaica Press and Metsudah Tanakh (CC BY), via Sefaria. Spurgeon's Treasury of David: public domain (lyteword's markdown edition, CC0).