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  • From: Gerry Folbre <gerry AT wetmountainvalley.us>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Proverbs 5:6
  • Date: Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:43:16 -0600

K Randolph wrote:
To All:
ארח חיים פן־תפלס נעו מעגלתיה לא תדע׃

Every time I read this, I stop and puzzle over it. And when I look at
translations, it is obvious that I am not the only one.

One option is that here we have a corrupted text.

Another that came to me this morning is that פן PN does not mean “lest”
rather it is the imperative of פנה PNH meaning “to face, turn towards”.

Any thoughts?

Karl W. Randolph.
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K Randolph:

Using the B-Hebrew “Transcription Guidelines” I have rendered a word-for-word translation of Proverbs 5:6

Proverbs 5:6

’RX = path XYYM = life PN lest {that not} TPLS = you constantly make smooth

N’W = they be unstable M’GLTYH = her courses of action L’ = not TD’ = you know:

The closest exposition to what I have rendered above is found in the KJV:

5:6 “Lest thou (you) shouldest ponder the path of life, her ways are moveable, /that/ thou (you) canst not know /them/” (KJV).

The Imperfect Piel 2^nd Person Singular Masculine Verb, TPLS, is literally translated “you constantly make smooth” {i.e. you continuously maintain the path of life). Therefore, the preceding conjunction PN would be correctly rendered “lest” (i.e. “that not”), for it is a warning, {if you do not maintain the path of life you will unknowingly fall victim to unstable courses of action}.
Gerry Folbre

P.S. How are you able to display the New Hebrew Fonts? I have tried, but they always turn into question marks = ???





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