The praise of wisdom is continued: it brings blessings in the time of peace, and gives the victory in war.

5 A wise man is full of strength;

   And a man of understanding showeth great power.

6 For with wise counsel shalt thou carry on successful war;

   And safety is where counsellors are not wanting.

The ב of בּעוז (thus with Pathach in old impressions, Cod. 1294, Cod. Jaman., and elsewhere with the Masoretic note לית ומלא) introduces, as that of בכּח, Psalm 24:4, the property in which a person or thing appears; the article (cf. העזבים, Proverbs 2:13, Gesen, 35, 2A) is that of gender. The parallel מאמץ כח, a Greek translates by ὑπὲρ κραταιὸν ἰσχύΐ equals מאמּיץ כּח (Job 9:4; Isaiah 40:26). But after 5a it lies nearer that the poet means to express the power which lies in wisdom itself (Ecclesiastes 7:19), and its superiority to physical force (Proverbs 21:22); the lxx, Syr., and Targ. also, it is true, translate 5a as if מעז (prae potente) were the words used. אמּץ כּח means to strengthen the strength, and that is (Nahum 2:2) equivalent to, to collect the strength (to take courage), here and at Amos 2:14, to show strong (superior) strength. The reason is gathered from Proverbs 20:18 and Proverbs 11:14. The לך here added, Hitzig is determined to read תּעשׂה: for with prudent counsel the war shall be carried out by thee. The construction of the passive with ל of the subject is correct in Heb. (vid., at Proverbs 14:20) as well as in Aram.,

(Note: Vid., Nldeke's Neusyrische Gram. p. 219, Anm., and p. 416.)

and עשׂה frequently means, in a pregnant sense: to complete, to carry out, to bring to an end; but the phrase עשׂה מלחמה means always to carry on war, and nothing further. לך is the dat. commod., as in נלחם ל, to wage war (to contend) for any one, e.g., Exodus 14:14. Instead of ברב, the lxx reads בלב; regarding γεωργίου μεγάλου for מאמץ כח, without doubt a corrupt reading, vid., Lagarde.

Proverbs 24:11 Parallel Commentaries

1 Samuel 26:8,9 Then said Abishai to David, God has delivered your enemy into your hand this day: now therefore let me smite him, I pray you...

Job 29:17 And I broke the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth.

Psalm 82:4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.

Isaiah 58:6,7 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free...

Luke 10:31,32 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side...

Luke 23:23-25 And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified...

Acts 18:17 Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the chief ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat...

Acts 21:31,32 And as they went about to kill him, tidings came to the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar...

Acts 23:10,23 And when there arose a great dissension, the chief captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them...

1 John 3:16,17 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers...