Commentaire sur Les Proverbes 22:30

A name is chosen A good name above great wealth.

good favor over silver and gold Good favor is chosen.

the Lord is the Maker of them all When the poor man says to the rich man, “Sustain me,” and he answers him harshly, the Holy One, blessed be He, makes them new: this one poor and this one rich.

A cunning man saw harm The punishment for a sin, and hid, not committing the sin.

In the wake of humility Because of humility, fear of the Lord comes. Another explanation: Humility is the main attribute, and fear is secondary to it and a “heel” to it, a mat for its feet.

Troops [and] snares Heb. צנים, as in (Num. 33:55) “troops (לצנינים) in your sides”; (Ezek. 23: 24) “And they will come upon you, a band (הצן),” an expression of bands and brigands.

Troops and snares are hidden on the ways of the one who perverts his ways; i.e., torments are prepared for him.

he who preserves his soul will distance himself from them He who is upright in his deeds will be saved from them.

Train a child According to what you teach a child and train him in matters, either for good or bad, even when he grows old, he will not turn away from it.

Start to accustom the boy in his [early] years to the service of God through wisdom in things small and big; once he is accustomed to serving God well, when he grows old he will not stray [from the path] because his deeds will be enlightened.

A rich man will rule over the poor An ignoramus always needs a Torah scholar.

He who sows injustice will reap violence According to his sowing will be his reaping; according to his deed will be the reception of his reward.

and the rod of his wrath will fail The rod of his ear of grain will fail more and more [interpreting עברתו as עבור, grain]. Some say: The rod of his wrath with which he rules over people will become progressively lessened because he impairs his ability.

Banish a scorner The evil inclination.

He who loves one pure of heart with charm on his lips One whose lips have grace.

the King is his friend The Holy One, blessed be He, loves him and endears him.

The lazy man says, “There is a lion outside...” How will I go out to learn Torah?

The mouth of strange women is [like] a deep pit An idolatress.

the one abhorred by the Lord Heb. זעום. He whom the Holy One, blessed be He, hates, falls and stumbles upon her.

the one abhorred rebuked from before Him.

He who exploits a poor man to increase for himself money.

will give to a rich man He will ultimately give his money to the rich pagan kings, and it will be only to want.

Incline your ear and hearken to the words of the wise to learn the Torah from a sage of any stature.

and put your heart to my knowledge But if your teacher is wicked, do not learn from his deeds.

for it is pleasant It will be [pleasant] for you at a later time if you preserve them and hide them in your innards lest you forget them. Now when will they be preserved in your heart? When they are established on your lips, when you utter them with your mouth.

That your trust shall be in the Lord, I have made known to you I make known to you that you should trust in the Lord and engage in the Torah, and you shall not say, “How will I be idle from my work, and how will I earn a livelihood?”

Have I not written to you thirds The Torah, the Prophets, and the Hagiographa.

to make known to you the certainty I wrote thirds for you in order that you should understand from them the certainty of the true words.

to respond with words of truth to those who send you To those who ask you for instruction.

Do not rob a poor man Do not rob him because you see that he is poor and has no strength to resist you.

For the Lord will plead their cause and rob Heb. וקבע. And will rob the life.

those who rob them Heb. קבעים, those who rob them; in Aramaic קביעה means robbery. In tractate Rosh Hashanah (26b): A certain man came before him and said to him, “So-and-so robbed me (קבען)” etc.

Do not befriend Heb. תתרע, do not befriend, an expression of friendship (רעות)

lest you learn Heb. תאלף.

Do not be one of those who give their hands, who stand surety for debts Loans, as in (Deut. 24: 10), “When you lend you fellow [Jew] any item.”

Do not remove an ancient boundary Do not turn away from the custom of your forefathers. Our Sages of blessed memory said: If one places a basket under a vine at the time of vintage so that the fallen grapes should fall into it, concerning this was stated: “Do not remove an ancient boundary, etc.” remove Heb. תסג, as in (Ps. 129:5) “and shall draw backwards (ויסגו).”