ציטירנדיקער פּירוש אויף משלי 17:22

It is written in Proverbs 12:8, “A man is praised according to his intelligence; but he that is of a distorted understanding shall be despised.” According to the commentaries,⁶⁰See Rashi ad. loc. “shall be despised,” is connected to the phrase, “he that possesses a distorted understanding.” [However], according to this interpretation], the end of the verse is not parallel to the beginning of the verse, [since the beginning of the verse deals with a proportional nature, that a man is praised according to the level of his intelligence, and then it states that if he is of “distorted understanding he shall be despised,” which is not proportional].⁶¹The Netziv is arguing that the manner in which this verse is being translated does not conform to the style of Proverbs, which employs parallelism. See Introduction to Proverbs by the Soncino Press, which summarizes the different forms of parallelism used in Proverbs: 1. Synonymous – the second clause repeating the thought of the first clause in different words. For example: “The evil bow before the good, and the wicked at the gates of the righteous” (14:19); 2. Antithetic – the second clause presents a contrast to the first. For example: “A merry heart is a good medicine, but a broken spirit dries the bones” (17:22); 3. Synthetic – the second clause continues the thought of the first. For example: “It is the discretion of a man to be slow to anger, and it is his glory to pass over a transgression” (19:11); 4. Comparative – the point of the lesson is made clear by the use of comparison. For example: “As vinegar to the teeth and as smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to them who send him” (10:26). Rather, the verse’s proper interpretation is that “shall be despised” is connected to “according to his intelligence,” and this is how the verse should be translated: [“A man is praised according to his intelligence; but when combined with distorted understanding, he shall be despised.”]⁶²It is an aphorism written in the synthetic style. In other words, he who possesses a distorted understanding and distorts the law due to personal motives will be despised proportional to his intelligence. The greater one is [in intellect,] the more he can mislead others, for he brings down the strongholds [of the Torah] by trusting in his [superior] intellect.⁶³This last statement is a play on the words used in Prov. 21:22, “A wise man scales the city of the mighty and brings down the stronghold wherein it trusts.”

Her hand reached (tishlachenah) for the tent pin: It is like tishlach (the singular conjugation, and not the plural, which tishlachenah would otherwise be). And the [final letters] nun and hay are extra - as [in] (Judges 3:23), "misdaronah"; (Judges 3:22), "parshedonah" - even though this is not customary. And my master, my father, may his memory be blessed, explained,"tishlachenah," [as] her [left] hand and her right hand sent out (such that the verb is understandably conjugated in the plural) for the tent pin and the hammer. She required her left hand for the tent peg; and her right, for the hammer. And it attributed sending to the hands because they performed the act. And similar to this is (Ecclesiastes 2:10), "And everything that my eyes requested"; (Proverbs 7:11), "her feet did not reside at home"; (Psalms 78:72) "and he led them with the skill of his palms." But if you say that tishlachenah is singular, there is no need for all this. As the explanation is that her [left] hand and her right hand were extended for the sake of the tent peg and the hammer. And my teacher, my brother, Rabbi Moshe, may his memory be blessed, explained it [as] lacking (though having the meaning as if it had) the comparative [letter] kaf - as [in] (Proverbs 17:22), "A joyful heart is brightness," the understanding of which is, "is like brightness." And likewise did he explain, "her hand," [as,] "like her hand." And it is in the way of a question: Since it stated (Judges 5:24), "More blessed than women is Yael," it said that she is more fitting for blessing than other women, as she did this powerful act that other women do not do. For acts of power are not done by women, but rather by men. Hence it said by way of a question, "Do the other women send out [their hands] - like her hand - for the tent peg, and the right hand for the worker's hammer (halmut)?" And halmut is the name of the tool with which working craftsmen strike.