Proverbs 17:24


24 Wisdom is directly in front of
tn The verse begins with אֶת־פְּנֵי מֵבִין (ʾet pene mevin), “before the discerning” or “the face of the discerning.” The particle אֶת here is simply drawing emphasis to the predicate (IBHS 182-83 §10.3.2b). Cf. NIV11 “A discerning person keeps wisdom in view.”
the discerning person,
but the eyes of a fool run
tn The term “run” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for the sake of clarification.
to the ends of the earth.
sn To say that “the eyes of the fool run to the ends of the earth” means that he has no power to concentrate and cannot focus his attention on anything. The language is hyperbolic. Cf. NCV “the mind of a fool wanders everywhere.”
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