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Tuesday, July 22nd, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

Young's Literal Translation

Proverbs 22:20

Have I not written to thee three times With counsels and knowledge?

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Instruction;   Wisdom;  

Dictionaries:

- Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Israel, History of;   Proverbs, Book of;   Wisdom and Wise Men;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Proverbs, Book of;   Writing;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Prov'erbs, Book of;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Assemblies, Masters of;   Proverbs, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Ethics;   Gemaá¹­ria;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Haven’t I written for you thirty sayingsabout counsel and knowledge,
Hebrew Names Version
Haven't I written to you thirty excellent things Of counsel and knowledge,
King James Version
Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge,
English Standard Version
Have I not written for you thirty sayings of counsel and knowledge,
New American Standard Bible
Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,
New Century Version
I have written thirty sayings for you, which give knowledge and good advice.
Amplified Bible
Have I not written to you excellent things In counsels and knowledge,
World English Bible
Haven't I written to you thirty excellent things Of counsel and knowledge,
Geneva Bible (1587)
Haue not I written vnto thee three times in counsels and knowledge,
Legacy Standard Bible
Have I not written to you excellent thingsOf counsels and knowledge,
Berean Standard Bible
Have I not written for you thirty sayings about counsel and knowledge,
Contemporary English Version
I have written thirty sayings filled with sound advice.
Complete Jewish Bible
I have written you worthwhile things full of good counsel and knowledge,
Darby Translation
Have not I written to thee excellent things, in counsels and knowledge,
Easy-to-Read Version
I have written 30 sayings for you. These are words of advice and wisdom.
George Lamsa Translation
Behold, this is the third time that I have written them to you,
Good News Translation
I have written down thirty sayings for you. They contain knowledge and good advice,
Lexham English Bible
Have I not written for you thirty sayings with admonitions and knowledge?
Literal Translation
Have I not written to you yesterday and the day before with counsels and knowledge,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Haue not I warned ye very oft with councell and lerninge?
American Standard Version
Have not I written unto thee excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,
Bible in Basic English
Have I not put in writing for you thirty sayings, with wise suggestions and knowledge,
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Have not I written unto thee excellent things of counsels and knowledge;
King James Version (1611)
Haue not I written to thee excellent things in counsailes and knowledge:
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Haue not I warned thee very oft with counsayle and learning,
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And do thou too repeatedly record them for thyself on the table of thine heart, for counsel and knowledge.
English Revised Version
Have not I written unto thee excellent things of counsels and knowledge;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Lo! Y haue discryued it in thre maneres, in thouytis and kunnyng,
Update Bible Version
Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,
Webster's Bible Translation
Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge,
New English Translation
Have I not written thirty sayings for you, sayings of counsel and knowledge,
New King James Version
Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,
New Living Translation
I have written thirty sayings for you, filled with advice and knowledge.
New Life Bible
Have I not written to you great things of wise teaching and much learning
New Revised Standard
Have I not written for you thirty sayings of admonition and knowledge,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Have I not written for thee noble things, with counsels and knowledge:
Douay-Rheims Bible
Behold I have described it to thee three manner of ways, in thoughts and knowledge:
Revised Standard Version
Have I not written for you thirty sayings of admonition and knowledge,
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge,

Contextual Overview

17 Incline thine ear, and hear words of the wise, And thy heart set to my knowledge, 18 For they are pleasant when thou dost keep them in thy heart, They are prepared together for thy lips. 19 That thy trust may be in Jehovah, I caused thee to know to-day, even thou. 20 Have I not written to thee three times With counsels and knowledge? 21 To cause thee to know the certainty of sayings of truth, To return sayings of truth to those sending thee.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Proverbs 8:6, Psalms 12:6, Hosea 8:12, 2 Timothy 3:15-17, 2 Peter 1:19-21

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 4:5 - General Job 36:4 - in Psalms 49:3 - mouth Proverbs 4:2 - good Proverbs 16:20 - whoso

Cross-References

Genesis 11:26
And Terah liveth seventy years, and begetteth Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Genesis 11:29
And Abram and Nahor take to themselves wives; the name of Abram's wife [is] Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife [is] Milcah, daughter of Haran, father of Milcah, and father of Iscah.
Genesis 24:10
And the servant taketh ten camels of the camels of his lord and goeth, also of all the goods of his lord in his hand, and he riseth, and goeth unto Aram-Naharaim, unto the city of Nahor;
Genesis 24:15
And it cometh to pass, before he hath finished speaking, that lo, Rebekah (who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, wife of Nahor, brother of Abraham) is coming out, and her pitcher on her shoulder,
Genesis 24:24
And she saith unto him, `I [am] daughter of Bethuel, son of Milcah, whom she hath borne to Nahor.'
Genesis 31:53
the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, doth judge between us -- the God of their father,' and Jacob sweareth by the Fear of his father Isaac.
Proverbs 25:25
[As] cold waters for a weary soul, So [is] a good report from a far country.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Have not I written to thee excellent things,.... In the Scriptures. Some render it, "three things" c; and think that Solomon refers to the three divisions of the Scriptures among the Jews, the law, the prophets, and holy writings; so Jarchi; but some of those writings then were not: or to the three books wrote by him; the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs. Others render it, "in a threefold way" d, as the Targum and several versions; that is, in various ways, in different forms and styles, in order the better to inform and instruct. But it is best, with Kimchi, Gersom, and Ben Melech, to render it, "excellent things", as we do; such are the truths of the Gospel; they are more excellent than those that are only known by the light of nature, or by the law of Moses: such as suspect the love and grace of God; the person and offices of Christ; peace, pardon, righteousness, atonement, life and salvation, by him. And these are said to lie

in counsels and knowledge; in disclosing the counsels of God, according to which they are; in giving the best of counsels to men; to perishing sinners, to look to Christ for salvation; to naked ones, to buy of him white raiment, or the robe of his righteousness; to guilty and filthy ones, to apply to his blood for pardon and cleansing; to hungry and thirsty ones, to come unto him for food, the bread of life, and water of life; and to weary ones, to him for rest; and all to do their duty both to God and men: and they also respect knowledge; the knowledge of divine and heavenly things; the knowledge of God in Christ, and of his perfections, as displayed in his salvation; the knowledge of Christ, what he is in himself, what he has done for his people, and is unto them; and especially the knowledge of salvation by him; all which the Gospel is a means of.

c שלשים "terna", Montanus, Vatablus, so Jarchi. d τριαρως, Sept. "tripticiter", V. L. and Arabic version; "tribus vicibus", Baynus, Targum and Syriac version; "triplici filo et nexa", Schultens; "triplicata", Cocceius.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Excellent things - A meaning of the word derived from “the third,” i. e., “the chief of three warriors in a chariot” (compareExodus 14:7; Exodus 14:7 note). Another reading of the Hebrew text gives “Have I not written to thee long ago?” and this would form a natural antithesis to “this day” of Proverbs 22:19. The rendering of the Septuagint is: “write them for thyself three times;” that of the Vulgate, “I have written it (i. e., my counsel) In threefold form;” the “three times” or “threefold form” being referred either to the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, the Song of Solomon, or to the division of the Old Testament into the Law, the prophets, and the Hagiographa.


 
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