Proverbs 10 Chapter Introduction

Structure and Formatting

Outline of Proverbs 10

General proverbs from Solomon contrasting the benefits of being righteous and wise with the trouble that comes to those who are wicked and foolish (10:1–32)

Chapter 10 starts a new section of the book, which is mainly filled with short, individual proverbs that were written by Solomon (10:1–22:16).

Translation Issues in This Chapter

Contrasting parallelism

Except for 10:10, 18, 22, and 26, all the proverbs in this chapter consist of two parallel clauses that contrast with each other.

Generic use of “righteous” and “wicked”

These proverbs often contrast the behavior of righteous people and wicked people. They usually refer to all righteous people simply as “the righteous” or “a righteous one.” In the same way, these proverbs often refer to all wicked people by saying, “the wicked” or “a wicked one.” Use a natural expression in your language that refers to any people who can be described in this way.