Sunday, April 20, 2025

Proverbs 12:20

A few months ago, I read Proverbs 12 and noticed a chiasm in verse 20, although it isn't as precise as others I've found.  In the ESV, it's:
Deceit is in the heart of
those who devise evil,
but those who plan peace
have joy.
In an inverted way, "deceit is in the heart of" almost parallels "have joy," and likewise, "those who devise evil" sort of parallels "those who plan peace."  The opposite order in the structure (deceit | devise evil || plan peace | joy) matches these differences.

This structure is also in the Hebrew:
מִרְמָה בְּלֶב־חֹרְשֵׁי רָע וּֽלְיֹעֲצֵי שָׁלוֹם שִׂמְחָֽה׃
and in the Latin Vulgate:
dolus in corde
cogitantium mala
qui autem ineunt pacis consilia
sequitur eos gaudium