23:20

In this verse, the father now gives the advice that he commanded his son to listen to in 23:19. The parallel commands urge the son to avoid drunkenness and gluttony. Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

20a Do not join those who drink too much wine

20b or gorge themselves on meat,

There is an ellipsis in 23:20b. In some languages, it may be necessary to supply the missing verb and following phrase from 23:20a. For example:

20b and ⌊do not join those who⌋ gorge themselves on meat,

23:20a–b

Do not join: In Hebrew, this command is literally “Do not be among.” It has exactly the same form as the similar command in 22:26a–b. See the note there. The form of this command indicates that there are people who eat and drink too much. The son should not be one of those people.

those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat: In Hebrew, these parallel phrases are more literally “drunkards of wine” and “gluttons of meat.” In some languages, it may be more natural to use general terms. For example:

those who get drunk or eat too much food

Some ways to translate these parallel commands are:

• Advise the son not to associate with people who are drunkards and gluttons. Imply that he should not participate in these activities. For example:

Do not be of those who guzzle wine, or glut themselves on meat (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
Do not spend time among drunkards, among those who eat too much meat (NET Bible)

• Advise the son directly not to get drunk or eat too much. For example:

Don’t drink too much wine or eat too much food. (New Century Version)
-or-
Don’t be a heavy drinker or stuff yourself with food. (Contemporary English Version)

• Make explicit a situation in which people tend to get drunk and overeat. For example:

Do not carouse with drunkards or feast with gluttons (New Living Translation (2004))

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