Core Glossary
Proverbs (Paj Lug) — Core Term Glossary, Hmong
A. Terms Reused Exactly from the Romans Baseline TM (permanent, non-negotiable)
| # | English Term | Hebrew (transliteration) | Hmong Rendering (exact, from baseline) | Risk | Chapters (Proverbs) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | God | Elohim | Vajtswv | Low | all | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 2 | LORD | YHWH | tus Tswv | Low | all | Baseline kyrios rendering extended to YHWH throughout, consistent with Romans’ OT-quotation convention (no divine-name substitution). |
| 3 | Righteous / Righteousness | tzaddik / tzedeq | tus ncaj ncees / kev ncaj ncees | Critical (Romans) / Medium in Proverbs | 2,3,4,10,11,12,14,15,20,21,25,28,29 | Cross-book note: in Romans this term is Critical because Hmong “ncaj ncees” defaults to an achieved moral quality, which risks collapsing forensic imputation into moralism. In Proverbs, that same “achieved practical righteousness” sense is the CORRECT sense (practical righteousness in daily life, one of this curriculum’s assigned doctrines) — teachers must explicitly distinguish Proverbs’ ethical-practical righteousness from Romans’ forensic-imputed righteousness, using the same lexeme for two genuinely different doctrinal registers. |
| 4 | Law (Mosaic/Divine) | torah (full covenantal sense) | Txoj Kevcai (ntawm Vajtswv / Mauxes) | Critical | 28 (v.4,7,9), 29 (v.18) | Reused ONLY where torah denotes the fuller divine/covenantal Law, not the father’s personal teaching (see term G below, kept lexically distinct). |
| 5 | Wrath/Anger (of God) | chemah, af (divine referent) | kev npau taws ntawm Vajtswv | High | (rare direct divine referent in Proverbs; mostly human anger, see below) | Human anger in Proverbs (15:1, 16:14, 19:11, 22:24, 29:22) uses bare npau taws WITHOUT the divine qualifier — kept lexically distinct per baseline convention. |
| 6 | Love | ahavah | kev hlub | Low | 3,10,17 | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 7 | Glory | kavod | lub yeeb koob | Low | 3,8,25 | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 8 | Hope | tiqvah | kev cia siab | Low | (implicit in blessing/future-orientation passages) | Baseline reuse; distinguish from term I (trust) below. |
| 9 | Mercy (compassion) | chesed (compassion sense) / rachamim | txoj kev khuv leej | Medium | 14 (v.21,31), 19 (v.17) | Baseline reuse; kept distinct from term K (hesed/covenant-loyalty sense) below. |
| 10 | Firstfruits | reshit | thawj phaus qoob loo / cov ua ntej | Low-Medium | 3 (v.9) | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 11 | Truth/Faithfulness | emet | qhov tseeb | Low | 3,8,12 | Baseline reuse; note added faithfulness/reliability nuance. |
| 12 | Peace | shalom | kev thaj yeeb | Low | 3 (v.2) | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 13 | Wise | chakam | txawj ntse | Low | throughout, esp. 10-29 | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 14 | Fool (hardened) | kesil | ruam | Low | 1,9,10,17,18,26 | Baseline reuse from Romans merism entry. |
| 15 | Ungodly / Honor (root) | asebēs (Rom.) / kabbed (Prov., positive use) | tus tsis hwm Vajtswv (negative) / hwm Vajtswv (positive, Proverbs) | Medium | 3 (v.9) | Baseline root reused; Proverbs applies it positively (“honor the LORD”). |
| 16 | Boasting | hitpa’er | kev khav theeb | Low | 25(v.14),27(v.1) | Baseline reuse exactly. |
| 17 | Blessing (material) | berakah | koob hmoov | High | 3(v.10,33),10(v.6,22),11(v.24-26) | Baseline reserves this term exclusively for ordinary material blessing — Proverbs is the primary context where that reservation is exercised. High risk in Proverbs specifically because the book’s retributive wisdom-order (wisdom/diligence/righteousness → material reward) sits directly on the Hmong offering-for-blessing exchange logic (fij dab); must be taught as covenant-order generosity, never mechanical ritual payment. |
| 18 | Heir/Inheritance (root) | — | tus qub txeeg qub teg | Low | (thematic, boundary-stone/inheritance ethics, ch.22) | Baseline reuse where applicable. |
B. New Terms Surfaced in Full-Book Proverbs Coverage (logged for TM-revision review)
| ID | English Term | Hebrew (transliteration) | Literal / Semantic Notes | Hmong Rendering | Risk | Chapters | Collision / Comprehension Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PR-A | Fear of the LORD | yir’at YHWH | reverential awe/covenant loyalty, not servile terror | kev hwm thiab ntshai Vajtswv | Critical | 1(v.7), 2(v.5), 3(v.7), 8(v.13), 9(v.10), 14(v.27), 15(v.33), 19(v.23), 31(v.30) | Anchor term for assigned doctrine “Fear of the LORD.” Direct collision with kev ntshai dab (servile fear of capricious spirits/ancestors); mandatory pairing with Leej Txiv (Father) and term PR-I (trust) to preserve filial-reverence sense. Forms the book’s opening (1:7) / closing (31:30) inclusio. |
| PR-B | Wisdom (abstract quality) | chokmah | skill, practical/moral discernment, cosmic order | tswvyim (generic) / tswvyim ntawm Vajtswv (qualified, theological sense) | High | throughout | Bare tswvyim also describes shrewd/cunning cleverness (including shamanic cunning); qualify with ntawm Vajtswv when the theological sense is intended, parallel to baseline’s hwjchim → Vajtswv hwjchim pattern. |
| PR-C | Wisdom Personified | chokmah (personified, fem.) | Wisdom as a speaking female figure, esp. ch.1, 8, 9 | Tus Tswvyim | Critical | 1(v.20-33), 3(v.19-20), 8(all), 9(v.1-6) | Female-personification collision risk with Hmong household/ancestral female spirit veneration (dab poj niam); must be taught as literary personification of God’s attribute, not an independent goddess. Christological typology at 8:22 flagged separately (PR-Q) for mandatory theologian review — do not resolve unilaterally. |
| PR-D | Folly Personified | ”Woman Folly” | structural foil to Wisdom Personified | Tus Ruam | High | 9(v.13-18) | Parallel personification strategy to PR-C; lower doctrinal stakes (unambiguously negative), but same collision-avoidance logic applies. |
| PR-E | Discipline / Correction | musar | fatherly correction, training, chastening | kev qhuab ntuas | High | 3(v.11-12), 13(v.24), 19(v.18), 22(v.6,15), 23(v.13-14), 29(v.15,17) | Must be explicitly distinguished from ancestor/spirit punishment-for-ritual-offense framework; mandatory pairing with Leej Txiv fatherhood imagery (cf. 3:12). |
| PR-F | Reproof / Rebuke | tokhachat | verbal correction, paired with musar | kev thuam qhia / kev ntuas | Medium | 3(v.11) | Paired term with PR-E; same teaching-note requirement. |
| PR-G | Teaching/Instruction (parental) | torah (parental sense) | father’s/mother’s accumulated wisdom-teaching | kev qhia (ntawm niam thiab txiv) | Medium | 1(v.8), 3(v.1), 4(v.2), 6(v.20), 7(v.2), 13(v.14) | Deliberately kept lexically distinct from Txoj Kevcai (ntawm Vajtswv/Mauxes) (term A.4) to prevent collapsing parental instruction into Mosaic Law. |
| PR-H | Commandments (parental) | mitzvot | household precepts/directives | tej lus samhwm | Medium | 3(v.1), 4(v.4), 6(v.20,23), 7(v.1-2) | Paired with PR-G; same distinctness rationale. |
| PR-I | Trust (in the LORD) | batach | relational reliance/security | cia siab rau tus Tswv | Critical | 3(v.5), 16(v.3), 18(v.11), 28(v.25-26), 29(v.25) | Anchor term for assigned doctrine “Trust in the LORD’s Providence.” Distinct from baseline kev ntseeg (faith) and kev cia siab (hope). Object tus Tswv must never be dropped, parallel to baseline’s kev xaiv / kev cawm dim mandatory-anchor pattern. |
| PR-J | Understanding / Discernment | tebunah / binah | insight, discernment | kev nkag siab | Medium | 2(v.2,3,6,11), 3(v.5) | Comprehension-level idiom (“entering the liver/heart”); no traditional-religion collision. |
| PR-K | Steadfast Love / Covenant Loyalty | hesed | loyal, covenant-bound kindness | kev hlub ruaj khov | Medium-High | 3(v.3) | Kept lexically distinct from both baseline kev hlub (agapē) and txoj kev khuv leej (eleos/mercy) to preserve the covenant-loyalty nuance unique to hesed. |
| PR-L | Favor (relational goodwill) | chen | grace/favor/goodwill, same root underlying much LXX charis vocabulary | kev pom zoo thiab txais yuav | Medium | 3(v.4,34), 29(v.26) | MUST NOT be rendered txiaj ntsim (reserved, Critical, for salvific grace in the Romans baseline) — explicit teaching note required to prevent doctrinal blending between this-life relational favor and forensic saving grace. |
| PR-M | Simple / Naive person | peti | untaught, easily led astray | tus tsis paub qab hau | Medium | 1(v.4,22), 9(v.4,16) | Distinct sub-category from the hardened fool (kesil, baseline ruam). |
| PR-N | Scoffer / Mocker | letz | one who scorns correction | tus thuam luag | Medium | 1(v.22), 9(v.7-8), 29(v.8) | Comprehension-level distinction from kesil and peti. |
| PR-O | Wicked (person) | rasha | one who lives contrary to God’s order | tus siab phem | Low-Medium | 2(v.22),10-29 throughout | Mirrors baseline unrighteousness root. |
| PR-P | Diligence / Diligent | charuts | industriousness, hard work | kev nquag | Low | 6, 10(v.4), 12(v.24,27), 13(v.4), 21(v.5), 24(v.30-34), 27(v.23-27), 28(v.19), 30(v.24-28), 31(v.10-31) | Anchor term for “Diligence versus Sloth” doctrine; existing positive Hmong agrarian value, no collision. |
| PR-Q | Sluggard / Sloth | ’atzel | habitually lazy person | tus tub nkeeg | Low | 6(v.6-11), 10(v.4,26), 19(v.15,24), 20(v.4), 24(v.30-34), 26(v.13-16) | Direct negative foil to PR-P; anchor term for same doctrine. |
| PR-R | Tongue / Power of Speech | lashon / peh | speech as instrument of life or death | nplaig / lus hais | High | 6(v.17), 10(v.19-21), 12(v.18-19), 13(v.3), 15(v.1-4), 18(v.21), 25(v.11), 26(v.20-22) | Anchor term for “Speech and Self-Control” doctrine. Collision risk: Hmong folk belief in spiritual efficacy of spoken curses/blessings (verbal-magic framework); must be taught as ethical-relational wisdom, not incantational power. |
| PR-S | Self-Control | ma’tzor le-rucho (“restraint of spirit”) | self-mastery, restraint of inner disposition | kev tswj lub siab | High | 25(v.28) | Second anchor term for “Speech and Self-Control” doctrine; must be taught as Spirit-enabled character formation, not stoic willpower or ritual charm. |
| PR-T | Proverb | mashal | pithy comparative saying | paj lug | Low | 1(v.1,6), 10(title), 22(v.17), 25(title) | Strong positive cultural bridge — coincides with the existing Hmong oral-proverb tradition and the established Hmong Bible book-title for Proverbs itself. |
| PR-U | Strange / Adulterous Woman | ishah zarah / nokriyah | woman outside covenant marriage; also Folly’s foil-figure | tus poj niam txawv | Medium | 2(v.16), 5, 6(v.20-35), 7, 9(v.13-18) | Comprehension/register note; no direct traditional-religion collision, but structurally paired with PR-D (Folly Personified). |
| PR-V | The LORD’s Providence / Sovereign Purpose | ’atzat YHWH and related (16:9, 16:33, 19:21, 20:24, 21:1) | God’s personal governance of events, plans, and human hearts | Vajtswv txoj kev tswj fwm txhua yam | Critical | 3(v.6), 15(v.3,11), 16(v.3,9,33), 19(v.21), 20(v.24), 21(v.1) | Anchor term for “Trust in the LORD’s Providence” doctrine. Must use personal, purposeful, volitional phrasing; hmoov-family fate/fortune vocabulary is PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN for this term, identical prohibition-logic to the baseline’s election_choose entry. |
| PR-W | Casting Lots | goral | ancient sanctioned decision-mechanism (Urim/Thummim-adjacent) | rho ntawv xaiv | High | 16(v.33) | Collision risk with ongoing Hmong divinatory practice; must be taught as affirming God’s sovereignty over a historically-bounded biblical practice, not endorsing divination today. |
| PR-X | Excellent / Capable Wife | ’eshet chayil | woman of moral strength and practical competence | tus poj niam muaj tswvyim thiab txawj ua haujlwm | Medium | 31(v.10-31) | Character-portrait genre; must not be taught as tying worth to productivity/output (avoid merit/prosperity misapplication). |
| PR-Y | Poor / Needy | ’ani / evyon | economically vulnerable persons | cov pluag / cov txom nyem | Low | 14(v.21,31), 19(v.17), 22(v.22), 28(v.27), 29(v.7), 31(v.8-9) | Generic, stable term; no collision. |
| PR-Z | Honest Weights/Measures | even shelemah | fair commercial dealing | teev taus ncaj ncees | Low | 11(v.1), 20(v.10,23) | Comprehension-level only. |
| PR-AA | Envy | qin’ah | covetous resentment | kev khib | Low | 23(v.17), 24(v.1,19) | Generic, stable term; no collision. |
| PR-AB | Talebearer / Gossip | nirgan | contentious whisperer/rumor-spreader | tus hais lus xyov qab hau | Medium | 26(v.20,22) | Part of the PR-R (speech) family; minor collision potential with curse-speech belief, primarily ethical-relational. |
| PR-AC | Word of God (reliability) | imrat Eloah | the tested/pure reliability of God’s speech | Vajtswv Tej Lus | Low-Medium | 30(v.5) | Distinct from baseline Vaj Lug Kub (Scripture-as-canon); denotes God’s spoken reliability generally. |
| PR-AD | Tree of Life | etz chayyim | Eden-echoing wisdom-blessing image | tsob ntoo ntawm txoj sia | Low-Medium | 3(v.18) | Distinguish this-life flourishing image from baseline’s eschatological eternal_life entry (txoj sia nyob mus ib txhis). |
| PR-AE | House (built by wisdom/folly) | bayit | domestic/household structure, metaphor for a well- or ill-ordered life | lub tsev | Low | 9(v.1,14), 14(v.1), 24(v.3) | Generic architectural metaphor; no collision. |
C. Flagged for Mandatory Human Theologian Review (per 12_ai_translation_requirements.md §9 escalation rules)
| Flag | Location | Issue | Required Action |
|---|---|---|---|
[TRANSLATOR REVIEW NEEDED: Wisdom's poured-out spirit] | Proverbs 1:23 | Personified Wisdom offers to “pour out her ruach (spirit)” — must not be conflated with Vaj Ntsuj Plig (Holy Spirit, baseline-reserved) or bare ntsuj plig (human soul, baseline-reserved). | Human theologian must approve a wisdom-specific periphrasis before any curriculum content is finalized. |
[TRANSLATOR REVIEW NEEDED: qanah at 8:22, Christological typology] | Proverbs 8:22 | ”The LORD possessed/brought me forth” — historic debate between literary-personification and proto-Christological (Logos) readings. | Human theologian must approve final rendering and any typological teaching-note language; do not resolve unilaterally in generated content. |
D. Governing Note
This glossary extends, and does not contradict, assets/translation_memory.json. Section A entries are permanent per the Romans baseline and must be reused character-for-character. Section B entries are newly surfaced in this Proverbs full-book coverage pass and are not yet permanent TM entries — they require the same formal TM-revision review process described in 12_ai_translation_requirements.md §10 before any Section B rendering may be treated as fixed and non-negotiable across future Hmong curricula.
Critical Risk Terms
Holy Spirit
Approved rendering: Vaj Ntsuj Plig
Transliteration: pneuma hagion (baseline reservation)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: bare ntsuj plig — rejected, denotes an animistic wandering human soul, applying this term to Wisdom’s ‘poured-out spirit’ (Prov 1:23) — PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN, would conflate personified Wisdom’s rhetorical self-offering with the divine Person of the Holy Spirit
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited here as a mandatory exclusion boundary: Proverbs 1:23’s ‘I will pour out my spirit’ (personified Wisdom speaking) must never borrow this fixed collocation.
Grace
Approved rendering: txiaj ntsim
Transliteration: charis (baseline reservation)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: koob hmoov — PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN for this sense, using this term for Proverbs’ chen (‘favor,’ 3:4, 3:34, 29:26) — FORBIDDEN, would blend this-life relational favor with forensic salvific grace
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as a mandatory exclusion boundary: Proverbs’ relational-favor term (chen, see favor_relational_goodwill below) must never be rendered with this word, and this word must never be rendered with koob hmoov.
Justify Reckon As Righteous
Approved rendering: ua kom ncaj ncees / raug suav tias ncaj ncees
Transliteration: dikaioō / logizomai (baseline)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: applying this forensic phrase to Proverbs’ practical-righteousness passages — FORBIDDEN, would import Romans’ imputation doctrine where Proverbs teaches lived, cultivable conduct instead
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as a mandatory exclusion boundary: this fixed forensic-imputation phrase must NEVER appear in Proverbs curriculum content describing practical righteousness, to keep the two books’ doctrinal registers distinct.
Reckon Impute
Approved rendering: suav / suav tias
Transliteration: logizomai (baseline)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited for the same cross-book boundary reason as justify_reckon_as_righteous above.
Law Mosaic Divine
Approved rendering: Txoj Kevcai (ntawm Vajtswv / Mauxes)
Transliteration: nomos (baseline); torah (full covenantal sense, Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: bare ‘Txoj Kevcai’ without qualifier — rejected, collapses into kev cai dab qhuas (ancestral spirit-worship customs), using this term for the father’s personal teaching (torah, parental sense) in Prov 1:8, 3:1, 4:2, 6:20, 7:2, 13:14 — FORBIDDEN, must use teaching_instruction_parental instead
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Mandatory qualifier at every occurrence without exception. Reserved EXCLUSIVELY for Proverbs 28:4,7,9 and 29:18, where torah denotes the fuller Mosaic/covenantal sense; never for the book’s dominant parental-instruction sense (see teaching_instruction_parental below), even though both share the same Hebrew root.
Election Choose
Approved rendering: kev xaiv (Vajtswv xaiv raws li nws lub siab nyiam)
Transliteration: eklogē / eklegomai (baseline)
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Rejected alternatives: hmoov (impersonal fate/fortune) vocabulary — PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as the identical structural prohibition-pattern that governs lords_providence_sovereign_purpose below: personal, volitional divine-action phrasing is mandatory; hmoov-family vocabulary is forbidden by the same logic.
Propitiation Atoning Sacrifice
Approved rendering: qhov theej txhoj kev txhaum
Transliteration: hilastērion (baseline)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: transliterated loanword — rejected, bare ‘qhov theej’ without sufficiency qualifier — rejected
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as the third leg of the reusable fij-disambiguation fence: Proverbs 21:27 must never be taught as touching atonement mechanics; that domain belongs exclusively to this term.
Fear Of The Lord
Approved rendering: kev hwm thiab ntshai Vajtswv
Transliteration: yir’at YHWH
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: bare ‘ntshai’ alone — FORBIDDEN, identical to kev ntshai dab (servile dread of capricious, ritually-appeasable ancestor/nature spirits), any rendering omitting the ‘hwm’ (honor) component — rejected, would collapse filial reverence into pure dread
PROVISIONAL, new (Proverbs-introduced), pending formal TM-revision review. Anchor term for this doctrine and the book’s opening/closing inclusio (1:7/31:30). Mandatory co-occurrence with father_god (Leej Txiv) and trust_in_the_lord within the same teaching unit to establish filial, trust-filled covenant awe rather than spirit-appeasement dread.
Wisdom Personified
Approved rendering: Tus Tswvyim
Transliteration: chokmah (personified, grammatically feminine)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: a transliterated proper name (e.g., Hebraized ‘Kokmah’ loanword) — rejected, would increase goddess-collision risk by sounding like an imported deity-name, presenting Wisdom as an independent divine/semi-divine being to be venerated or petitioned — PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN
PROVISIONAL, new. Female personification of a divine attribute (chs. 1, 8, 9) risks syncretistic assimilation into Hmong household/ancestral female-spirit veneration (dab poj niam). ‘Tus’ classifier marks a distinct literary/rhetorical referent, parallel to the baseline’s ‘Vaj’ prefix strategy for the Holy Spirit — never an independent goddess-being. The Christological typology of 8:22 is separately flagged (see wisdom_qanah_brought_forth below) and must not be resolved unilaterally.
Wisdoms Poured Out Spirit
Approved rendering: [TRANSLATOR REVIEW NEEDED] — provisional periphrasis only: nws txoj kev txawj ntse thiab kev qhuab ntuas
Transliteration: ruchi (“my spirit”, Wisdom’s own spirit/disposition)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: Vaj Ntsuj Plig — FORBIDDEN, reserved exclusively for the Holy Spirit, bare ntsuj plig — FORBIDDEN, reserved for the human soul
NOT a permanent TM entry. Proverbs 1:23: personified Wisdom offers to ‘pour out her spirit’ on those who heed her reproof. No safe existing Hmong term exists; every candidate collides with a reserved baseline entry. Mandatory human theologian sign-off required before any permanent rendering may be adopted.
Wisdom Qanah Brought Forth
Approved rendering: [TRANSLATOR REVIEW NEEDED] — provisional only: Vajtswv tau muaj kuv nyob ntawm nws thaum chiv keeb
Transliteration: qanah (“possessed/brought forth/acquired/begot”)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: an overly-strong ‘begot’ rendering — rejected, risks unwarranted ontological claims, an overly-weak ‘made’ rendering — rejected, risks denying Wisdom’s intimate priority
NOT a permanent TM entry. Proverbs 8:22, the single most doctrinally sensitive verse in the Wisdom-Personified material, historically debated between a literary-personification reading and a proto-Christological (Logos) reading. Mandatory human theologian review required before any curriculum content is finalized on this verse; must not be resolved unilaterally.
Trust In The Lord
Approved rendering: cia siab rau tus Tswv
Transliteration: batach
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Rejected alternatives: bare ‘cia siab’ with the object dropped — FORBIDDEN in every context including titles/headers/quiz options, conflation with kev ntseeg (faith) or kev cia siab (hope) — rejected, must remain a distinct term
PROVISIONAL, new. Anchor term for this doctrine (3:5, 16:3, 18:11, 28:25-26, 29:25). The explicit object ‘tus Tswv’ must never be dropped, structurally identical to the baseline’s mandatory-anchor pattern for election_choose and salvation_save.
Lords Providence Sovereign Purpose
Approved rendering: Vajtswv txoj kev tswj fwm txhua yam
Transliteration: ‘atzat YHWH and related formulas
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Rejected alternatives: hmoov-family (impersonal fate/fortune) vocabulary — PERMANENTLY FORBIDDEN, identical prohibition logic to election_choose
PROVISIONAL, new. Anchor term for this doctrine (3:6; 15:3,11; 16:3,9,33; 19:21; 20:24; 21:1). Must always be rendered with personal, purposeful, volitional phrasing (an Agent actively directing), never impersonal-mechanism phrasing, or it collapses into Hmong hmoov fatalism.
Barns Filled Vats Bursting
Approved rendering: koj tej txhab qoob yuav muaj puv nkaus, thiab koj tej thoob cawv yuav puv nyoos
Transliteration: sova / tirosh (3:10)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: presenting 3:9-10 as a formulaic ritual-payment guarantee — FORBIDDEN
PROVISIONAL, new. The core passage’s specific blessing-collision clause (3:10), paired directly with 3:9’s firstfruits-giving. Elevated to Critical (above the general blessing_material High tier) because it sits inside the core passage itself and most directly mirrors fij dab exchange logic; mandatory human theologian review for any content generated on 3:9-10 as a unit.
High Risk Terms
Human Spirit Soul
Approved rendering: ntsuj plig
Transliteration: pneuma (anthropological); ruach (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: Vaj Ntsuj Plig — forbidden for this referent
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as the second exclusion boundary for Proverbs 1:23: Wisdom’s ‘poured-out spirit’ must not be rendered with this term either, since it is not a human soul. See wisdoms_poured_out_spirit entry below (flagged, no permanent rendering yet).
Wrath Of God
Approved rendering: kev npau taws ntawm Vajtswv
Transliteration: orgē theou (baseline); chemah/af (divine referent, Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: unqualified ‘npau taws’ for a divine referent — rejected, associated with capricious spirit/ancestor anger without explicit contrast teaching, applying this qualified phrase to Proverbs’ ordinary human-anger verses (15:1, 16:14, 19:11, 22:24, 29:22) — FORBIDDEN, see human_anger_non_divine below
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Rare as a direct divine referent in Proverbs; the fencing pattern developed for this term (never bare when divine, always bare when human) is the reusable template applied to fear_of_the_lord below.
Living Sacrifice
Approved rendering: khoom fij uas muaj txoj sia nyob
Transliteration: thysia zōsa (baseline)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: unqualified ‘fij’ identical to offering language for ancestors/spirits — rejected
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as part of the reusable fij-disambiguation fence applied to Proverbs 21:27’s ‘sacrifice of the wicked’ (see sacrifice_ritual_offering_sincerity below).
Power
Approved rendering: hwjchim
Transliteration: dynamis (baseline)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: bare, unqualified hwjchim — FORBIDDEN, identical to a shaman’s ritual power
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as the structural template for the mandatory qualifier pattern applied to wisdom_abstract_quality below (bare tswvyim -> qualified Vajtswv txoj tswvyim, paralleling bare hwjchim -> Vajtswv hwjchim).
Salvation Save
Approved rendering: kev cawm dim / cawm
Transliteration: sōtēria / sōzō (baseline)
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as the structural template for the mandatory-object-anchor rule applied to trust_in_the_lord below (never a bare ‘cia siab’ without ‘rau tus Tswv,’ paralleling never a bare ‘cawm’ without ‘Yexus Khetos’).
Wisdom Abstract Quality
Approved rendering: tswvyim (generic) / Vajtswv txoj tswvyim (qualified, theological sense)
Transliteration: chokmah
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: bare, unqualified tswvyim in theological contexts — must be qualified, since bare tswvyim also names shrewd/cunning cleverness including shamanic cunning
PROVISIONAL, new. Mandatory qualifier ‘ntawm Vajtswv’ (or explicit co-text anchoring to tus Tswv) whenever the God-given theological sense is intended, structurally parallel to the baseline’s hwjchim -> Vajtswv hwjchim pattern (see power above). Bare form permitted only when Proverbs itself is critiquing self-reliant ‘wisdom in one’s own eyes’ (3:7, 26:12).
Folly Personified
Approved rendering: Tus Ruam
Transliteration: ishah kesiluth (“Woman Folly”, interpretive construct)
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
PROVISIONAL, new. Direct structural foil to wisdom_personified (9:13-18); same female-personification collision-avoidance logic, though unambiguously negative with no Christological-typology question attached.
Discipline Correction
Approved rendering: kev qhuab ntuas
Transliteration: musar
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: framing paralleling ancestor/spirit punishment-for-ritual-offense — rejected
PROVISIONAL, new. Fatherly correction/training, not punitive vengeance (3:11-12, 13:24, 19:18, 22:6,15, 23:13-14, 29:15,17). Mandatory pairing with father_god (Leej Txiv) imagery, especially at the 3:11-12 cross-reference, to preserve the loving, formative sense.
Tongue Power Of Speech
Approved rendering: nplaig / lus hais
Transliteration: lashon / peh
Doctrine: Speech and Self-Control
Rejected alternatives: allowing 18:21 to stand without a mandatory teaching note — rejected, risks assimilation into the magical-speech/verbal-curse framework
PROVISIONAL, new. Anchor term for this doctrine (6:17, 10:19-21, 12:18-19, 13:3, 15:1-4, 18:21, 25:11, 26:20-22). Hmong traditional religion holds spoken words (formal curses/blessings) to have direct ritual/spiritual efficacy; must be taught as ethical-relational wisdom, never incantational power.
Lying Tongue
Approved rendering: nplaig dag
Transliteration: lashon sheqer
Doctrine: Speech and Self-Control
PROVISIONAL, new. Subset of tongue_power_of_speech; one of the seven things the LORD hates (6:17); same collision risk and teaching-note requirement.
Self Control
Approved rendering: kev tswj lub siab
Transliteration: ma’tzor le-rucho (“restraint of spirit”)
Doctrine: Speech and Self-Control
Rejected alternatives: framing as stoic willpower alone — rejected, framing as ritual/charm-based self-mastery — rejected
PROVISIONAL, new. Second anchor term for this doctrine (25:28, ‘like a city broken into, without walls’). Must be taught as Spirit-enabled moral self-governance, not ritual technique, cross-referencing the baseline’s sanctification/renewal_of_the_mind categories pedagogically (not lexically).
Casting Lots
Approved rendering: rho ntawv xaiv
Transliteration: goral
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Rejected alternatives: a transliterated loanword — rejected, would be opaque and prevent the necessary contrast-teaching, presenting this as validating ongoing divinatory practice today — FORBIDDEN
PROVISIONAL, new. Ancient, divinely-sanctioned decision-mechanism (16:33). Direct collision risk with ongoing Hmong divinatory practice (consulting spirits/omens); mandatory teaching note that this affirms God’s sovereignty over a historically-bounded, sanctioned ancient mechanism only.
Blessing Material
Approved rendering: koob hmoov
Transliteration: berakah
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: txiaj ntsim — FORBIDDEN, reserved exclusively for salvific grace per the Romans baseline
PROVISIONAL, new formal Proverbs entry exercising the reservation already noted in the Romans baseline’s grace entry. Material prosperity/abundance associated with righteousness and generosity (3:10,33; 10:6,22; 11:24-26). High risk specifically here because Proverbs’ retributive wisdom-order sits directly on the Hmong offering-for-blessing exchange logic (fij dab, fij xwm kab); mandatory teaching note: covenant-order generosity flowing from a Father’s free favor, never mechanical ritual payment.
Sacrifice Ritual Offering Sincerity
Approved rendering: khoom fij
Transliteration: zevach
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: implying ritual offering is automatically efficacious regardless of heart-condition — rejected, the opposite of 21:27’s point, conflation with fij dab shamanic appeasement offerings — rejected
PROVISIONAL, new. Reuses the baseline’s existing three-way fij fence (living_sacrifice / propitiation_atoning_sacrifice / fij dab) without adding new vocabulary. Proverbs 21:27 (‘the sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination’) is a heart-sincerity critique of ritual, not an atonement-mechanics text.
Healing To Flesh
Approved rendering: kev noj qab nyob zoo rau koj lub cev
Transliteration: marpe
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: framing as a claim of miraculous/ritual cure — rejected, would be assimilated into shamanic healing (ua neeb kho mob)
PROVISIONAL, new. Wisdom’s holistic-life-blessing idiom (3:8); direct collision risk with shamanic ritual-efficacy healing framework mediated by spirits; mandatory teaching note distinguishing this general wisdom-idiom for whole-life flourishing from ritual healing practice.
Medium Risk Terms
Faith Believe
Approved rendering: kev ntseeg / ntseeg
Transliteration: pistis / pisteuō (baseline term, cited for boundary purposes)
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as a boundary term: Proverbs’ batach-based ‘trust in the LORD’ (3:5) is a distinct concept from this generic belief/faith verb and must not be collapsed into it; see trust_in_the_lord below.
Mercy
Approved rendering: txoj kev khuv leej
Transliteration: eleos (baseline); chesed/rachamim (compassion sense, Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: txiaj ntsim used interchangeably — rejected, mercy and grace are distinct emphases
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Used for compassion to the poor/needy (14:21,31; 19:17). Kept distinct from steadfast_love_covenant_loyalty (hesed) below.
Righteousness Of God Righteous
Approved rendering: Vajtswv txoj kev ncaj ncees / tus ncaj ncees
Transliteration: dikaiosynē theou / dikaios (baseline); tzaddik/tzedeq (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: bare ‘kev ncaj ncees’ without any doctrinal register marker — rejected in BOTH directions: in Romans it must be paired with the reckoning qualifier to avoid moralism; in Proverbs the achieved/practiced sense is CORRECT and must not be taught as forensic imputation
Inherited from Romans package (rendering copied exactly), but re-tiered from Critical (Romans) to Medium (Proverbs) per the cross-book register note: in Proverbs this lexeme’s ‘achieved, practiced’ sense is the theologically correct sense (Practical Righteousness in Daily Life), the OPPOSITE default-correctness of its Romans (forensic-imputed) sense. Every Proverbs lesson using this term must include the cross-book disambiguation note distinguishing Loos (Romans, legal standing by faith) from Paj Lug (Proverbs, practiced daily-life conduct flowing from wisdom).
Ungodly
Approved rendering: tus tsis hwm Vajtswv
Transliteration: asebēs (baseline); root shared with kabbed (Hebrew, ‘to honor/make heavy’)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Its root (‘hwm Vajtswv,’ to honor God) is reused positively in Proverbs 3:9; see honor_the_lord_positive below.
Conscience
Approved rendering: tej kev paub zoo paub phem hauv lub siab
Transliteration: syneidēsis (baseline)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Anchors the lub siab (‘liver,’ seat of moral awareness) idiom reused throughout Proverbs for heart_seat_of_will below.
Will Of God
Approved rendering: Vajtswv lub siab nyiam
Transliteration: thelēma theou (baseline)
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Shares the lub siab idiom reused across Proverbs’ heart vocabulary; reinforces Providence teaching alongside lords_providence_sovereign_purpose below.
Fear Of Man
Approved rendering: kev ntshai tib neeg
Transliteration: pachad
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: conflating this with fear_of_the_lord — rejected, must remain lexically and doctrinally distinct
PROVISIONAL, new. Ordinary anxious dread of people/circumstance (29:25), the negative foil to trust in the LORD. Deliberately left without the ‘hwm’ component and without divine object, unlike fear_of_the_lord.
Reproof Rebuke
Approved rendering: kev thuam qhia / kev ntuas
Transliteration: tokhachat
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
PROVISIONAL, new. Paired term with discipline_correction (3:11); same teaching-note requirement whenever it occurs independently.
Teaching Instruction Parental
Approved rendering: kev qhia (ntawm niam thiab txiv)
Transliteration: torah (parental sense)
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: Txoj Kevcai (ntawm Vajtswv / Mauxes) — FORBIDDEN for this referent, reserved exclusively for the fuller Mosaic/covenantal Law sense
PROVISIONAL, new. The father’s/mother’s accumulated wisdom-teaching (1:8, 3:1, 4:2, 6:20, 7:2, 13:14), deliberately kept lexically distinct from law_mosaic_divine despite sharing the same Hebrew root torah.
Commandments Parental
Approved rendering: tej lus samhwm
Transliteration: mitzvah
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
PROVISIONAL, new. Household precepts (3:1, 4:4, 6:20,23, 7:1-2), paired with teaching_instruction_parental; same distinctness rationale from law_mosaic_divine.
Understanding Discernment
Approved rendering: kev nkag siab
Transliteration: tebunah / binah
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
PROVISIONAL, new. Insight/discernment (2:2,3,6,11; 3:5); must be taught alongside trust_in_the_lord so autonomous self-reliant understanding is shown as insufficient without trust in the LORD, not that understanding itself is condemned.
Favor Relational Goodwill
Approved rendering: kev pom zoo thiab txais yuav
Transliteration: chen
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: txiaj ntsim — FORBIDDEN, reserved exclusively for salvific grace in the Romans baseline
PROVISIONAL, new. This-life relational favor/good reputation before God and people (3:4, 3:34, 29:26), NOT the forensic soteriological grace term. Mandatory teaching note preventing doctrinal blending across the two books.
Simple Naive Person
Approved rendering: tus tsis paub qab hau
Transliteration: peti
Doctrine: The Contrast of the Wise and the Fool
Rejected alternatives: flattening into ‘ruam’ (hardened fool) for economy — rejected, erases the book’s three-tier taxonomy
PROVISIONAL, new. The untaught, easily-led-astray person (1:4,22; 9:4,16), a distinct sub-category from the hardened fool.
Scoffer Mocker
Approved rendering: tus thuam luag
Transliteration: letz
Doctrine: The Contrast of the Wise and the Fool
Rejected alternatives: flattening into ‘ruam’ for economy — rejected, same taxonomic-flattening risk
PROVISIONAL, new. One who scorns correction (1:22; 9:7-8; 29:8); maintain lexical distinctness from simple_naive_person and the hardened fool.
Talebearer Gossip
Approved rendering: tus hais lus xyov qab hau
Transliteration: nirgan
Doctrine: Speech and Self-Control
PROVISIONAL, new. One who spreads contentious rumor (26:20,22); part of the tongue_power_of_speech family, primarily ethical-relational with minor collision potential.
Strange Adulterous Woman
Approved rendering: tus poj niam txawv
Transliteration: ishah zarah / nokriyah
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. A woman outside covenant marriage (2:16; 5; 6:20-35; 7; 9:13-18); also functions as folly_personified’s foil-figure. Comprehension/register note, not a traditional-religion collision.
Excellent Capable Wife
Approved rendering: tus poj niam muaj tswvyim thiab txawj ua haujlwm
Transliteration: ‘eshet chayil
Doctrine: Diligence versus Sloth
Rejected alternatives: tying a woman’s worth to productivity/output — rejected, avoids merit/prosperity misapplication
PROVISIONAL, new. Character-portrait genre (31:10-31), Doctrine 6’s climactic positive anchor; must be taught as an exemplary portrait of embodied wisdom/diligence, not a worth-by-output formula.
Guard Your Heart
Approved rendering: tsom kwm koj lub siab, vim txoj sia tuaj ntawm ntawd los
Transliteration: lev / mishmar (4:23)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: implying the heart is a literal source of magical life-force — rejected, must not overlap with animistic ntsuj plig/soul concepts
PROVISIONAL, new. ‘Guard your heart, for from it flow the springs of life’ (4:23); positive teaching bridge, no collision, but requires care not to suggest a magical life-force reading.
Length Of Days Years Of Life
Approved rendering: hnub nyoog ntev thiab txoj sia ntev
Transliteration: orekh yamim u-shenot chayyim
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: presenting this as an ironclad transactional guarantee — rejected, must be taught as a general wisdom-order pattern per the canonical counterweight of Job/Ecclesiastes
PROVISIONAL, new. Covenant-blessing longevity formula (3:2); must avoid prosperity-gospel drift.
Low Risk Terms
God
Approved rendering: Vajtswv
Transliteration: Elohim
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Rejected alternatives: Ntuj (impersonal sky/heaven) — rejected, lacks personal deity sense, dab (spirit) — rejected, denotes false/lesser spirit
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Relevant to every Proverbs doctrine as the ultimate referent of ‘the LORD’ (YHWH), wisdom’s source, and the object of fear, trust, and honor.
Lord
Approved rendering: tus Tswv
Transliteration: YHWH (rendered via the established kyrios baseline)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Rejected alternatives: Divine-name substitution (e.g. sectarian ‘Yehauvas’) — permanently forbidden, inherited prohibition
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly, extended to render YHWH throughout Proverbs (nearly every occurrence of ‘the LORD’ in the book). No divine-name substitution permitted.
Father God
Approved rendering: Leej Txiv
Transliteration: av (illustrative human-father analogy extended to divine Fatherhood)
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Mandatory teaching-pairing term for Proverbs 3:7 (fear of the LORD) and 3:11-12 (discipline), where the LORD’s fatherly correction and reverential fear must be taught together to prevent collision with servile spirit-dread.
Love
Approved rendering: kev hlub
Transliteration: agapē (baseline); ahav (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Used in Proverbs 3:12 (the LORD’s love expressed in discipline) and 10:12, 17:17 (human friendship-love). Kept lexically distinct from steadfast_love_covenant_loyalty (hesed) below.
Hope
Approved rendering: kev cia siab
Transliteration: elpis (baseline); tiqvah (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Must be kept distinct from trust_in_the_lord (batach) below.
Truth
Approved rendering: qhov tseeb
Transliteration: alētheia (baseline); emet (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. In Proverbs 3:3 this term also carries the added ‘faithfulness/reliability’ nuance (paired with hesed), not only factual truth.
Peace
Approved rendering: kev thaj yeeb
Transliteration: eirēnē (baseline); shalom (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Occurs in Proverbs 3:2 as a promised fruit of wisdom.
Glory
Approved rendering: lub yeeb koob
Transliteration: doxa (baseline); kavod (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Occurs in Proverbs 3:35, 8:18, 25:2.
Boasting
Approved rendering: kev khav theeb
Transliteration: kauchēsis (baseline); hitpa’er (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: The Contrast of the Wise and the Fool
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Occurs in Proverbs 25:14, 27:1 (do not boast of tomorrow).
Heir
Approved rendering: tus qub txeeg qub teg
Transliteration: klēronomos (baseline)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Thematic resonance with Proverbs’ boundary-stone/inheritance ethics (ch.22).
Merism Greeks Barbarians Wise Unwise
Approved rendering: cov Kilis thiab cov neeg txawv teb chaws, cov txawj ntse thiab cov ruam
Transliteration: Hellēsin te kai barbarois, sophois te kai anoētois (baseline)
Doctrine: The Contrast of the Wise and the Fool
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Proverbs reuses only the ‘wise’ (txawj ntse) / ‘unwise/fool’ (ruam) portion of this merism as the anchor terms for the Wise/Fool contrast doctrine throughout chs. 1-29.
Eternal Life
Approved rendering: txoj sia nyob mus ib txhis
Transliteration: zōē aiōnios (baseline)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Rejected alternatives: applying this eschatological term to Proverbs’ ‘tree of life’ imagery (3:18, 11:30, 13:12, 15:4) — rejected, see tree_of_life below
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as a mandatory exclusion boundary distinguishing Proverbs’ this-life wisdom-flourishing imagery from the New Testament’s eschatological eternal life.
Scripture
Approved rendering: Vaj Lug Kub
Transliteration: graphē (baseline)
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Cited as a mandatory exclusion boundary: Proverbs 30:5’s ‘every word of God is pure/tested’ denotes the reliability of God’s spoken word generally, not Scripture-as-canon; see word_of_god_reliability below, which must remain a distinct term.
Diligence
Approved rendering: kev nquag
Transliteration: charuts
Doctrine: Diligence versus Sloth
PROVISIONAL, new. Anchor term for this doctrine; existing positive Hmong agrarian value with no traditional-religion collision, but must be taught in tension with 23:4-5’s warning against toiling merely for riches, to avoid prosperity-adjacent misapplication.
Sluggard Sloth
Approved rendering: tus tub nkeeg
Transliteration: ‘atzel
Doctrine: Diligence versus Sloth
PROVISIONAL, new. Direct negative foil to diligence; anchor term for the same doctrine (6:6-11, 10:4,26, 19:15,24, 20:4, 24:30-34, 26:13-16).
Proverb
Approved rendering: paj lug
Transliteration: mashal
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Rejected alternatives: a transliterated Hebrew loanword (e.g. ‘Mishlei’) for the book title — rejected, would sever the book from an already-successful native-genre bridge
PROVISIONAL, new. Strong positive cultural bridge to the existing rich Hmong oral-proverb tradition; also the established Hmong Bible book title for Proverbs itself (1:1,6; 10 title; 22:17; 25 title).
Poor Needy
Approved rendering: cov pluag / cov txom nyem
Transliteration: ‘ani / evyon
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Economically vulnerable persons (14:21,31; 19:17; 22:22; 28:27; 29:7; 31:8-9); stable, generic term.
Honest Weights Measures
Approved rendering: teev taus ncaj ncees
Transliteration: even shelemah
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Fair commercial dealing (11:1; 20:10,23); comprehension-level only.
Envy
Approved rendering: kev khib
Transliteration: qin’ah
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Covetous resentment (23:17; 24:1,19); stable, generic term.
House Built By Wisdom Or Folly
Approved rendering: lub tsev
Transliteration: bayit
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
PROVISIONAL, new. Domestic/household structure used metaphorically for a well- or ill-ordered life (9:1,14; 14:1; 24:3); generic architectural metaphor, no collision.
Riddle Numerical Proverb
Approved rendering: lus qhia zais
Transliteration: chidah
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
PROVISIONAL, new. Literary device using enumerated ‘X things’ patterns (30:15-33); genre-label only, no doctrinal weight.
Heart Seat Of Will
Approved rendering: lub siab
Transliteration: lev
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
PROVISIONAL, new (formalizes a lexeme already implicit in baseline conscience/will_of_god entries). The inner organ regarded as seat of will/thought/moral disposition, parallel to Hmong siab (‘liver’); used throughout Proverbs, esp. 3:1, 3:3, 4:23.
Bind Write On Tablet Of Heart
Approved rendering: muab khaws cia rau hauv lub siab
Transliteration: figurative internalization metaphor, echoing Deut 6:8
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Descriptive, non-literal rendering (3:3); comprehension gap only (no Hmong body-binding custom equivalent), requires an explanatory footnote, not a doctrinal fix.
Low-Medium Risk Terms
Firstfruits
Approved rendering: thawj phaus qoob loo / cov ua ntej
Transliteration: aparchē (baseline); reshit (Hebrew equivalent)
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Inherited from Romans package, copied exactly. Central to Proverbs 3:9 (‘honor the LORD with… the firstfruits of all your produce’), the core passage’s blessing-collision verse; must be read jointly with the mandatory teaching note attached to blessing_material below.
Human Anger Non Divine
Approved rendering: npau taws
Transliteration: chemah / af (non-divine referent)
Doctrine: The Fear of the Lord as the Beginning of Wisdom
Rejected alternatives: adding the ‘ntawm Vajtswv’ qualifier to human-anger verses (15:1, 16:14, 19:11, 22:24, 29:22) — FORBIDDEN, this is the one context where the qualifier must be deliberately withheld
PROVISIONAL, new. Deliberately left bare/unqualified since the referent is ordinary human temper, not divine wrath; teaching note required so students do not over-apply the qualifier rule from wrath_of_god.
Wicked Person
Approved rendering: tus siab phem
Transliteration: rasha
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Mirrors the baseline unrighteousness root; the antithetic foil to the righteous throughout chs. 10-29.
Word Of God Reliability
Approved rendering: Vajtswv Tej Lus
Transliteration: imrat Eloah
Doctrine: General / Cross-cutting
Rejected alternatives: Vaj Lug Kub (Scripture-as-canon) used interchangeably — rejected, denotes a different referent
PROVISIONAL, new. The tested/pure reliability of God’s spoken word generally (30:5), distinct from Scripture as corpus/canon.
Tree Of Life
Approved rendering: tsob ntoo ntawm txoj sia
Transliteration: etz chayyim
Doctrine: Wisdom Personified
Rejected alternatives: txoj sia nyob mus ib txhis (eternal_life) used interchangeably — rejected, conflates this-life flourishing imagery with eschatological eternal life
PROVISIONAL, new. Eden-echoing image applied to wisdom, righteousness, and a gentle tongue (3:18; 11:30; 13:12; 15:4); must be distinguished in teaching from eternal_life.
Honor The Lord Positive
Approved rendering: hwm Vajtswv
Transliteration: kabbed
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Positive counterpart to ungodly’s root (3:9, ‘honor the LORD with your wealth’); comprehension-level note only, directly feeding the core-passage blessing collision (see blessing_material and barns_filled_vats_bursting below).
Good Success
Approved rendering: kev txawj ntse thiab tau ntsej muag zoo
Transliteration: sekhel tov
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
PROVISIONAL, new. Good judgment/sound reputation (3:4); comprehension-level only.
Medium-High Risk Terms
Steadfast Love Covenant Loyalty
Approved rendering: kev hlub ruaj khov
Transliteration: hesed
Doctrine: Practical Righteousness in Daily Life
Rejected alternatives: kev hlub (agapē) used interchangeably — rejected, loses covenant-loyalty nuance, txoj kev khuv leej (eleos/mercy) used interchangeably — rejected, loses covenant-loyalty nuance
PROVISIONAL, new. Loyal, covenant-bound kindness (3:3), deliberately distinct from both baseline love and mercy entries; paired with truth (emet) at 3:3.
Lords All Seeing Eyes
Approved rendering: Vajtswv qhov muag saib txhua qhov
Transliteration: ‘eynei YHWH
Doctrine: Trust in the Lord’s Providence
Rejected alternatives: framing as impersonal cosmic surveillance/fate-tracking — rejected
PROVISIONAL, new. Sub-entry of the providence family (15:3, 15:11); must be taught jointly with father_god (Leej Txiv) imagery as a caring Father’s attentiveness, not surveillance.