קֹ֣רֵֽץ עַ֭יִן יִתֵּ֣ן עַצָּ֑בֶת וֶאֱוִ֥יל שְׂ֝פָתַ֗יִם יִלָּבֵֽט׃
(Proverbs 10:10)
He who winks the eye causes grief, and a fool of lips will be confounded.
Hebrew Parallelism and Moral Contrast
Proverbs 10:10 presents a concise poetic couplet in which gesture and speech become mirrors of moral character. The verse unfolds through two parallel clauses, balancing action and consequence, insight and folly. The syntax reveals Hebrew poetry’s typical antithetic balance, with the first clause describing subtle deceit and the second highlighting foolish speech. The structure and morphology create an ironic tension—both the schemer and the fool bring trouble upon themselves and others.
Clause Division and Structure
The verse divides naturally into two balanced clauses:
- קֹרֵץ עַיִן יִתֵּן עַצָּבֶת — “He who winks the eye gives sorrow.”
- וֶאֱוִיל שְׂפָתַיִם יִלָּבֵט — “But a fool of lips will be ruined.”
The first clause uses a participial subject to depict a habitual deceiver; the second shifts to a nominal phrase describing the foolish speaker, resulting in poetic syntactic parallelism with semantic contrast.
Clause 1: Participial Agent and Causative Action
- קֹרֵץ — Qal participle masculine singular from קָרַץ, “to wink” or “to squint.” This participle functions as the subject of the clause, denoting a habitual or characteristic act.
- עַיִן — “eye,” functioning as the instrument or partitive object through which deceit is expressed.
- יִתֵּן — Qal imperfect 3rd masculine singular of נָתַן, “to give.” Here it carries a resultative nuance, meaning “to cause” or “to produce.”
- עַצָּבֶת — “sorrow,” “grief,” or “trouble,” serving as the direct object of the verb.
Thus, the syntax reads literally: “The one who winks (with the eye) gives sorrow.”
The participle suggests a continuing behavior, while the imperfect verb expresses consequence—deception leads to emotional or communal harm.
Clause 2: Nominal Phrase and Reflexive Downfall
- וֶאֱוִיל — “and a fool,” functioning as the subject of the second clause.
- שְׂפָתַיִם — “of lips,” a genitive of specification, describing the kind of fool—one characterized by reckless speech. The noun שְׂפָתַיִם is dual in form (“two lips”).
- יִלָּבֵט — Nifal imperfect 3rd masculine singular from לָבַט, meaning “to be ruined,” “to be overthrown,” or “to come to grief.”
The Nifal stem carries a reflexive or passive force, implying the fool’s downfall arises from his own words. The syntax encapsulates poetic justice—speech that brings its speaker to ruin.
Parallelism and Semantic Symmetry
Both clauses mirror one another:
| Clause | Subject Type | Verb | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| קֹרֵץ עַיִן יִתֵּן עַצָּבֶת | Participle (habitual deceiver) | Qal imperfect – “gives” | Emotional harm to others |
| וֶאֱוִיל שְׂפָתַיִם יִלָּבֵט | Nominal + construct phrase (“fool of lips”) | Nifal imperfect – “will be ruined” | Personal downfall |
The symmetry is deliberate: deceitful gestures bring grief outwardly, while foolish speech brings destruction inwardly.
Morphology Summary
- קֹרֵץ — Root: ק־ר־ץ; Form: Qal participle ms; Translation: “one who winks.”
- עַיִן — Noun feminine singular; Function: Instrumental object.
- יִתֵּן — Root: נ־ת־ן; Form: Qal imperfect 3ms; Translation: “he gives / causes.”
- עַצָּבֶת — Noun feminine singular; Translation: “sorrow / grief.”
- אֱוִיל — Noun masculine singular; Translation: “fool.”
- שְׂפָתַיִם — Noun dual construct; Translation: “of lips.”
- יִלָּבֵט — Root: ל־ב־ט; Form: Nifal imperfect 3ms; Translation: “he will be ruined / entangled.”
Syntax and Meaning: Irony Encoded in Grammar
The verse’s syntax employs chiastic inversion of cause and result:
- The first half: an outward act (winking) → external pain (sorrow).
- The second half: an inward act (speaking foolishly) → self-destruction (ruin).
Hebrew parallelism fuses gesture and speech as two faces of moral corruption. Both verbs in the imperfect aspect emphasize inevitability of consequence rather than simple futurity. The Nifal stem in יִלָּבֵט is particularly potent, grammatically enforcing the passive/reflexive nature of the fool’s collapse.
Thus, the verse forms a moral axiom in miniature: deceit and folly may seem trivial, but their syntactic consequences are profound—one injures others, the other destroys oneself.