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Proverbs 18:19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Proverbs 18:19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
19 An ally offended is stronger than a city;[a]
such quarreling is like the bars of a castle.
Footnotes
- 18.19 Gk Syr Vg Tg: Meaning of Heb uncertain
Proverbs 18:19
New English Translation
Proverbs 18:19
New English Translation
19 A relative[a] offended[b] is harder to reach than[c] a strong city,
and disputes are like the barred gates[d] of a fortified citadel.[e]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 18:19 tn Heb “brother,” but this is not limited to actual siblings (cf. NRSV “an ally”; CEV, NLT “friend”).
- Proverbs 18:19 tn The Niphal participle from פָּשַׁע (pashaʿ) modifies “brother”: a brother transgressed, offended, sinned against.
- Proverbs 18:19 tc The LXX has a clear antithetical proverb here: “A brother helped is like a stronghold, but disputes are like bars of a citadel.” Accordingly, the editors of BHS propose מוֹשִׁיעַ (moshiaʿ) instead of נִפְשָׁע (nifshaʿ, so also the other versions and the RSV). But since both lines use the comparison with a citadel (fortified/barred), the antithesis is problematic. tn The phrase “is harder to reach” is supplied in the translation on the basis of the comparative מִן (min). It is difficult to get into a fortified city; it is more difficult to reach an offended brother.
- Proverbs 18:19 tn Heb “bars,” but this could be understood to mean “taverns,” so “barred gates” is employed in the translation.
- Proverbs 18:19 sn The proverb is talking about changing a friend or a relative into an enemy by abuse or strife—the bars go up, as it were. And the “walls” that are erected are not easily torn down.
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
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New English Translation (NET)
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