Proverbs 22:26-27
New American Standard Bible
26 Do not be among those who (A)shake hands,
Among those who become guarantors for debts.
27 If you have nothing with which to repay,
Why should he (B)take your bed from under you?
Proverbs 22:26-27
New English Translation
26 Do not be one who strikes hands in pledge
or who puts up security for debts.
27 If you do not have enough to pay,
your bed[a] will be taken[b] right out from under you![c]
Footnotes
- Proverbs 22:27 tn The “bed” may be a metonymy of adjunct, meaning the garment that covers the bed (e.g., Exod 22:26). At any rate, it represents the individual’s last possession (like the English expression “the shirt off his back”).
- Proverbs 22:27 tn Heb “If you cannot pay, why should he take the bed from under you?” This rhetorical question is used to affirm the statement. The rhetorical interrogative לָמָּה (lammah, “why?”) appears in MT but not in the ancient versions; it may be in the Hebrew text by dittography.
- Proverbs 22:27 sn The third saying deals with rash vows: If people foolishly pledge what they have, they could lose everything (e.g., 6:1-5; 11:15; 17:18; 20:16; there is no Egyptian parallel).
Proverbs 22:26-27
New International Version
Saying 4
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