Proverbs 27:13

New English Translation

¹³Take a man’s^[a] garment when he has given security for a stranger,
and hold him in pledge on behalf of a stranger.^[b]

Proverbs 27:13 tn Heb “his garment.”
Proverbs 27:13 tn Or “for a strange (= adulterous) woman.” Cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NLT; NIV “a wayward woman.” The first noun זָר (zar) “stranger,” “foreigner” is masculine; the second term נָכְרִיָּה (nokhriyyah) “foreigner,” “stranger” is feminine, thus whether the stranger is a man or a woman. The terms do not have to mean a non-Israelite, just someone from outside the community and not well-known.sn This proverb is virtually identical to 20:16 which has a rare variant spelling of the initial imperative verb and has the masculine plural “strangers” as its Kethib reading, while matching 27:13 with the feminine singular “stranger” as its Qere reading.

Proverbs 27:13

American Standard Version

¹³Take his garment that is surety for a stranger;
And hold him in pledge that is surety for a foreign woman.

¹⁸The one who tends a fig tree^[a] will eat its fruit,^[b]
and whoever takes care of^[c] his master will be honored.

Proverbs 27:18 sn Tending fig trees requires closer attention than other plants; so the point here would be the diligent care that is required.
Proverbs 27:18 sn The principle is established in the first line with the emblem: Those who faithfully serve will be rewarded in kind. The second half of the proverb makes the point from this illustration.
Proverbs 27:18 sn The Hebrew participle translated “takes care of” (שֹׁמֵר, shomer) describes a careful watching over or looking after, a meticulous service, anticipating the needs and safeguarding the charge. Such a servant need not worry about his efforts going unrecognized and unrewarded (e.g., Prov 22:29; 2 Tim 2:6, 15).

¹⁸Whoso keepeth the fig-tree shall eat the fruit thereof;
And he that regardeth his master shall be honored.

²⁰As^[a] Death and Destruction are never satisfied,^[b]
so the eyes of a person^[c] are never satisfied.^[d]

Proverbs 27:20 tn The term “as” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation in light of the analogy.
Proverbs 27:20 sn Countless generations of people have gone into the world below; yet “death” is never satisfied—it always takes more. The line personifies Death and Destruction. It forms the emblem in the parallelism.
Proverbs 27:20 tn Heb “eyes of a man.” This expression refers to the desires—what the individual looks longingly on. Ecclesiastes Rabbah 1:34 (one of the rabbinic Midrashim) says, “No man dies and has one-half of what he wanted.”
Proverbs 27:20 tc The LXX contains a scribal addition: “He who fixes his eye is an abomination to the Lord, and the uninstructed do not restrain their tongues.” This is unlikely to be original.

²⁰Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied;
And the eyes of man are never satisfied.

New English Translation (NET)

American Standard Version (ASV)