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Proverbs 27:7
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Proverbs 27:7
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
7 The sated appetite spurns honey,
but to a ravenous appetite even the bitter is sweet.(A)
Proverbs 27:7
New English Translation
Proverbs 27:7
New English Translation
7 The one whose appetite[a] is satisfied loathes honey,
but to the hungry mouth[b] every bitter thing is sweet.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:7 tn Traditionally, “soul” (so KJV, ASV). The Hebrew text uses נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) here for the subject—the full appetite [“soul”]. The word refers to the whole person with all his appetites. Here its primary reference is to eating, but it has a wider application than that—possession, experience, education, and the like.
- Proverbs 27:7 tn Here the term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, traditionally, “soul”) is used again, now in contrast to describe the “hungry appetite” (cf. NRSV “ravenous appetite”), although “hungry mouth” might be more idiomatic for the idea. Those whose needs are great are more appreciative of things than those who are satisfied. The needy will be delighted even with bitter things.
Proverbs 27:19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Proverbs 27:19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
19 Just as water reflects the face,
so one human heart reflects another.
Proverbs 27:19
New English Translation
Proverbs 27:19
New English Translation
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Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:19 tn The verse is somewhat cryptic and so has prompted many readings. The first line in the MT has “As water the face to the face.” The simplest and most probable interpretation is that clear water gives a reflection of the face (cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). One creative but unconvincing suggestion is that of L. Kopf, who suggests the idea is “water of face” (a construct) and that it means shame or modesty, i.e., a face is not really human without shame, and a man without a heart is not human (“Arabische Etymologien und Parallelen zum Bibelwörterbuch,” VT 9 [1959]: 260-61).
- Proverbs 27:19 tn The second line has “so the heart of a man to a man” (cf. KJV, ASV). The present translation (along with many English versions) supplies “reflects” as a verb in the second line to emphasize the parallelism. sn In the parallelism this statement means that a person’s heart is the true reflection of that person. It is in looking at the heart, the will, the choices, the loves, the decisions, the attitudes, that people come to self-awareness.
Proverbs 27:21
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Proverbs 27:21
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
21 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
so a person is tested[a] by being praised.(A)
Footnotes
- 27.21 Heb lacks is tested
Proverbs 27:21
New English Translation
Proverbs 27:21
New English Translation
21 As the crucible is for silver and the furnace is for gold,[a]
so a person[b] must put[c] his praise[d] to the test.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:21 tn Heb “A crucible is for silver. A furnace is for gold. A person is for his [word of] praise.” The analogy is implicit and represented in translation by the comparatives “as” and “so.” A crucible and furnace are used to melt the metals, refining them or verifying their purity. Likewise, every person should test their praise.
- Proverbs 27:21 tn The Hebrew term אִישׁ (ʾish) often refers to a male, but can also mean a person, whether male or female.
- Proverbs 27:21 tn The Hebrew saying lacks a verb. The verbal phrase “must put to the test” was supplied in the translation in view of the analogy of testing or refining precious metals. Many English versions (NASB, NIV, ESV, NRSV) supply “is tested by” for the same reason. Whether the person is testing his praise or being tested by it depends on the structure of the saying and the prepositional phrase. The prepositional phrase says that the person is לְפִי (lefi), “for the mouth of” his praise. The noun פֶּה (peh) “mouth” can stand for “word,” i.e., what is spoken by the mouth, hence “the [spoken] word of his praise.” But also, the combination of ל (lamed) with פֶּה (peh) can mean “according to.” The other translations take the concept of testing from the first part of the line and join it to the gloss for לְפִי “according to.” However, לְפִי only means “according to” in the sense of “proportionate to” (cf. Exod 12:4; 16:16; Lev 27:16), not instrumentally, as in “by [means of].” Additionally, the proverb has three parts, each with noun plus lamed plus noun (or noun phrase). It is structurally consistent to view the crucible, the furnace, and the person as all having the same role of testing what follows the preposition lamed.
- Proverbs 27:21 tn Heb “his praise.” The pronominal suffix could be an objective genitive (about him, i.e., the praise he receives) or a subjective genitive (by him, i.e., the praise he gives). If intended to be an objective genitive, the proverb could mean two things. A person must test, sift through and evaluate, the praise he or she receives. Or a person must prove, verify by being worthy of, the word of praise he or she receives. If it is a subjective genitive, it means a person must refine, make valuable, the praise that he or she gives. Some commentators interpret a subjective genitive to mean that people stand revealed by what or how they praise (D. Kidner, Proverbs [TOTC], 168). But the structure of the saying positions the person as one performing a test, along with the crucible and the furnace.
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
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New English Translation (NET)
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