Proverbs 29:10

English Standard Version

¹⁰Bloodthirsty men ^(A)hate one who is blameless
and seek the life of the upright.^[a]

Proverbs 29:10

New English Translation

¹⁰Bloodthirsty people^[a] hate someone with integrity;^[b]
as for the upright, they seek his life.^[c]

Proverbs 29:10 tn Heb “men of bloods.” The Hebrew word for “blood” is written in the plural to reflect the shedding of blood. So the expression “men of bloods” means people who shed blood—murderers, bloodthirsty men, or those who would not hesitate to commit murder in order to get what they want.
Proverbs 29:10 sn The Hebrew word describes the “blameless” or “innocent” who maintain integrity. The bloodthirsty despise people who insist on decency and integrity.
Proverbs 29:10 tn Heb “and the upright seek his life.” There are two ways this second line can be taken. (1) One can see it as a continuation of the first line, meaning that the bloodthirsty men also “seek the life of the upright” (cf. NIV, NRSV). The difficulty is that the suffix is singular but the apparent referent is plural. (2) One can take it is as a contrast: “but as for the upright, they seek his life”—a fairly straightforward rendering (cf. ASV). The difficulty here is that “seeking a life” is normally a hostile act, but it would here be positive: “seeking” a life to preserve it. The verse would then say that the bloodthirsty hate the innocent, but the righteous protect them (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 637; cf. NAB, NASB, TEV).

²⁷^(A)An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous,
but one whose way is straight is an abomination to the wicked.

²⁷An unjust person is an abomination to the righteous,
and the one who lives an upright life^[a] is an abomination to the wicked.

Proverbs 29:27 tn Heb “who is upright in the way” (so NASB; KJV and ASV are similar). Here “in the way” refers to the course of a person’s life, hence “who lives an upright life.” Cf. NAB “he who walks uprightly.”sn The proverb makes a simple observation on life: The righteous detest the wicked, and the wicked detest the lifestyle of the righteous. Each is troublesome to the beliefs and the activities of the other.

English Standard Version (ESV)

New English Translation (NET)