PROV 19:22 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 10:1–22:16: This is the main collection of Solomon’s proverbs

This section is the main collection of Solomon’s proverbs. It has a very different structure from the longer poetic lectures of chapters 1–9. It consists mostly of individual couplets (two-line poems) that are each one verse in length. With the exception of the title (10:1a), paragraph breaks will not be indicated in the Notes or Display. You may of course choose to start each proverb as a separate paragraph in your translation.

In chapters 10–15, most of these one-verse couplets express a contrast between the two lines. One of the more common contrasts is between the righteous/wise and the wicked/foolish and the different consequences of their conduct.

In chapters 16:1–22:16, more topics are discussed. There is more emphasis on the role of the king and other leaders. In these chapters, there are few proverbs with contrasting lines. Some of the parallel lines are similar in meaning. More frequently, the second line adds to what the first line says or gives an example. Most of the verses have no obvious connection with the previous or following proverbs.UBS (page 214), Fox (page 509), McKane (page 413). Many scholars, including McKane, point out that there are some topical groupings as well as poetic connections. These include the repetition of certain words or sounds. This observation does not deny the individual nature of most of the proverbs in this Section.

Two of the types of proverbs in this section are not found in chapters 1–9. One type contains logical reasoning from the lesser to the greater. See 11:31 for a list of these proverbs. There are also several varieties of complex “better than” proverbs. The most common have a contrasting situation in each line (see 12:9). For other varieties, see 16:16, 19:1, and 21:9.

Many of the proverbs in this section refer to categories of people who share a common trait. For example, they refer to the righteous, the wise, the poor, and the lazy. In Hebrew, some verses use singular forms to refer to these groups of people. Other verses use plural forms. Still others use a combination of singular and plural. See the note on 10:30a–b for one example. For most of these verses, the Notes will not comment on the difference between singular and plural forms. Use a natural way in your language to refer to one or more people who are in the same category.

Many of the proverbs in this section express a general principle in abstract terms. They are not addressed specifically to the readers. For example, 10:2a–b says:

Ill-gotten treasures are of no value,

but righteousness delivers from death.

However, the author intended his readers to understand these proverbs as advice that they should follow. In some languages, authors or speakers give advice more directly, using pronouns such as you^(sing), you^(plur), we^(dual), or we^(incl). See the note on 10:2 for translation suggestions.

Some other headings for this section are:

Proverbs of Solomon (NIV)

The Wise Words of Solomon (NCV)

Here are many wise things that Solomon said

19:22

This verse does not have parallel parts.

^22aThe desire of a man is loving devotion;

^22bbetter to be poor than a liar.

The overall meaning is that people desire faithful love in their relationships with one another. Therefore, it is better to be poor and maintain a loving relationship than to tell lies in order to gain wealth, thereby breaking that relationship.

19:22a

The desire of a man is loving devotion;

It is desirable for a person to show love/kindness to his fellowmen and to be faithful/loyal to them.
What we^(incl) desire in a person is that he be loyal and loving/kind to others.

The desire of a man is loving devotion: In Hebrew, this clause is literally “the desire of a man is his ḥesed.” This clause has at least two ambiguities:There is also a textual issue. The LXX has “fruit” in place of “desire” in the MT. See Fox (page 658) for more details. None of the versions used in preparing these Notes followed this textual option.

The word desire can be understood with a good meaning or with a bad meaning.
Hebrew has two words spelled as ḥesed. The more common word means “unfailing love.” The other means “disgrace.”As listed in NIDOTTE (H2875), the word that means “disgrace” occurs three times in the OT, once in Proverbs (14:34). The word that means “unfailing love” (H2876) occurs 238 times in the OT, ten times in Proverbs.

These ambiguities have resulted in two main interpretations of this clause:

The word desire has a good meaning. The word ḥesed that is used here means “unfailing love.” For example:
What is desired in a man is steadfast love (ESV) (BSB, CEV, ESV, GW, KJV, NASB, NCV, NET, NIV, NJB, NLT, NRSV)
The word desire has a bad meaning. The word ḥesed that is used here means “disgrace.” For example:
Greed is a disgrace to a man (REB) (NAB, NJPS, REB, GNT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars.

If you use footnotes, you may want to put the other interpretation in a footnote. It is very possible that the author used the two words with double meanings intentionally.Waltke (page 115). Both have an implied connection with 19:22b. A suggested footnote is:

Two of the Hebrew words in this verse have more than one meaning. Another way to translate this verse is: “It is disgraceful for a man to be greedy.”

There are two main ways to translate interpretation (1):The textual and interpretation issues in this clause are more complex than the Notes have indicated. Some of the issues have been combined and presented here as translation options, because for most practical purposes, the differences are slight. One issue is the meaning of the genitive construction “desire of a man.” Another concerns the significance of the suffixed pronoun in the Hebrew word ḥasdo “his steadfast love.” See Fox (page 658) for a helpful list of six different options along with his arguments pro and con, though TN disagrees with his recommendation. See Waltke (page 115) for a coherent defense of the interpretation recommended by TN.

Focus on the love/loyalty that others desire in a person. For example:
What is desired in a man is steadfast love (ESV)
What is desirable for a person is to show loyal love (NET)
People want others to be loyal (NCV)
Focus on the unfailing love/loyalty that a person desires in himself or other people. For example:
Everyone desires that his companions show love and loyalty

Both of these options are acceptable. They both emphasize the importance of mutual love and loyalty in relationships.

loving devotion: The word that the BSB translates here as loving devotion has three aspects of meaning: steadfastness/loyalty, love, and kindness. The last occurrence of this word was in 16:6a. See the note on “loving devotion” in 3:3a.

19:22b

better to be poor than a liar.

So it is better to be trustworthy and remain poor than to tell lies in order to gain money.
So it is better to be an honest poor person than to deceive other people.

better to be poor than a liar: The connection of this statement to 19:22a is based on implied reasoning. It is implied that a person may tell lies in order to get a bribe or gain wealth in some other way. A person who does that violates the faithful, loving relationship that he should have with other members of his community. Maintaining that relationship is more important than escaping poverty. Therefore, it is better to remain poor.Ross (page 1036), Longman (page 371), Hubbard (page 185).

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

so it is better to be poor than to be a liar (NCV)

so it is better to be a faithful poor person than to be dishonest

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

תַּאֲוַ֣ת אָדָ֣ם

(Some words not found in UHB: desirable_of humankind loyalty_of,his and=good poor from=man liar )

This phrase could mean: (1) what a man desires for himself. Alternate translation: [What a man desires] or (2) what others desire a man to be like. Alternate translation: [What people desire in a man]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

אָדָ֣ם חַסְדּ֑⁠וֹ & רָ֝שׁ מֵ⁠אִ֥ישׁ כָּזָֽב

humankind loyalty_of,his & poor from=man (Some words not found in UHB: desirable_of humankind loyalty_of,his and=good poor from=man liar )

Here, a man, his, one who is poor, and a man of lying refer to types of people in general, not specific people. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use more natural expressions. Alternate translation: [a person is that person’s covenant faithfulness … is a person who is poor than a person of lying]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

חַסְדּ֑⁠וֹ

loyalty_of,his

See how you translated the abstract noun covenant faithfulness in [3:3](../03/03.md).

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

מֵ⁠אִ֥ישׁ כָּזָֽב

from=man (Some words not found in UHB: desirable_of humankind loyalty_of,his and=good poor from=man liar )

Here Solomon is using the possessive form to describe a man who is characterized by lying. If your language would not use the possessive form for this, you could use a different expression. Alternate translation: [than a man characterized by lying] or [than a liar]

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.

OET interlinear PROV 19:22

Hebrew word order

Section 10:1–22:16: This is the main collection of Solomon’s proverbs

19:22

19:22a

19:22b

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)