PROV 20:16 Interlinear View

20:16 OSHB variant note: נכרים: (x-qere) ’נָכְרִיָּ֣ה’: lemma_5237 morph_HAafsa id_20uMy נָכְרִיָּ֣ה

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

20:16

The two lines of this proverb are similar in meaning.

^16a Take the garment of one who posts security for a stranger;

^16b get collateral if it is for a foreigner.

This proverb is addressed to a money lender. It advises him to take special precautions in making a loan when it involves a stranger. It also implies a warning to the person who guarantees (cosigns) the loan. This person will forfeit his own clothing if the borrower fails to repay the loan.

Three people are involved in the situation referred to in this proverb:Whybray (pages 295–296). According to Waltke (page 144), the audience is the fourth participant in this situation. The audience is expected to learn from the advice that is given here to the creditor.

the borrower—the person who owes a debt. This person is referred to here as “a stranger.”
the guarantor—the person who promises/guarantees to pay another person’s debt if that person cannot pay it. This person is referred to here as the “one who puts up security.”
the money lender—this person is the one who is advised to “take the garment.”

The situation described in this proverb is slightly different from the similar situations that are described in 6:1, 11:15, and 17:18. See the notes there. See especially the note on 17:18. This note summarizes the minor differences between the first three situations.

20:16a–b

(combined/reordered)

Someone who lends money to a stranger or foreigner should insist on a security deposit from the person who guarantees/cosigns the loan.

Take the garment of the one who posts security…get collateral: These parallel commands function as advice to the money lender. The lender is advised to obtain the guarantor’s garment. This will ensure that the guarantor will pay him the money in case the borrower does not repay the loan. The garment was probably the cloak that people wore both during the day and at night.Fox (page 669). Fox also points out that the law against keeping a borrower’s cloak overnight did not apply to a guarantor.

for a stranger…for a foreigner: These parallel terms both refer to the borrower. The borrower is someone who is not well known. He is a stranger to the guarantor and possibly also to the lender.Several scholars mention that the borrower was a stranger to the guarantor, but they do not state clearly whether the borrower was also a stranger to the lender. Longman (page 381) says that either may have been true. (See also 11:15a, where the BSB translates the word foreigner as “stranger.”)

The word that the BSB translates as foreigner usually refers to a person who is literally from a different country. It can also refer to someone who is an “outsider” to the community and is therefore unknown. The emphasis here is that the person is a stranger. It is not on the particular country that the person is from.

Another way to translate 20:16a–b is:

^16aGet security from someone who guarantees a stranger’s debt. ^16bGet a deposit if he does it for foreigners. (NLT)

Notice that the NLT translates the function of the word “garment” rather than the literal item itself. This may be a good option in cultures where people do not use clothing as a valuable item that guarantees repayment of a loan.

General Comment on 20:16a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine some of the parallel parts. For example:

Anyone stupid enough to promise to be responsible for a stranger’s debts ought to have their own property held to guarantee payment. (GNT)

20:16a

Take the garment of the one who posts security for a stranger;

Take the coat of someone who promises to pay a stranger’s debts, (NCV)
If you^(sing) lend money to a person you do not know and someone guarantees to pay his debt, be sure to get something valuable from the one who made the guarantee.

20:16b

get collateral if it is for a foreigner.

and keep^(sing) it as a deposit to guarantee that he will pay what the stranger owes.
Keep it to ensure that this person will pay the debt if the unknown borrower does not pay it.

foreigner: There is a textual issue here that involves two options for this word in the Masoretic Text:This textual issue involves the difference between the reading/pronunciation recommended by the Masoretes (Qere) nakǝrim “foreigners,” option (1), and what is written in the MT (Kethib) nakǝriyyah “foreign woman,” option (2). See Soulen (page 100) for more information on Qere/Kethib issues.

The first option is the word “foreigners” (masculine plural). For example:
foreigners (NRSV) (BSB, ESV, GW, NASB, NCV, NET, NLT, NJB, NAB, NIV11, NRSV, REB)
The second option is the word “foreign woman” (feminine singular). For example:
wayward woman (NIV) (KJV, NIV)

It is recommended that you follow option (1), along with most versions and scholars. This option frequently occurs as a parallel term with “stranger” and better fits the context. Although “foreigners” is plural, it can refer here to a single foreigner.Fox (page 669) says that it is common for a plural term to be used parallel to a singular term.

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism

לְֽקַח־בִּ֭גְד⁠וֹ כִּי־עָ֣רַב זָ֑ר וּ⁠בְעַ֖ד נָכְרִיָּ֣ה חַבְלֵֽ⁠הוּ

take garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger and,for (Some words not found in UHB: take garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger and,for foreigners hold,it_in_pledge )

These two phrases mean basically the same thing. The second emphasizes the meaning of the first by repeating the same idea with different words. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could connect the phrases with a word other than and in order to show that the second phrase is repeating the first one, not saying something additional. Alternate translation: “Take his garment when he has pledged for a stranger, yes, on behalf of a foreign woman hold it in pledge”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

בִּ֭גְד⁠וֹ כִּי־עָ֣רַב זָ֑ר וּ⁠בְעַ֖ד נָכְרִיָּ֣ה

garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger and,for (Some words not found in UHB: take garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger and,for foreigners hold,it_in_pledge )

Here, his, he, a stranger and a foreign woman 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’s garment when that person has pledged for any stranger, and on behalf of any foreign woman”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

לְֽקַח־בִּ֭גְד⁠וֹ כִּי־עָ֣רַב זָ֑ר

take garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger

When someone borrowed money in Solomon’s culture, the lender would take something such as a garment from the borrower as a guarantee of repayment. The lender would return the garment after the money was repaid. If the borrower was too poor, someone else could give something to the lender as a pledge for the poor person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “Take a garment as security from the one who guarantees that what a stranger has borrowed will be paid back”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

עָ֣רַב זָ֑ר

put_up_security stranger

See how you translated the same use of “he pledges for a stranger” in [11:15](../11/15.md).

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis

וּ⁠בְעַ֖ד נָכְרִיָּ֣ה

and,for (Some words not found in UHB: take garment_of,his that/for/because/then/when put_up_security stranger and,for foreigners hold,it_in_pledge )

Solomon is leaving out some of the words that in many languages a clause would need in order to be complete. You could supply these words from the previous clause if it would be clearer in your language. Alternate translation: “and when he has pledged on behalf of a foreign woman”

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

חַבְלֵֽ⁠הוּ

hold,it_in_pledge

Here, it refers to his garment in the previous clause. Solomon is referring to the practice of holding on to something that someone has given as a pledge to repay someone’s debt. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “hold onto his garment as a guarantee of repayment”

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

20:16 OSHB variant note: נכרים: (x-qere) ’נָכְרִיָּ֣ה’: lemma_5237 morph_HAafsa id_20uMy נָכְרִיָּ֣ה

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 20:16