PROV 5:4 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 5:1–23: Eighth lesson: Avoid the temptation to commit adultery

A summary of this lesson is: Stay away from a woman who commits adultery, or you will bitterly regret it (5:1–14). Instead, be delighted with your own wife (5:15–20), because the LORD sees everything you do and will punish wickedness (5:21–23).

Some other headings for this section are:

Advice to stay away from a woman who commits adultery

Warning About Adultery (NCV)

Avoid Adultery (GW)

Be Faithful to Your Wife (CEV)

Paragraph 5:1–6

In this paragraph, the father urges the son to pay attention to his wise words (5:1) so that he will always be cautious and sensible in what he does and says (5:2). The reason for this caution is that it will enable him to resist the tempting invitation of the adulteress whose path leads straight to death (5:3–6).

5:4

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

^4ain the end she is bitter as wormwood,

^4b sharp as a double-edged sword.

Notice that the topic of the metaphors in 5:3 is the woman’s words. In 5:4 the parallel similes focus on the woman herself.

5:4a

in the end she is bitter as wormwood,

But the result of sleeping with her is only bitterness/sorrow. It is like drinking poison

in the end she is: In Hebrew, this phrase is literally “her end.” It refers to the final result of sexual intercourse with her.

bitter as wormwood: There is a textual difference here:

The MT has “wormwood,” as in the BSB. (BSB, NRSV, REB, NJB, NAB, NASB, ESV, NJPS, NET, GW)
The LXX has “gall.” For example:
bitter as gall (NIV) (NIV)

It is recommended that you follow option (1).

Wormwood was a plant that had a bitter taste and was regarded as poisonous. In several OT passages, it is a symbol of suffering and sorrow.See Amos 5:7, 6:12; Lamentations 3:15. According to Waltke (page 309), wormwood belongs to the genus Artemisia. It is a shrub or bush that has many branches and hairy leaves. According to UBS (page 118), the bitter juice from this plant is used as a medicine, but as Cook (page 24) points out, it was considered to be “poisonous rather than medicinal.” In this context, the focus is clearly on the bitter taste of the plant, not on its usefulness as a medicine. If there is no word in your language for wormwood or if the significance of wormwood is not known, some other ways to translate the phrase bitter as wormwood are:

Use a more general figure of speech, such as “poison.” For example:
But the result is as bitter as poison (NLT96)
Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:
she leaves you nothing but bitterness (GNT)
In the end she will bring you sorrow (NCV)
Use the name of a local plant that has a bitter taste.

5:4a–b

(combined/reordered)

But in the end, that woman will be like poison or like a very sharp machete. She will cause you^(sing) much sorrow and pain.
But after she has slept with you, you will experience only bitter regret and pain.

5:4b

sharp as a double-edged sword.

or being cut with a sword that has two edges.

sharp as a double-edged sword: The similarity of an adulteress to a sharp sword with two edges is that both cause pain and destruction. In some languages, it may be helpful to make the similarity explicit. For example:

causing you pain like a two-edged sword (NCV)

In some cultures, swords are not known. If this is true in your culture, other ways to translate this simile are:

General Comment on 5:4a–b

Use a similar object that is known in your culture. For example:
she will harm you as much as a machete/dagger with two edges
Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:
she will cause you great suffering/harm

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine and/or reorder the parallel parts. For example, the GNT combines the meaning of the two lines without using a figure of speech. It has:

but when it is all over, she leaves you nothing but bitterness and pain

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

וְֽ֭⁠אַחֲרִיתָ⁠הּ

and,end_of,her

Here Solomon is using the possessive form to describe the aftermath, or result, of having a sexual relationship with an adulterous woman. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “but the outcome of having a sexual relationship with her”

Note 2 topic: translate-unknown

כַֽ⁠לַּעֲנָ֑ה

like,wormwood

The word wormwood refers to a plant that tastes bitter. People made medicine out of it, but they also believed that it was poisonous in some amounts. If your readers would not be familiar with this plant, you could use the name of a bitter-tasting plant in your area, or you could use a general expression. Alternate translation: “like a bitter-tasting plant”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / simile

מָרָ֣ה כַֽ⁠לַּעֲנָ֑ה

bitter like,wormwood

Here Solomon compares the disgust that comes after having a relationship with an adulterous woman to tasting bitter wormwood. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state that explicitly. Alternate translation: “is disgusting like bitter-tasting wormwood”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis

חַ֝דָּ֗ה כְּ⁠חֶ֣רֶב פִּיּֽוֹת

sharp like,a_sword_of two-edged

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 earlier in the sentence if it would be clearer in your language. Alternate translation: “her aftermath is sharp like a sword of mouths”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

חַ֝דָּ֗ה כְּ⁠חֶ֣רֶב פִּיּֽוֹת

sharp like,a_sword_of two-edged

The phrase sword of mouths refers to a sword with a blade that is sharpened on both sides. Each side can cut a person like a mouth that bites. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “sharp like a sword with a blade that is sharpened on both sides”

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

חַ֝דָּ֗ה כְּ⁠חֶ֣רֶב פִּיּֽוֹת

sharp like,a_sword_of two-edged

Here Solomon speaks of the pain that the adulteress will cause to the one who has a relationship with her as if it were a sharp sword that cuts the person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “it wounds a person, as if it were a sharp sword of mouths”

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 5:4

Hebrew word order

Section 5:1–23: Eighth lesson: Avoid the temptation to commit adultery

Paragraph 5:1–6

5:4

5:4a

5:4a–b

5:4b

General Comment on 5:4a–b

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