PROV 17:2 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

BrLXX Οἰκέτης νοήμων κρατήσει δεσποτῶν ἀφρόνων, ἐν δὲ ἀδελφοῖς διελεῖται μέρη.
(Oiketaʸs noaʸmōn krataʸsei despotōn afronōn, en de adelfois dieleitai meraʸ. )

BrTr A wise servant shall have rule over foolish masters, and shall divide portions among brethren.

ULT An insightful servant will rule over a shameful son,
⇔ and in the midst of brothers, he will share an inheritance.

UST An insightful slave will become the boss of a disgraceful son of his master,
⇔ and that slave will inherit a portion of his master’s property along with his master’s sons.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who causes shame,
⇔ and shall have a part in the inheritance amongst the brothers.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET A servant who acts wisely will rule
⇔ over an heir who behaves shamefully,
⇔ and will share the inheritance along with the relatives.

LSV A wise servant rules over a son causing shame,
And he apportions an inheritance in the midst of brothers.

FBV A servant who acts wisely will be put in charge of a disgraced son, and will share the family inheritance with the brothers.

T4T ⇔ A slave who acts wisely will some day be the boss of his master’s disgraceful son
⇔ and when his master dies, the slave will receive part of his master’s possessions.

LEB • A slave who deals wisely will rule over a child who acts shamefully, and in the midst of brothers he will share his inheritance.

BBE A servant who does wisely will have rule over a son causing shame, and will have his part in the heritage among brothers.

Moff An able slave is put over a profligate son;
⇔ he shares the property with the brothers.

JPS A servant that dealeth wisely shall have rule over a son that dealeth shamefully, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren.

ASV A servant that dealeth wisely shall have rule over a son that causeth shame,
⇔ And shall have part in the inheritance among the brethren.

DRA A wise servant shall rule over foolish sons, and shall divide the inheritance among the brethren.

YLT A wise servant ruleth over a son causing shame, And in the midst of brethren He apportioneth an inheritance.

Drby A wise servant shall rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part in the inheritance among the brethren.

RV A servant that dealeth wisely shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part in the inheritance among the brethren.
(A servant that dealeth wisely shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part in the inheritance among the brethren/brothers. )

SLT An understanding servant shall rule a son causing shame, and shall divide the inheritance in the midst of the brethren.

Wbstr A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren.

KJB-1769 A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren.
(A wise servant shall have rule over a son that causeth shame, and shall have part of the inheritance among the brethren/brothers. )

KJB-1611 A wise seruant shall haue rule ouer a son that causeth shame: and shall haue part of the inheritance among the brethren.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps A discrete seruaunt shall haue rule ouer a lewde sonne, and shal haue heritage with the brethren.
(A discrete servant shall have rule over a lewd son, and shall have heritage with the brethren/brothers.)

Gnva A discrete seruant shall haue rule ouer a lewde sonne, and hee shall deuide the heritage among the brethren.
(A discrete servant shall have rule over a lewd son, and he shall divide the heritage among the brethren/brothers. )

Cvdl A discrete seruaut shal haue more rule then the sonnes yt haue no wysdome, and shal haue like heretage wt the brethren.
(A discrete servant shall have more rule then the sons it have no wisdom, and shall have like heritage with the brethren/brothers.)

Wycl A wijs seruaunt schal be lord of fonned sones; and he schal departe eritage among britheren.
(A wise servant shall be lord of foolish sons; and he shall depart heritage among brethren/brothers.)

Luth Ein kluger Knecht wird herrschen über unfleißige Erben und wird unter den Brüdern das Erbe austeilen.
(A wise/cleverr servant/farmhand becomes reign/prevail above unfleißige inheritance and becomes under the brothers the heritage distribute.)

ClVg Servus sapiens dominabitur filiis stultis, et inter fratres hæreditatem dividet.
(Servus wise will_dominate to_the_children for_fools, and between brothers inheritance will_divide. )

SOTN 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

17:2

This verse has no parallel parts.

^2aA wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son

^2band share his inheritance as one of the brothers.

Verse 17:2b probably explains the sense in which a wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son. It is implied that the son will be disinherited.Ross (page 1013), McKane (page 502). The servant will receive the son’s share of the inheritance instead and in that way will replace him as one of the father’s sons.UBS (page 366), Hubbard (page 259).

17:2a

A wise servant will rule over a disgraceful son

A sensible/competent servant will have more authority than a son who has shameful behavior,
If a servant has good sense, he will eventually have a higher position than a son of his master who causes shame/disgrace to his family.

A wise servant: This phrase refers here to a household slave who is sensible, prudent, or competent in carrying out his master’s orders. The phrase “wise servant” also occurs in 14:35a, but there it refers to an official who serves the king.

For wise, see wise dealing in the Glossary.

will rule over: In Hebrew, this verb can mean to rule or govern, as a king or master. But in this context, it probably indicates that the servant will come to have greater rights and authority than the disinherited son.NIDOTTE (H5440) gives three meanings for this verb: “rule, govern, have dominance over.” In light of the context with 17:2b, Longman (page 340) translates the verb as “is superior to.” Toy (page 335) also comments that the slave will be “promoted above the unworthy son.” For example:

…will gain authority over (GNT)

a disgraceful son: This phrase refers to a son who “acts shamefully” (NRSV). He brings shame on his father and also on himself. The same phrase also occurs in 10:5b.

17:2b

and share his inheritance as one of the brothers.

and will receive a share of the inheritance along with the other brothers of that son.
The reason is that he will replace that son by receiving a share of what the other descendants/sons inherit.

and share his inheritance as one of the brothers: In some languages, a literal translation of one of the brothers may wrongly imply “along with all the brothers,” including the “disgraceful son”. The correct meaning is that the servant will share the inheritance with his master’s other sons. In that way, he will replace the son who brought shame on the family. Some other ways to translate this line are:

and will receive that son’s share of what the brothers inherit

and will replace him by receiving his share of the inheritance

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

עֶֽבֶד & בְּ⁠בֵ֣ן & יַחֲלֹ֥ק

servant & over,a_son & share

A servant, a son, and he refer to types of people in general, not to a specific servant or son. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use more natural expressions. Alternate translation: “Any servant … any son … that person will share”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

מַשְׂכִּ֗יל

deals_wisely

See how you translated the abstract nouns insight in [1:3](../01/03.md).

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

בְּ⁠בֵ֣ן & אַ֝חִ֗ים

over,a_son & brothers

Here Solomon implies that a son and brothers refer to the children of the master who owns the servant. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “his master’s son … the brothers of his master’s son”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וּ⁠בְ⁠ת֥וֹךְ אַ֝חִ֗ים

and,,among_of brothers

Here Solomon refers to the servant having equal status with these brothers as if he were in the midst of them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and as an equal of the son’s brothers”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

נַחֲלָֽה

inheritance

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of inheritance, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: “what people inherit”

Parallel PROV 17:2

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

17:2

17:2a

17:2b