PROV 21:22 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 Πόλεις ὀχυρὰς ἐπέβη σοφὸς, καὶ καθεῖλε τὸ ὀχύρωμα ἐφʼ ᾧ ἐπεποίθεισαν οἱ ἀσεβεῖς.
(Poleis oⱪuras epebaʸ sofos, kai katheile to oⱪurōma efʼ hō epepoitheisan hoi asebeis. )

BrTr A wise man assaults strong cities, and demolishes the fortress in which the ungodly trusted.

ULT A wise one ascends a city of mighty ones,
⇔ and he brings down the strength of its confidence.

UST Wise people know how to conquer cities that mighty warriors are defending;
⇔ they can pull down the walls that people in those cities believe will protect them.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE A wise man scales the city of the mighty,
⇔ and brings down the strength of its confidence.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET The wise person can scale the city of the mighty
⇔ and bring down the stronghold in which they trust.

LSV The wise has gone up a city of the mighty,
And brings down the strength of its confidence.

FBV The wise can overcome a city belonging to strong warriors, and tear down the fortress they trusted to protect them.

T4T ⇔ A wise army commander helps his troops climb over a wall to attack a city that is defended by a strong army,
⇔ with the result that they are able to ◄get over/destroy► the high walls that their enemies trusted would protect them.

LEB • To a city of warriors, the wise ascends, and he will bring down the stronghold—its object of trust.

BBE A wise man goes up into the town of the strong ones, and overcomes its strength in which they put their faith.

Moff A clever man can scale a mighty city,
⇔ and lay the vaunted stronghold low.

JPS A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and bringeth down the stronghold wherein it trusteth.

ASV A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty,
⇔ And bringeth down the strength of the confidence thereof.

DRA The wise man hath scaled the city of the strong, and hath cast down the strength of the confidence thereof.

YLT A city of the mighty hath the wise gone up, And bringeth down the strength of its confidence.

Drby A wise [man] scaleth the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof.

RV A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and bringeth down the strength of the confidence thereof.
(A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and bringeth/brings down the strength of the confidence thereof. )

SLT The wise one ascended the city of the strong, and he will bring down the strength of its confidence.

Wbstr A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of its confidence.

KJB-1769 A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof.

KJB-1611 A wise man scaleth the citie of the mightie, and casteth downe the strength of the confidence thereof.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps A wyse man skaleth the citie of the mightie, & ouerthroweth the strength wherein they trusted.
(A wise man skaleth the city of the mighty, and overthroweth/overthrew the strength wherein they trusted.)

Gnva A wise man goeth vp into the citie of the mightie, and casteth downe the strength of the confidence thereof.
(A wise man goeth/goes up into the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof. )

Cvdl A wyse man wynneth the cite of the mightie, and as for the strength yt they trust in, he bryngeth it downe.
(A wise man winneth/wins the cite of the mighty, and as for the strength it they trust in, he bringeth/brings it down.)

Wycl A wijs man stiede `in to the citee of stronge men, and distriede the strengthe of trist therof.
(A wise man stayed in to the city of strong men, and destroyed the strength of trist thereof.)

Luth Ein Weiser gewinnet die Stadt der Starken und stürzet ihre Macht durch ihre Sicherheit.
(A wise_(man) wins/gains(v) the city the/of_the strong_(ones) and fallst their/her power(n) through their/her Sicherheit.)

ClVg Civitatem fortium ascendit sapiens, et destruxit robur fiduciæ ejus.[fn]
(Civitatem of_the_brave went_up wise, and destroyed strength fiduciæ his. )

21.22 Civitatem fortium. Mundum scilicet, etc., usque ad ecclesiastica disciplina redarguit.

21.22 Civitatem of_the_brave. Mundum namely, etc., until to ecclesiastica discipline redarguit.

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

21:22

This proverb teaches that good strategy is more important than physical force.Whybray (page 313), Murphy (page 161). It emphasizes the value of wise military leadership in defeating a strong enemy protected by a fortified city.

^22aA wise man scales the city of the mighty

^22band pulls down the stronghold in which they trust.

21:22a

A wise man scales the city of the mighty

A wise person is able to defeat a strong army. He attacks their city
A clever general/leader can defeat a city that has many soldiers

A wise man scales the city of the mighty: This clause implies that the plan of one wise man can accomplish the defeat of a city that is defended with a mighty army. In the context of a battle, it is implied that the wise man directs his own troops in attacking the city.

A wise man: The wise man referred to here is probably a military leader, such as a general. If that is not clear from the context, you may want to make it explicit. For example:

A shrewd general (GNT)

scales the city of the mighty: The verb that the BSB translates as scales is literally “goes up.” In the context of “pulls down” in 21:22b, it probably indicates that the wise man and his troops climb over the walls of the city.See UBS (page 453) or Ross (page 1056). Waltke translates, “The wise scales the city walls of warriors” (page 183). If it is awkward to make these details explicit, you may translate in a general way, as most English versions have done. For example:

attack a city full of armed men (REB)

can defeat a city full of soldiers (CEV)

21:22b

and pulls down the stronghold in which they trust.

and destroys the sturdy walls that they had relied on.
and break down the strong walls that they think will protect them.

and pulls down the stronghold in which they trust: The verb that the BSB translates as pulls down is a causative verb. It indicates that the attacking soldiers cause the strong walls of the city to be broken down or destroyed. This may have involved the use of battering rams.UBS (page 453).

stronghold: In Hebrew, this word is literally “strength.” In 18:10a it occurs in the phrase “strong tower” Here “strength” may refer to a fortified area in the city walls or simply to the walls themselves.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

and destroy the walls they relied on (GNT)

and tear down the defenses they trust in (NCV)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

עִ֣יר & חָכָ֑ם וַ֝⁠יֹּ֗רֶד

(a)_city & wise and,he_brought_down

A wise one, a city, and he represent a type of person and city in general, not one particular person and city. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use more natural expressions. Alternate translation: “Any wise one … any city of … and that person lowers”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

עִ֣יר & עָלָ֣ה

(a)_city & went_up

Here, ascends refers to attacking a city and climbing over its wall. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “successfully attacks a city of” or “overruns a city of”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

עִ֣יר גִּ֭בֹּרִים

(a)_city warriors

Here Solomon is using the possessive form to describe a city that is defended by mighty ones. If your language would not use the possessive form for this, you could use a different expression. Alternate translation: “a city defended by mighty ones”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

וַ֝⁠יֹּ֗רֶד

and,he_brought_down

Here, brings down refers to the wise one leading his soldiers to destroy the fortifications that protect the city mentioned in the previous clause. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “and he causes his soldiers to destroy”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

עֹ֣ז מִבְטֶחָֽ⁠ה

stronghold_of its_confidence_of,of

Here, strength refers to the strong walls and towers around the city mentioned in the previous clause. Here, its refers to the people in the city. They have confidence in the walls and do not think anyone will be able to destroy them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “the strong fortifications in which they are confident”

Parallel PROV 21:22

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

21:22

21:22a

21:22b