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Parallel PROV 21:30

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.

B I ◄ ← Prov 21:30 ↓ → ► ═ ©  

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

OET (OET-RV) There’s no wisdom or understanding
 ⇔ or advice that would oppose Yahweh.OET logo mark

OET-LV There_is_not wisdom and_there_is_not understanding and_there_is_not counsel to_before YHWH.
OET logo mark

UHB אֵ֣ין חָ֭כְמָה וְ⁠אֵ֣ין תְּבוּנָ֑ה וְ⁠אֵ֥ין עֵ֝צָ֗ה לְ⁠נֶ֣גֶד יְהוָֽה׃פ ‡
   (ʼēyn ḩākəmāh və⁠ʼēyn təⱱūnāh və⁠ʼēyn ˊēʦāh lə⁠neged yhwh.◊)

Key: red:negative, green:YHWH.
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 Οὐκ ἔστι σοφία, οὐκ ἔστιν ἀνδρεία, οὐκ ἔστι βουλὴ πρὸς τὸν ἀσεβῆ.
   (Ouk esti sofia, ouk estin andreia, ouk esti boulaʸ pros ton asebaʸ. )

BrTr There is no wisdom, there is no courage, there is no counsel against the ungodly.

ULT There is no wisdom and there is no understanding
 ⇔ and there is no counsel in front of Yahweh.

UST Even the wisest and most knowledgeable counselor is nothing compared to Yahweh.

BSB [There is] no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel
 ⇔ [that] can prevail against the LORD.

MSB (Same as BSB above)

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE There is no wisdom nor understanding
 ⇔ nor counsel against the LORD.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET There is no wisdom and there is no understanding,
 ⇔ and there is no counsel against the Lord.

LSV There is no wisdom, nor understanding,
Nor counsel against YHWH.

FBV Whatever wisdom, understanding, or guidance you may have is nothing before the Lord.

T4T  ⇔ Thinking that we are wise, and that we understand many things, and that we have good insight,
 ⇔ does not help us if Yahweh is ◄acting against/not pleased with► us.

LEB   • There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel to oppose Yahweh.

BBE Wisdom and knowledge and wise suggestions are of no use against the Lord.

Moff Intelligence, skill, strategy--
 ⇔ none can avail against the Eternal.

JPS There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.

ASV There is no wisdom nor understanding
 ⇔ Nor counsel against Jehovah.

DRA There is no wisdom, there is no prudence, there is no counsel against the Lord.

YLT There is no wisdom, nor understanding, Nor counsel, over-against Jehovah.

Drby There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel against Jehovah.

RV There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.
   (There is no wisdom nor understanding nor council/counsel against the LORD. )

SLT No wisdom and no understanding, and no counsel against Jehovah.

Wbstr There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.

KJB-1769 There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.
   (There is no wisdom nor understanding nor council/counsel against the LORD. )

KJB-1611 There is no wisedome, nor vnderstanding, nor counsell against the LORD.
   (Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps There is no wysdome, there is no vnderstanding, there is no counsayle against the Lorde.
   (There is no wisdom, there is no understanding, there is no counsayle against the Lord.)

Gnva There is no wisedome, neither vnderstanding, nor counsell against the Lord.
   (There is no wisdom, neither understanding, nor council/counsel against the Lord. )

Cvdl There is no wy?dome, there is no vnderstondinge, there is no councell agaynst the LORDE.
   (There is no wisdom, there is no understanding, there is no council/counsel against the LORD.)

Wycl No wisdom is, no prudence is, no counsel is ayens the Lord.
   (No wisdom is, no prudence is, no council/counsel is against the Lord.)

Luth Es hilft keine Weisheit, kein Verstand, kein Rat wider den HErr’s.
   (It help(v) no wise_(people), no/not mind, no/not advice against the LORD’s.)

ClVg Non est sapientia, non est prudentia, non est consilium contra Dominum.
   (Not/No it_is wisdom, not/no it_is prudence, not/no it_is advice on_the_contrary the_Master. )

HAP Hebrew accents and phrasing: See Allan Johnson's Hebrew accents and phrasing analysis.
TSN Tyndale Study Notes:

21:30-31 Human wisdom is impotent if it stands against the Lord (see 16:1, 3, 9, 33). Similarly, military power (represented by the horse) is impotent without the Lord’s blessing.

SOTN SIL Open Translation 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

21:30

There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.

This proverb is a single sentence in Hebrew. The Notes will divide it into 21:30a and 21:30b. The Display will have one part (21:30).

30aThere is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel

30bthat can prevail against the LORD.

There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD: In Hebrew, the phrase that can prevail is not explicit. This verse is more literally “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan against/beforeAlmost all scholars agree that the Hebrew preposition used here means “against” rather than “before.” According to Waltke (page 164), the Vulgate has contra “against,” whereas the Targum and Syriac understand it to mean “in comparison of, in the face of, like.” the LORD.” There are at least three ways to interpret this line:

  1. No human wisdom…that opposes the LORD will succeed. For example:

    No wisdom, no insight, no counsel, can avail against the Lord. (NRSV) (BSB, CEV, GW, NAB, NCV, NIV, NJPS, NLT, NRSV, GNT)

  2. No human wisdom…that opposes the LORD exists. For example:

    There is no wisdom and there is no understanding, and there is no counsel against the Lord. (NET) (KJV, NAB, NASB, NET)Taken at face value, these versions state that wisdom, etc. that opposes the LORD does not exist. These versions probably imply either interpretation (1) or (3).

  3. No human wisdom…is worth anything in the LORD’s sight/viewpoint. For example:

    No wisdom, no understanding, no advice is worth anything before Yahweh. (NJB) (NJB, REB)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars.Scholars who support interpretation (1) include Ross, Whybray, Hubbard, Toy, Cohen, Garrett, and Waltke’s translation (2005, page 164). Longman (page 400) supports interpretation (2). He says that wisdom “flows from Yahweh” and any wisdom that is against Yahweh is thus “not really wisdom.” Scholars who support interpretation (3) include Fox and Murphy.

There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel: In Hebrew, this part of the verse has three negative existential phrases:

  1. there is no wisdom

  2. there is no understanding

  3. there is no counsel

This repetition emphasizes the complete uselessness of even the wisest human advice to successfully oppose what the LORD wants.

understanding: In Hebrew, this word is a near synonym of “wisdom.” It means “good sense” or “competence” to handle the situations that a person faces in life. See understanding (good sense) in the Glossary.

counsel: See advice in the Glossary.

Some other ways to translate this verse are:

A wise and competent person who plans to oppose the LORD will utterly fail.

No matter how much you know or what plans you make, you can’t defeat the Lord. (CEV)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

חָ֭כְמָה & תְּבוּנָ֑ה & עֵ֝צָ֗ה

wisdom & understanding & counsel

See how you translated the abstract nouns wisdom and understanding in [1:2](../01/02.md) and counsel in [1:25](../01/25.md).

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

עֵ֝צָ֗ה

counsel

Here, counsel refers to true and correct counsel. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “good counsel”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

לְ⁠נֶ֣גֶד יְהוָֽה

to,before YHWH

Here, in opposition to Yahweh refers to something that contradicts the will of Yahweh. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “that contradicts the will of Yahweh”

B I ◄ ← Prov 21:30 ↑ → ► ═ ©