PROV 22:11 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=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) The person who values pure motives, who speaks graciously,
⇔ → will have the king for a friend.

22:11 OSHB variant note: טהור: (x-qere) ’טְהָר’: lemma_2889 morph_HAamsc id_20CAN טְהָר

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 Ἀγαπᾷ Κύριος ὁσίας καρδίας, δεκτοὶ δὲ αὐτῷ πάντες ἄμωμοι· χείλεσι ποιμαίνει βασιλεύς.
(Agapa Kurios hosias kardias, dektoi de autōi pantes amōmoi; ⱪeilesi poimainei basileus. )

BrTr The Lord loves holy hearts, and all blameless persons are acceptable with him: a king rules with his lips.

ULT One who loves a pure heart,
⇔ his lips are gracious, the king is his friend.

UST People who love being sincere and
⇔ speaking graciously are companions of kings.

BSB He who loves a pure heart and gracious lips
⇔ [will have] the king for a friend.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE He who loves purity of heart and speaks gracefully
⇔ is the king’s friend.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET The one who loves a pure heart
⇔ and whose speech is gracious – the king will be his friend.

LSV Whoever is loving cleanness of heart,
His lips [are] grace,
A king [is] his friend.

FBV Anyone who loves sincerity[fn] and a gracious way of speaking will have the king as their friend.

22:11 Literally, “purity of heart.”

T4T ⇔ If you always act sincerely [IDM] and always speak kindly,
⇔ the king will be your friend.

LEB • He who loves purity of heart and has gracious speech ,[fn] his friend is the king.

22:? Literally “grace of his lips”

BBE He whose heart is clean is dear to the Lord; for the grace of his lips the king will be his friend.

Moff The Eternal loves a pure heart
⇔ kings love courtly speech.

JPS He that loveth pureness of heart, that hath grace in his lips, the king shall be his friend.

ASV He that loveth pureness of heart,
⇔ For the grace of his lips the king will be his friend.

DRA He that loveth cleanness of heart, for the grace of his lips shall have the king for his friend.

YLT Whoso is loving cleanness of heart, Grace [are] his lips, a king [is] his friend.

Drby He that loveth pureness of heart, upon whose lips is grace, the king is his friend.

RV He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.
(He that loveth/loves pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend. )

SLT He loving pureness of heart the grace of his lips, the king is his friend.

Wbstr He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.

KJB-1769 He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.[fn]
(He that loveth/loves pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend. )

22.11 for…: or, and hath grace in his lips

KJB-1611 [fn]He that loueth purenesse of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above apart from footnotes)

22:11 Or, and hath grace in his lips.

Bshps Who so loueth cleannes of heart, for the grace of his lippes the kyng shalbe his frende.
(Whoso/Whoever loveth/loves cleanness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.)

Gnva Hee that loueth purenesse of heart for the grace of his lippes, the King shalbe his friend.
(He that loveth/loves pureness of heart for the grace of his lips, the King shall be his friend. )

Cvdl Who so delyteth to be of a clene herte and of gracious lyppes, ye kynge shal be his frende.
(Whoso/Whoever delighteth/delights to be of a clean heart and of gracious lips, ye/you_all king shall be his friend.)

Wycl He that loueth the clennesse of herte, schal haue the kyng a freend, for the grace of hise lippis.
(He that loveth/loves the clenness of heart, shall have the king a friend, for the grace of his lips.)

Luth Wer ein treu Herz und liebliche Rede hat, des Freund ist der König.
(Who a faithful heart and lovely/delightful speech has, the friend is the/of_the king.)

ClVg Qui diligit cordis munditiam, propter gratiam labiorum suorum habebit amicum regem.
(Who he_loves of_the_heart cleanliness, because grace of_the_lips of_his_own will_have friend the_king. )

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

22:11

This verse describes the character traits that are necessary to be a friend of the king.

^11aHe who loves a pure heart and gracious lips

^11bwill have the king for a friend.

The first line describes the character traits. The second line gives the result—the king is his friend.Waltke (page 212), Murphy (page 163), and Longman (page 407) all describe the person’s character qualities as the cause that results in friendship with the king. Waltke, Hubbard (page 277), and Cohen (page 147) all describe these character qualities as essential requirements for such a friendship.

22:11a

He who loves a pure heart and gracious lips

A person who truly wants to be sincere and who speaks pleasantly/kindly,
If you^(sing) value good motives that are not mixed with evil, and your words are kind/pleasing,

He who loves a pure heart and gracious lips: There are two main ways to interpret this part of the verse:

It refers to a person who loves a pure heart and speaks graciously. For example:
Those who love a pure heart and are gracious in speech (NRSV) (CEV, ESV, GW, KJV, NASB, NET, NIV, NJB, NRSV)The NJPS could be listed here, because it mentions a person with two character traits: “A pure-hearted friend, His speech is gracious.” However, it does not specify that the person “loves” or values a pure heart.
It refers to a person who loves a pure heart and also loves gracious speech. For example:
Whoever loves pure thoughts and kind words (NCV) (BSB, NCV, NLT, GNT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars.

He There is a textual issue here that has not been discussed in the Notes. The LXX has: “The LORD loves holy hearts.” It is followed only by the NAB and REB. For example, the REB has: “The Lord loves a person to be sincere.” Most scholars and versions prefer the Hebrew text. who loves a pure heart: This clause refers to a person who values sincerity in himself.Almost no scholars or versions clarify whether the person values sincerity in his own heart or in the heart of another person. The NJB is an exception. It specifies “Whoever loves the pure in heart,” which would imply another person. However, Cohen (page 147) says that “genuine motives” are one of the “essential qualifications to gain the king’s friendship.” Longman (page 407) also says, “Those who have a pure heart will speak gracious words.” He wants his own thoughts and motives to be pure, unmixed with anything that is evil. The word pure was last used in 15:26b, where it referred to gracious words. See how you translated the word in that context.

and gracious lips: The second character trait that this person has is that he speaks kindly and persuasively. He speaks in a way that pleases and attracts others.

Some other ways to translate 22:11a are:

If a person values pure thoughts and uses kind words

Those who truly want to be sincere and who speak in a way that is pleasant to others

22:11a–b

(combined/reordered)

What kind of people have the king for their friend? Those whose thoughts/motives are pure/sincere and who speak with kindness.

22:11b

will have the king for a friend.

even the king will be counted as his friend.
the king will be your^(sing) friend.

will have the king for a friend: The result of being sincere and speaking graciously is that even someone as important as the king will be this person’s friend. One way to make this emphasis explicit is:

even the king will be one of his friends

General Comment on 22:11a–b

In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the two lines. For example:

The king is the friend of all who are sincere and speak with kindness. (CEV)