PROV 23:10 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.)

OET (OET-RV) Don’t move an ancient boundary marker,
⇔ or encroach on the fields of those who are disadvantaged,

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 Μὴ μεταθῇς ὅρια αἰώνια, εἰς δὲ κτῆμα ὀρφανῶν μὴ εἰσέλθῃς·
(Maʸ metathaʸs horia aiōnia, eis de ktaʸma orfanōn maʸ eiselthaʸs; )

BrTr Remove not the ancient landmarks; and enter not upon the possession of the fatherless:

ULT Do not move an ancient boundary,
⇔ and do not enter into the fields of fatherless ones,

UST Do not cheat people by moving the old stones that mark the boundaries of their land.
⇔ Do not claim the land that belongs to defenseless orphans,

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE ⇔ Don’t move the ancient boundary stone.
⇔ Don’t encroach on the fields of the fatherless,

WMBB (Same as above)

NET Do not move an ancient boundary stone,
⇔ or take over the fields of the fatherless,

LSV Do not remove a border of ancient times,
And do not enter into fields of the fatherless,

FBV Don't move ancient boundary markers, and don't encroach on fields belonging to orphans,

T4T Do not steal someone’s property by removing a boundary marker that has been there for a long time,
⇔ and do not take for yourself the land that belongs to orphans,

LEB • Do not remove an ancient boundary marker, and on the fields of orphans do not encroach;

BBE Do not let the landmark of the widow be moved, and do not go into the fields of those who have no father;

Moff Remove not a widow’s landmark,
⇔ encroach not on the orphans’ estate;

JPS Remove not the ancient landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless;

ASV Remove not the ancient landmark;
⇔ And enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

DRA Touch not the bounds of little ones: and enter not into the field of the fatherless:

YLT Remove not a border of olden times, And into fields of the fatherless enter not,

Drby Remove not the ancient landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

RV Remove not the ancient landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

SLT Thou shalt not remove the old bound; and into the field of the orphans thou shalt not come:

Wbstr Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:

KJB-1769 Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless:[fn]

23.10 landmark: or, bound

KJB-1611 [fn]Remoue not the old landmarke; and enter not into the fields of the fatherlesse.
(Remove not the old landmarke; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless.)

23:10 Or, bound.

Bshps Remoue not the olde lande marke, and come not within the fielde of the fatherlesse:
(Remove not the old landmark, and come not within the field of the fatherless:)

Gnva Remooue not the ancient boundes, and enter not into the fieldes of the fatherlesse.
(Remove not the ancient bounds, and enter not into the fields of the fatherless. )

Cvdl Remoue not ye olde lande marke, and come not within ye felde of the fatherlesse:
(Remove not ye/you_all old landmark, and come not within ye/you_all field of the fatherless:)

Wycl Touche thou not the termes of litle children; and entre thou not in to the feeld of fadirles and modirles children.
(Touch thou/you not the terms of little children; and enter thou/you not in to the field of fatherless and motherless children.)

Luth Treibe nicht zurück die vorigen Grenzen und gehe nicht auf der Waisen Acker!
(Treibe not back the previous boundaries and go not on/in/to the/of_the orphans field!)

ClVg Ne attingas parvulorum terminos, et agrum pupillorum ne introëas:[fn]
(Don't attingas of_children boundaries, and field pupillorum not enter: )

23.10 Ne attingas, etc. Propinquum parvulorum et pupillorum Dominum appellat, etc., usque ad qui conversationem eorum bonam inquietando læserit, judicium Domini non evadit.

23.10 Don't attingas, etc. Propinquum of_children and pupillorum the_Master appeals, etc., until to who/which conversation their good inquietando læserit, judgement Master not/no evadit.

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 22:17–24:22: Here are thirty sayings of wise people

This section follows the main collection of Solomon’s proverbs (10:1–22:16). It differs in significant ways from this preceding section:These differences were summarized from a number of commentaries, including UBS (page 472), Waltke (2004, page 22), and Hubbard (page 351).

The preceding section has mostly two-line proverbs that are one verse in length. This section has proverbs of a different form. They are sayings that range from one to seven verses. Most of the sayings are two or three verses in length. Each saying will be marked as a separate paragraph in the Notes.
Many of the proverbs in the preceding section express a general principle. They are not addressed specifically to the readers. Most of the sayings here contain direct commands. They advise the reader or listener either to follow wise behavior or avoid foolish behavior. Most of the sayings also give a reason or motive for following the command.
As in chapters 1–9, the author addresses his reader or listener as a father who advises his son. He uses second person commands and pronouns (you^(sing)). See the note on 23:15 for a list of verses where the words “my son” occur.

Some other headings for this section are:

Thirty Wise Sayings (CEV)

Words of the Wise (ESV)

Thirty Sayings of the Wise (NIV11)

Verse 22:20 mentions “thirty sayings,” but the Hebrew text itself does not number the sayings. Some versions that use the word “thirty” in the section heading also give a number as a separate heading for each saying. The GNT and CEV start numbering the sayings at 22:22. They have a total of thirty-one paragraphs. In these versions, the first paragraph (22:17–21) serves as an introduction to the thirty sayings (22:22–24:22).Scholars who identify 22:17–21 as the first saying include Hubbard (page 352), Fox (page 707), and Waltke (2004, page 22). Scholars who identify these verses as an introduction to the sayings that follow include Whybray (page 325) and Murphy (page 170). See also the NET footnote (b) on 22:16. Whether these introductory verses form the first saying or simply introduce the following sayings, all scholars agree that they function as an introduction to the whole section. Other versions, such as the NIV, NCV, and NLT, divide the paragraphs in the same way but do not have separate headings for each section. You may use either option in your translation.The NIV11 gives a number as a separate heading for each saying. But it counts the first paragraph as the first saying, and has a total of thirty paragraphs. Other versions have more or fewer paragraphs. For example, the ESV and NRSV have fifteen paragraphs. The NJB has thirty-four. Still other versions, such as the RSV, NET, and NJPS, do not group the verses into sayings or paragraphs.

For the convenience of those who decide to identify the number of each saying in their translation, the Notes will put the number in the paragraph headings, using the same numbering system as the GNT or CEV. These numbers will not be used in the Display.

Paragraph 23:10–11 Saying 10

This saying deals with the topic of boundary markers, as does 22:28. Two major differences are that this saying adds a specific warning not to steal land from orphans. Verse 23:11 also gives a reason or motivation to obey the warning.

23:10

The first line is a general command that would apply to anyone’s land. The second line applies specifically to land that is owned by orphans.

^10aDo not move an ancient boundary stone

^10bor encroach on the fields of the fatherless,

23:10a

Do not move an ancient boundary stone

¶ Do not change an original/old boundary/border.
¶ Do not try to steal your neighbor’s land by moving the stone that was put there long ago to mark the boundary between your^(plur) properties.

Do not move an ancient boundary stone: This command is a warning to not steal the property of a neighbor by changing the original boundary marker. It is identical to the first part of 22:28. See how you translated that part of the verse.

23:10a–b

(combined/reordered)

¶ Do not steal/take property that belongs to orphans by moving the/their boundary marker.

23:10b

or encroach on the fields of the fatherless,

Particularly/Especially do not take^(sing) the land of helpless/defenseless orphans away from them.
Do not take possession of fields that belong to children who have no father to protect them.

or encroach on the fields of the fatherless: In Hebrew, this clause is literally “and do not enter the fields of orphans.” If this were an isolated command, it could refer simply to trespassing on land that belonged to an orphan. However, the parallel command in 23:10a strongly implies that this command refers to illegally taking possession of the land.Cohen (page 153) comments that this warning prohibits trespassing “for the purpose of damaging their property or stealing some produce.” However, the parallelism argues strongly for actually taking possession of their land by moving the boundary markers. As Delitzsch (page 340) remarks, “enter in” implies illegally invading and occupying.

fields: In Hebrew, this word refers to any land/property, including open fields and land that is used for pasturing animals.Waltke (page 244).

fatherless: In Hebrew, this word can refer to any child (not yet an adult) who has lost a parent.Fox (page 731). There are no verses that refer specifically to a child who has lost both parents.NIDOTTE (H3846). Many versions translate this word as fatherless, because it was the father who normally protected the legal rights of the children. In this context, the word refers to children who have inherited property from their dead father. Since they are not yet of legal age, they have no one to defend their property rights in court.Waltke (page 244), Fox (page 731).

In some languages, there may be a specific word that refers to children with no father. If not, you may use a more general word, such as “orphans.”

Some other ways to translate this command are:

or take over the fields of the fatherless (NET)

don’t take the land of defenseless orphans (NLT)

General Comment on 23:10a–b

In some languages, it may be helpful to reorder the parallel lines in order to clarify the relationship between them. For example:

Don’t steal the land of defenseless orphans by moving the ancient boundary markers (NLT96)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

[23:10](../23/10.md)–[11](../23/11.md) is Saying 10 of the 30 “words of the wise ones.”

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

אַל־תַּ֭סֵּג גְּב֣וּל עוֹלָ֑ם

not move border ancient

See how you translated this clause in [22:28](../22/28.md).

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

וּ⁠בִ⁠שְׂדֵ֥י יְ֝תוֹמִ֗ים אַל־תָּבֹֽא

and,in_[the],fields_of fatherless not encroach

The connection with the previous clause indicates that the phrase enter into here refers to taking over or using the land that belongs to someone else. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “do not take over the fields of fatherless ones” or “do not encroach on the fields of fatherless ones”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

יְ֝תוֹמִ֗ים

fatherless

The phrase fatherless ones refers to children who have lost their fathers and so do not have anyone to protect them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “children without fathers to protect them”