PROV 25:23 Parallel Verse View

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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 Ἄνεμος Βορέας ἐξεγείρει νέφη, πρόσωπον δὲ ἀναιδὲς γλῶσσαν ἐρεθίζει·
(Anemos Boreas exegeirei nefaʸ, prosōpon de anaides glōssan erethizei; )

ULT The wind of the north brings forth rain,
⇔ and indignant faces, a tongue of secrecy.

UST When wind blows from the north, that produces rain.
⇔ Similarly, when people tell the secrets of others, that produces angry people.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE The north wind produces rain;
⇔ so a backbiting tongue brings an angry face.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET The north wind brings forth rain,
⇔ and a gossiping tongue brings forth an angry look.

LSV A north wind brings forth rain,
And a secret tongue—indignant faces.

FBV In the same way that the north wind brings rain, slandering people makes them angry.

T4T ⇔ When wind blows from the right direction, it will rain;
⇔ similarly [SIM], if we gossip about others, that causes them to look at us very angrily.

LEB • The wind of the north produces rain, and a backbiting tongue, angry faces.

BBE As the north wind gives birth to rain, so is an angry face caused by a tongue saying evil secretly.

Moff North winds bring rain
⇔ slander brings angry looks.

JPS The north wind bringeth forth rain, and a backbiting tongue an angry countenance.

ASV The north wind bringeth forth rain;
⇔ So doth a backbiting tongue an angry countenance.

DRA The north wind driveth away rain, as doth a sad countenance a backbiting tongue.

YLT A north wind bringeth forth rain, And a secret tongue — indignant faces.

Drby The north wind bringeth forth rain, and the angry countenance a backbiting tongue.

RV The north wind bringeth forth rain: so doth a backbiting tongue an angry countenance.
(The north wind bringeth/brings forth rain: so doth/does a backbiting tongue an angry countenance. )

SLT The north wind will set free the rain, and an angry face, a hidden tongue.

Wbstr The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.

KJB-1769 The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.[fn]
(The north wind driveth/drives away rain: so doth/does an angry countenance a backbiting tongue. )

25.23 driveth…: or, bringeth forth rain: so doth a backbiting tongue an angry countenance

KJB-1611 [fn]The North winde driueth away raine: so doeth an angrie countenance a backbiting tongue.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from marking of added words (and possibly capitalisation and punctuation and footnotes))

25:23 Or, The Northwinde bringeth foorth raine, so doeth a backbiting tongue, an angry countenance.

Bshps The northwinde dryueth away the rayne: euen so doth an angry countenaunce a backbiters tongue.
(The northwinde driveth away the rain: even so doth/does an angry countenance a backbiters tongue.)

Gnva As the Northwinde driueth away the raine, so doeth an angry countenance the slandering tongue.
(As the North wind driveth/drives away the rain, so doth/does an angry countenance the slandering tongue. )

Cvdl The north wynde dryueth awaye the rayne, euen so doth an earnest sober countenauce a backbyters tonge.
(The north wind driveth away the rain, even so doth/does an earnest sober countenance a backbyters tongue.)

Wycl The north wind scatereth reynes; and a sorewful face distrieth a tunge bacbitinge.
(The north wind scattereth/scatters reins; and a sorrowful face distrieth a tongue bacbitinge.)

Luth Der Nordwind bringet Ungewitter, und die heimliche Zunge macht sauer Angesicht.
(The north_wind brings/gets storm, and the secret tongue power sour face.)

ClVg Ventus aquilo dissipat pluvias, et facies tristis linguam detrahentem.
(Ventus to_the_north dissipat rains, and faces sad/bitter tongue/language take_awayntem. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 25:1–29:27: This is Hezekiah’s collection of Solomon’s proverbs

This section is the second collection of Solomon’s proverbs. These proverbs were organized and copied by men who served King Hezekiah. Most scholars divide this section into two groups. These groups differ in several ways.

The first group (chapters 25–27) has many more comparisons and admonitions. In Hebrew, most of these comparisons are metaphors in which one or more illustrations precede the topic. Some English versions change the order so that the topic precedes the illustration(s). You should follow the order that expresses the meaning naturally and effectively in your language.

In the first group, many proverbs are one verse long. As with the individual proverbs in the main collection of Solomon’s proverbs (Section 10:1–22:16), they are not related to the proverbs around them. Other proverbs in this group are two or more verses long. Still others are one-verse proverbs that are closely related in theme. Proverbs in all three categories will be marked as separate paragraphs.

The second group (chapters 28–29) has more contrastive proverbs. The proverbs in this group are each one verse long. They will not be marked as separate paragraphs.

Some other headings for this section are:

More Proverbs of Solomon (NIV)

Proverbs of Solomon Collected by Hezekiah (NET)

These are also wise things that Solomon said

25:23

In this proverb, “a backbiting tongue” (25:23b) is compared to “the north wind” (25:23a). The similarity is that both produce expected results.

^23aAs the north wind brings forth rain,

^23bso a backbiting tongue brings angry looks.

In Hebrew and some versions, the comparison is only implied. The illustration and the topic look like two statements connected by the word “and.” For example:

^23a The north wind produces rain,

^23band a backbiting tongue, angry looks. (NRSV)

The BSB and some versions have supplied the words “As” and “so” to make the comparison explicit. Use a natural way in your language to translate this comparison.

In some languages, it may be helpful to make the similarity between the two lines explicit. For example:

^23a People know/expect that a north wind…

^23b They also know/expect that …

25:23a

As the north wind brings forth rain,

¶ We^(incl) all know that a north wind brings/causes rain.
¶ When the wind blows from the north, what will happen? It will surely rain.

As the north wind brings forth rain: This statement means that a wind from the north blows in rain clouds and causes it to rain. Some other ways to translate this clause are:

As surely as rain blows in from the north (CEV)

We^(incl) expect that a wind from the north will cause it to rain.

When the north wind blows, it will certainly rain.

In some parts of the world, a north wind does not bring rain.Many scholars point out that in Palestine a west wind, not a north wind, brings rain. Waltke (pages 332–333) attempts to solve this problem by saying that the proverb is talking about unexpected consequences. The NIV11 follows this interpretation. It has: “Like a north wind that brings unexpected rain…” But it’s hard to see how the consequences of gossip would be unexpected. The REB understands the verb to mean “holds back” rather than “brings.” In the second line it then has: “so an angry glance holds back slander.” This does not correspond to other verses about slander. Other versions are similar to the NIV and NRSV. Toy (pages 468–469) and Hubbard (page 406) both take the word “north” in a more general sense to mean “northwest,” and say that rain may have come from the northern mountains as well as from the sea. Fox (pages 788–789) agrees with this view. He adds that popular sayings such as this one do not need to be geographically precise. If that makes the meaning of the proverb unclear, you may substitute a local weather condition that is known to produce rain. For example:

When there is a cold wind, it will soon start to rain.

Wind that comes from the mountains/sea brings rain.

If you use a local weather condition, you may want to add a footnote that gives the meaning in the Hebrew text. Here is a suggested footnote:

In Hebrew, it says “a north wind.” In Palestine, a wind from the north or northwest brings rain.

25:23a–b

(combined/reordered)

¶ A person who gossips causes anger just as clouds from the north cause rain.

25:23b

so a backbiting tongue brings angry looks.

It is also/equally true that someone who gossips causes anger.
And what will happen when a person tells bad things about his neighbors? They will certainly become angry.

so a backbiting tongue brings angry looks: The phrase a backbiting tongue is literally “a tongue of secrecy.” It probably refers to a person who spreads slander or gossip about someone else. The phrase angry looks is literally “angry faces.” This phrase is also a figure of speech. It represents the anger that is felt by the whole person.

Some ways to translate this line are:

telling gossip brings angry looks (NCV)

a gossiping tongue causes anger (NLT)

General Comment on 25:23a–b

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

Gossip brings anger just as surely as the north wind brings rain. (GNT)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

ר֣וּחַ צָ֭פוֹן

wind_of north

Here, wind of the north refers to cold wind that came from the north. In Israel, this type of wind often brought rain. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “The cold wind that comes from the north”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis

וּ⁠פָנִ֥ים נִ֝זְעָמִ֗ים לְשׁ֣וֹן סָֽתֶר

and,faces angry tongue_of backbiting

Solomon is leaving out some of the words that in many languages a clause would need in order to be complete. Here, the first phrase is the result of the second phrase. You could supply these words from the context if it would be clearer in your language. Alternate translation: “and a tongue of secrecy brings forth indignant faces” or “and a tongue of secrecy causes indignant faces”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / simile

וּ⁠פָנִ֥ים נִ֝זְעָמִ֗ים

and,faces angry

In this verse, Solomon compares The wind of the north bringing rain to a tongue of secrecy bringing indignant faces. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly: Alternate translation: “and similarly, indignant faces”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche

וּ⁠פָנִ֥ים נִ֝זְעָמִ֗ים

and,faces angry

Here, faces refers to the people who are indignant. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and indignant people”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

לְשׁ֣וֹן סָֽתֶר

tongue_of backbiting

Here Solomon is using the possessive form to describe a tongue that tells the secrets of others. If your language would not use the possessive form for this, you could use a different expression. Alternate translation: “a tongue that tells the secrets of others”

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche