PROV 28:14 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) The person who strives to allows obey Yahweh will be blessed,
⇔ ^ but the one who firmly resists will fall into trouble.

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 Μακάριος ἀνὴρ ὃς καταπτήσσει πάντα διʼ εὐλάβειαν, ὁ δὲ σκληρὸς τὴν καρδίαν ἐμπεσεῖται κακοῖς.
(Makarios anaʸr hos kataptaʸssei panta diʼ eulabeian, ho de sklaʸros taʸn kardian empeseitai kakois. )

BrTr Blessed is the man who religiously fears [fn]always: but the hard of heart shall fall into mischiefs.

ULT Happy is a man fearing continually,
⇔ but one hardening his heart will fall into evil.

UST People who constantly examine how they are thinking and behaving are happy,
⇔ but bad things will happen to people who become uncaring about those things.

28:14 Or always fears the LORD; Hebrew does not include the LORD.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE Blessed is the man who always fears;
⇔ but one who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

WMBB (Same as above)

NET Blessed is the one who is always cautious,
⇔ but whoever hardens his heart will fall into evil.

LSV O the blessedness of a man fearing continually,
And whoever is hardening his heart falls into evil.

FBV Blessed are those who always respect the Lord, but those who are stubborn end up in a lot of trouble.

T4T ⇔ God is pleased with those who always revere him,
⇔ but those who are stubborn [IDM] will experience disasters.

LEB • Happy is the person who fears continuously, but he who is stubborn of heart,[fn] will fall into calamity.

28:? Or “mind”

BBE Happy is the man in whom is the fear of the Lord at all times; but he whose heart is hard will come into trouble.

Moff Happy the man who lives in fear of sin:
⇔ reckless men come to grief.

JPS Happy is the man that feareth alway; but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into evil.

ASV Happy is the man that feareth alway;
⇔ But he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

DRA Blessed is the man that is always fearful: but he that is hardened in mind, shall fall into evil.

YLT O the happiness of a man fearing continually, And whoso is hardening his heart falleth into evil.

Drby Happy is the man that feareth always; but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into evil.

RV Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.
(Happy is the man that feareth always: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief. )

SLT Happy the man fearing always: and he hardening his heart shall fall into evil.

Wbstr Happy is the man that feareth always: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.

KJB-1769 Happy is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.
(Happy is the man that feareth always: but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief. )

KJB-1611 Happy is the man that feareth always: but he that hardeneth his heart, shall fall into mischiefe.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps Well is hym that standeth alway in awe: as for hym that hardeneth his heart, he shall fall into mischiefe.
(Well is him that standeth/stands always in awe: as for him that hardeneth his heart, he shall fall into mischief.)

Gnva Blessed is the man that feareth alway: but he that hardeneth his heart, shall fall into euill.
(Blessed is the man that feareth always: but he that hardeneth his heart, shall fall into evil. )

Cvdl Well is him that stodeth allwaye in awe: as for him that hardeneth his herte, he shal fall in to mischefe.
(Well is him that stood always in awe: as for him that hardeneth his heart, he shall fall in to mischefe.)

Wycl Blessid is the man, which is euere dredeful; but he that is `harde of soule, schal falle in to yuel.
(Blessed is the man, which is ever dreadful; but he that is hard of soul, shall fall in to evil.)

Luth Wohl dem, der sich allewege fürchtet! Wer aber halsstarrig ist, wird in Unglück fallen.
(Probably to_him, the/of_the itself/yourself/themselves all_the_way fears(v)! Who but stubborn is, becomes in accident/misfortune/disaster fall/drop.)

ClVg Beatus homo qui semper est pavidus; qui vero mentis est duræ corruet in malum.[fn]
(Blessed human who/which always it_is pavidus; who/which indeed/however of_the_mind it_is hard will_collapse in/into/on evil. )

28.14 Beatus homo, etc. Ira judicii tanto districtior portabitur, quanto nunc minus timetur.

28.14 Blessed human, etc. Ira judgement so_much districtior will_carryur, how_much now minus he_is_afraidur.

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

28:14

This proverb contrasts the happiness of a person who is afraid to sin with the disaster that awaits a person who stubbornly continues to sin. The GW has been used as the source line for 28:14a because it follows the recommended interpretation. Notice the parallel parts that contrast in meaning:

^14a Blessed is the one who is always fearful of sin, (GW)

^14bbut he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

In Hebrew and in the English versions, the parallel parts are arranged in the form of a chiasm. In some languages, it may be more natural to change the order of the parallel parts in one of the lines. For example:

^14a A person who always has fear is happy.

Use whatever order is more natural in your language.

28:14a

Blessed is the man who is always reverent,

The person who always fears to do wrong will be happy,
If the thought of sin and its terrible consequences causes you^(sing) extreme fear/dread, you will avoid sin. As a result, you will feel great happiness.

(GW) Blessed is the one who is always fearful of sin: In Hebrew, this clause is literally “Happy is the person who fears/dreads continually.” The clause does not specify what the person “fears.” There are two main ways to interpret the object of “fears”:

The person fears/dreads sin and its consequences. For example:
Blessed are those who fear to do wrong (NLT) (CEV, GW, NAB, NET, NJPS, NLT)The NRSV and NJB both have “is never without fear.” The NIV11 has “always trembles before God.” The NCV has “are always respectful.” These versions are technically ambiguous, so they have not been listed under this interpretation, even though they use a phrase that is different from the verses that clearly refer to fear/reverence of God.
The person fears and respects the LORD. For example:
Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always (ESV) (BSB, ESV, NIV, RSV, GNTThe GNT has “Always obey the Lord….” It has been listed under interpretation (2), because obedience is one aspect of reverential fear of the LORD.)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars. In Proverbs, every other reference to “fear of the LORD” in the sense of reverence/awe or respect uses a different Hebrew verb. See the note at 10:27a for more details. The verb used here in 28:14a is used elsewhere in Proverbs of a person’s fear or dread of disaster.According to BDB #6345 (p. 808b), the only verse where it occurs in the sense of religious awe is Jeremiah 2:19. Here it probably refers to a strong dread of sin and its consequences.BDB #6342 (p. 808a) says that the Piel form used here means “be in great dread.” It specifically cites Proverbs 28:14 as meaning “deeply dreading” (sin). See also Ross (p. 1106), Toy (p. 501), and Cohen (p. 188).

There is an implied logical connection between dread of sin and happiness. A person who dreads sin chooses to do right, and doing right leads to happiness.

Some other ways to translate this line are:

Blessed are those who fear to do wrong (NLT)

If you^(sing) always dread the thought of sin and its punishment, you will be happy.

(GW) Blessed: The word that the GW, like the BSB, translates here as Blessed probably means “happy.” For example:

will be happy (NCV)

This word is not the same word that is used in other verses about God blessing people. See the note on 8:32b.

28:14b

but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.

but the person who causes his mind/heart to be hard will experience disaster/trouble.
But if you^(sing) are stubborn and refuse to obey Yahweh, you will be ruined.

but he who hardens his heart: The phrase hardens his heart is a figure of speech that refers to a person who refuses to obey God. He stubbornly continues to sin. Some ways to translate this phrase are:

Use a similar figure of speech in your language. For example:
But if you cause your mind/heart to be hard/firm
Translate the meaning without a figure of speech. For example:
but those who are stubborn (NCV)

falls into trouble: This phrase is a figure of speech. It indicates that the stubborn person will experience trouble or disaster. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

are headed for serious trouble (NLT)

you will be ruined (GNT)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

אָ֭דָם & וּ⁠מַקְשֶׁ֥ה לִ֝בּ֗⁠וֹ

humankind & and,[one_who]_hardens his/its=heart

Here, a man, one who hardens, and his refer to types of people in general, not specific people. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use more natural expressions. Alternate translation: “is any person … but any person who hardens that person’s own heart”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

מְפַחֵ֣ד תָּמִ֑יד

fears always

Here, in terror continually refers to reverently fearing Yahweh. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “who is in terror of Yahweh continually”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וּ⁠מַקְשֶׁ֥ה לִ֝בּ֗⁠וֹ

and,[one_who]_hardens his/its=heart

Here Solomon speaks of a person being stubbornly opposed to Yahweh as if he made his heart hard. The word heart here refers to a person’s mind and will, as in [2:2](../02/02.md). If the heart is not the body part your culture uses to refer to a person’s will, consider using whichever organ your culture would use for this image. If a translation is available in your language, see how it translated a similar expression in [Exodus 7:3](../exo/07/03.md). Alternate translation: “but one who is stubborn against Yahweh”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

יִפּ֥וֹל בְּ⁠רָעָֽה

fall in,calamity

See how you translated the nearly identical phrase “falls into evil” in [13:17](../13/17.md).

Parallel PROV 28:14

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

28:14

28:14a

28:14b