PROV 2:1 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) My child, if you accept my sayings
⇔ ≈ and internalise my commands,

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 Υἱὲ, ἐὰν δεξάμενος ῥῆσιν ἐμῆς ἐντολῆς κρύψῃς παρὰ σεαυτῷ,
(Huie, ean dexamenos ɽaʸsin emaʸs entolaʸs krupsaʸs para seautōi, )

BrTr My son, if thou wilt receive the utterance of my commandment, and hide it with thee;

ULT My son, if you receive my sayings,
⇔ and my commandments you store up with you,

UST My child, accept what I say.
⇔ Consider what I command you to be precious.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE My son, if you will receive my words,
⇔ and store up my commandments within you,

WMBB (Same as above)

NET My child, if you receive my words,
⇔ and store up my commands within you,

LSV My son, if you accept my sayings,
And lay up my commands with you,

FBV My son, if you accept what I say and value my instructions,

T4T My son, listen to what I say,
⇔ and consider my instructions to be as valuable as [MET] a treasure.

LEB No LEB PROV 2:1 verse available

BBE My son, if you will take my words to your heart, storing up my laws in your mind;

Moff My son, if you take to heart what I say,
⇔ and set store by my commands,

JPS My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and lay up my commandments with thee;

ASV My son, if thou wilt receive my words,
⇔ And lay up my commandments with thee;

DRA My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and wilt hide my commandments with thee,

YLT My son, if thou dost accept my sayings, And my commands dost lay up with thee,

Drby My son, if thou receivest my words, and layest up my commandments with thee,

RV My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and lay up my commandments with thee;
(My son, if thou/you wilt/will receive my words, and lay up my commandments with thee/you; )

SLT My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and wilt hide my commands with thee;

Wbstr My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;

KJB-1769 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;
(My son, if thou/you wilt/will receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee/you; )

KJB-1611 ¶ My sonne, if thou wilt receiue my words, and hide my commaundements with thee;
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps My sonne, if thou wylt receaue my wordes, and lay vp my commaundementes within thee,
(My son, if thou/you wilt/will receive my words, and lay up my commandments within thee/you,)

Gnva My sonne, if thou wilt receiue my wordes, and hide my commandements within thee,
(My son, if thou/you wilt/will receive my words, and hide my commandments within thee/you, )

Cvdl My sonne, yf thou wilt receaue my wordes, and kepe my comaundemetes by the,
(My son, if thou/you wilt/will receive my words, and keep my commandments by them,)

Wycl Mi sone, if thou resseyuest my wordis, `and hidist myn heestis anentis thee;
(My son, if thou/you receivest my words, and hidest/hide mine commands towards thee/you;)

Luth Mein Kind, willst du meine Rede annehmen und meine Gebote bei dir behalten,
(My child, want you(sg) my speech assume and my commandments/commands at/in you/to_you(sg) keep,)

ClVg [Fili mi, si susceperis sermones meos, et mandata mea absconderis penes te:[fn]
([Son my, when/but_if susceperis conversations mine, and commands my absconderis penes you(sg): )

2.1 Fili mi. Duo hic notat, sapientiam esse de cœlestibus, prudentiam de sæcularibus. Abscondit mandata Dei penes se, etc., usque ad quasi semen secus viam jactatum volucres tollant.

2.1 Son mi. Duo this/here notes, wisdom to_be from/about heavenly, prudence from/about secularbus. Abscondit commands of_God penes himself, etc., until to as_if seed otherwise/wrongly way/road yactatum birds tollant.

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 2:1–22: Second lesson: Wisdom will spare you from the dangers of crime and adultery

Here is a summary of the advice in this section: If you accept what I teach and seek to become wise (2:1–4), you will indeed become wise, and because of your wisdom, you will know how to revere the LORD and how to do what is right. You will also be protected (2:5–11). Wisdom will protect you from wicked men (2:12–15) and from adulterous women (2:16–19). Consequently, you will follow a righteous lifestyle and enjoy a long life in your own land, but the wicked will be forced to leave their land (2:20–22).

Some other headings for this section are:

The Benefits of Wisdom (NLT)

The Rewards of Wisdom (GNT)

The rewards/benefits that wisdom gives to people

Paragraph 2:1–4

The speech by Wisdom ends in 1:33. The father’s second lesson begins in 2:1. Verses 1–4 contains a series of “if” clauses. These clauses give the conditions for the desired results that begin in 2:5. The function of this paragraph is to give advice. The father wants his son to become wise.

In some languages, it may not be natural to have one long sentence with a series of “if” clauses. Another way to translate this information is to change the “if” clauses into commands. For example:

My child, listen to me and treasure my instructions (NLT96)

The series of result clauses beginning with 2:5 can then be introduced with:

Then you will understand… (NLT)

If you do all these things, you will understand…

2:1–4

It is common in Hebrew parallelism for the meaning to intensify from one poetic line to the next. In the eight parallel statements in 2:1–4, each statement implies a greater degree of involvement or effort than the statement that precedes it. You should try to maintain this poetic intensification if it is meaningful in your language.

2:1

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

^1aMy son, if you accept my words

^1band hide my commandments within you,

The meaning of the term “commandments” in the second line is stronger or more intense than the meaning of the parallel term “words” in the first line. The verb “hide” (“treasure”) also implies greater effort than “accept.”

2:1a

My son, if you accept my words

¶ My child, accept what I tell you^(sing);
¶ My son/child, you must believe that my words/advice are true,

My son: See the note on My son in 1:8a.

if you accept my words: The Hebrew word that the BSB translates as accept often means “take” or “acquire.” In this context, to “take/acquire” the father’s words means to believe that they are true or valid. It also implies that the son should learn them and make them a part of his thoughts. Some other ways to translate this clause are:

learn what I teach you (GNT)

if you take my words to heart (NJB)

my words: The phrase my words should be understood as authoritative advice or teaching, because it is parallel with the phrase “my commandments” in 2:1b.

2:1a–b

(combined/reordered)

¶ My child, accept/believe^(sing) my words/advice and my commands. Value them and always remember them.

2:1b

and hide my commandments within you,

store in your^(sing) mind/heart/liver what I command you.
and you must not forget the valuable things that I command/instruct you.

and hide my commandments within you: The verb that the BSB translates as hide usually means “to hide,” “treasure” or “store up.” In the context of “hiding” commands, it probably means “to memorize.” It is the same word that is used in Psalm 119:11. Some other ways to translate this meaning are:

never forget what I tell you to do (GNT)

remember what I command you (NCV)

The verb hide also implies that the father’s commands are valuable. Many English versions use the verb “treasure” to make this idea explicit. To treasure something means to regard it as precious or valuable. For example:

treasure my commandments deep within you (REB)

my commandments: This phrase refers here to the father’s authoritative instructions to his son in chapters 2–9.

General Comment on 2:1a–b

In languages that use parallelism, it may be possible to retain the intensification of meaning between 2:1a and 2:1b. In other languages, it may be more natural to combine and/or reorder the parallel terms. For example:

My child, you must follow and treasure my teachings and my instructions. (CEV)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / gendernotations

בְּ֭נִ⁠י

my_son_of,O

See how you translated the same use of this phrase in [1:8](../01/08.md).

Note 2 topic: grammar-connect-condition-hypothetical

אִם

Here, if indicates the beginning of a conditional sentence that extends from this verse to [2:5](../02/05.md). This is the first of three if clauses in this long sentence. If it would be clearer in your language, you could divide this long sentence into shorter sentences and indicate the condition along with the result in [2:5](../02/05.md), as in the UST.

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וּ֝⁠מִצְוֺתַ֗⁠י תִּצְפֹּ֥ן אִתָּֽ⁠ךְ

and,my_of,commandments store_up with,you

Valuing the father’s commandments is spoken of as if the commandments were a treasure and the person were a safe place to store that treasure. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and consider my commandments to be as valuable as a treasure”

Parallel PROV 2:1