PROV 6:27 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) Can anyone carry fire against their chest,
⇔ without their clothes catching fire.

Key: khaki:verbs, red:negative.
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 Ἀποδήσει τις πῦρ ἐν κόλπῳ, τὰ δὲ ἱμάτια οὐ κατακαύσει;
(Apodaʸsei tis pur en kolpōi, ta de himatia ou katakausei; )

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE Can a man scoop fire into his lap,
⇔ and his clothes not be burnt?

WMBB (Same as above)

NET Can a man hold fire against his chest
⇔ without burning his clothes?

LSV Does a man take fire into his bosom,
And are his garments not burned?

FBV Can you put fire in your lap and not burn your clothes?

T4T Can you carry hot coals in your pocket and not be burned [RHQ]?

LEB • Can a man carry fire in his lap, and his clothes not burn?

BBE May a man take fire to his breast without burning his clothing?

Moff Can a man take fire in his lap
⇔ without burning his clothes?

JPS Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?

ASV Can a man take fire in his bosom,
⇔ And his clothes not be burned?

DRA Can a man hide fire in his bosom, and his garments not burn?

YLT Doth a man take fire into his bosom, And are his garments not burnt?

Drby Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his garments not be burned?

RV Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?
(Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burnt? )

SLT A man taking fire in his bosom, shall his garments not be burnt?

Wbstr Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?

KJB-1769 Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned?
(Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burnt? )

KJB-1611 Can a man take fire in his bosome, and his clothes not be burnt?
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps May a man take fire in his bosome, and his clothes not be brent?
(May a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burnt?)

Gnva Can a man take fire in his bosome, and his clothes not be burnt?
(Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burnt? )

Cvdl Maye a man take fyre in his bosome, and his clothes not be brent?
(May a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burnt?)

Wycl Whether a man mai hide fier in his bosum, that hise clothis brenne not;
(Whether a man may hide fire in his bosom, that his clothes burn not;)

Luth Kann auch jemand ein Feuer im Busen behalten, daß seine Kleider nicht brennen?
(Can also someone a fire(n) in_the bosom keep, that his clothes not burn(v)?)

ClVg Numquid potest homo abscondere ignem in sinu suo, ut vestimenta illius non ardeant?
(Is_it can human abscondere fire in/into/on pocket his_own, as clothes of_that not/no ardeant? )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 6:20–35: Ninth lesson: If you commit adultery, you will be severely punished

This lesson may be summarized as follows: The son should heed his parents’ teaching, because it will keep him from the dangers of adultery (6:20–24). He should strictly avoid being tempted by another man’s wife. An affair with such a woman will have inevitable and disastrous consequences (6:25–33), resulting from the jealous fury of the husband (6:34–35).

Some other headings for this section are:

Warning Against Adultery (NIV)

Avoid adultery

More Advice About Avoiding Adultery (GW)

The terrible consequences of committing adultery

Paragraph 6:20–35

In these notes, this section forms a single paragraph (as in the NRSV). If a long paragraph like this is not natural in your language, you may want to make paragraph breaks as in the section summary above. Some other ways to divide the paragraphs are:

6:20–26, 27–35 (GNT)
6:20–22, 23–29, 30–35 (CEV)
6:20–29, 30–35 (NIV)

Divide the paragraphs in a way that fits the natural patterns of your language.

6:27–28

These two verses are parallel rhetorical questions.

^27a Can a man embrace fire ^27band his clothes not be burned?

^28a Can a man walk on hot coals ^28bwithout scorching his feet?

The purpose of both rhetorical questions is to give emphasis. The implied answer to both questions is, “Of course not!” Both rhetorical questions are also parallel metaphors. These metaphors compare a man who has sex with another man’s wife (6:29) to a man who comes in contact with fire/coals. The ways these men are similar are the disastrous and inevitable consequences that each man faces from his action.

6:27

Can a man embrace fire and his clothes not be burned?

Can a person carry burning coals against his chest and not have/get his clothes burned? Of course not!
It is impossible to put red-hot coals in your^(sing) pocket without setting your clothes on fire.

Can a man embrace fire and his clothes not be burned?: This is a rhetorical question. It emphasizes that a person cannot scoop burning coals into his lap without burning his clothes. Some ways to translate this emphasis are:

Use a question, but make explicit the implied answer: “Of course not!”
Use a statement. For example:
You cannot carry hot coals against your chest without burning your clothes (NCV)
If you carry burning coals, you burn your clothes (CEV)

embrace fire: The phrase the BSB translates as embrace fire generally means to take burning coals from a fire. The phrase can refer either to putting burning coals on a person’s lap or carrying those coals on the chest or in the clothes worn over the chest. The outer garment could also be pulled up to make a temporary pocket. So translations that speak of carrying fire/coals against the chest (GNT, NCV) or in the lap (NIV, NLT) are equally accurate. It would also be accurate to say: “carry hot coals in your pocket.” Use whatever is natural in your language for picking up and carrying hot coals in a way that would burn your clothes.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

הֲ⁠יַחְתֶּ֤ה אִ֓ישׁ אֵ֬שׁ בְּ⁠חֵיק֑⁠וֹ וּ֝⁠בְגָדָ֗י⁠ו לֹ֣א תִשָּׂרַֽפְנָה

will,he_snatch_up? (a)_man fire in,his_of,bosom and,his_of,garments not burnt

Solomon is using the question form to emphasize the truth of what he is saying. If you would not use the question form for this purpose in your language, you could translate this as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: “Surely a man could not carry a fire on his chest and his clothes not be burned!”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / extrainfo

הֲ⁠יַחְתֶּ֤ה אִ֓ישׁ אֵ֬שׁ בְּ⁠חֵיק֑⁠וֹ וּ֝⁠בְגָדָ֗י⁠ו לֹ֣א תִשָּׂרַֽפְנָה

will,he_snatch_up? (a)_man fire in,his_of,bosom and,his_of,garments not burnt

Here Solomon is referring to the negative consequences of committing adultery as if a man were burning himself with fire. Since this comparison is explained in [6:29](../06/29.md), you do not need to explain its meaning further here.

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

אִ֓ישׁ & בְּ⁠חֵיק֑⁠וֹ וּ֝⁠בְגָדָ֗י⁠ו

(a)_man & in,his_of,bosom and,his_of,garments

Here, a man and his do not refer to a specific man. They refer to any person who does this thing. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an expression that would be more natural in your language. Alternate translation: “any person … on that person’s chest and that person’s clothes”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

וּ֝⁠בְגָדָ֗י⁠ו לֹ֣א תִשָּׂרַֽפְנָה

and,his_of,garments not burnt

If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: “and the fire not burn his clothes”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy

וּ֝⁠בְגָדָ֗י⁠ו

and,his_of,garments

Here, clothes refers to the person who is wearing those clothes. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and he” or “and that person”

Parallel PROV 6:27

Section 6:20–35: Ninth lesson: If you commit adultery, you will be severely punished

Paragraph 6:20–35

6:27–28

6:27