Open Bible Data Home About News OET Key
OET OET-RV OET-LV ULT UST BSB MSB BLB AICNT OEB WEBBE WMBB NET LSV FBV TCNT T4T LEB BBE Moff JPS Wymth ASV DRA YLT Drby RV SLT Wbstr KJB-1769 KJB-1611 Bshps Gnva Cvdl TNT Wycl SR-GNT UHB BrLXX BrTr Related Topics Parallel Interlinear Reference Dictionary Search
ParallelVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Prov Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28 C29 C30 C31
Prov 9 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18
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) Wisdom has built her house—
⇔ chiselling out its seven pillars.![]()
OET-LV wisdom(s) she_has_built house_of_her she_has_hewn pillars_of_her seven.
![]()
UHB חָ֭כְמוֹת בָּנְתָ֣ה בֵיתָ֑הּ חָצְבָ֖ה עַמּוּדֶ֣יהָ שִׁבְעָֽה׃ ‡
(ḩākəmōt bānətāh ⱱēytāh ḩāʦəⱱāh ˊammūdeyhā shiⱱˊāh.)
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 Ἡ σοφία ᾠκοδόμησεν ἑαυτῇ οἶκον, καὶ ὑπήρεισε στύλους ἑπτά.
(Haʸ sofia ōkodomaʸsen heautaʸ oikon, kai hupaʸreise stulous hepta. )
BrTr Wisdom has built a house for herself, and set up seven pillars.
ULT Wisdom has built her house;
⇔ she has hewn out her seven pillars.
UST Continue imagining that there is a woman who represents everything that is wise. Imagine that this woman has built her own spacious house
⇔ and made seven pillars to support its roof.
BSB Wisdom has built her house;
⇔ she has carved out[fn] her seven pillars.
9:1 Hebrew; LXX, Syriac, and Aramaic Targum has set up
MSB (Same as BSB above including footnotes)
OEB No OEB PROV book available
WEBBE Wisdom has built her house.
⇔ She has carved out her seven pillars.
WMBB (Same as above)
NET Wisdom has built her house;
⇔ she has carved out its seven pillars.
LSV Wisdom has built her house,
She has hewn out her pillars—seven.
FBV Wisdom has built her house; she has prepared its seven pillars.
T4T It is as though wisdom is a woman who has built a big house for herself,
⇔ and has set up seven columns to support the roof,
LEB No LEB PROV 9:1 verse available
BBE Wisdom has made her house, putting up her seven pillars.
Moff Wisdom has built her mansion,
⇔ and set up her seven pillars;
JPS Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars;
ASV Wisdom hath builded her house;
⇔ She hath hewn out her seven pillars:
DRA Wisdom hath built herself a house, she hath hewn her out seven pillars.
YLT Wisdom hath builded her house, She hath hewn out her pillars — seven.
Drby Wisdom hath built her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars;
RV Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars:
(Wisdom hath/has built her house, she hath/has hewn/chopped out her seven pillars: )
SLT Wisdom built her house, she hewed out her seven pillars:
Wbstr Wisdom hath built her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars:
KJB-1769 Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars:
(Wisdom hath/has built her house, she hath/has hewn/chopped out her seven pillars: )
KJB-1611 ¶ Wisedome hath builded her house: she hath hewen out her seuen pillars.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)
Bshps Wysdome hath buylded her house, and hewen out seuen pillers:
(Wysdome hath/has built her house, and hewn/chopped out seven pillars:)
Gnva Wisedome hath built her house, and hewen out her seuen pillars.
(Wisdom hath/has built her house, and hewn/chopped out her seven pillars. )
Cvdl Wysdome hath buylded herself an house, and hewen out seuen pilers:
(Wysdome hath/has built herself an house, and hewn/chopped out seven pillars:)
Wycl Wisdom bildide an hous to him silf; he hewide out seuene pileris,
(Wisdom built an house to himself; he hewide out seven pillars,)
Luth Die Weisheit bauete ihr Haus und hieb sieben Säulen,
(The wise_(people) built you(pl)/their/her house and cut seven pillars/columns,)
ClVg [Sapientia ædificavit sibi domum: excidit columnas septem.[fn]
([Wisdom he_built to_himself house/home: excidit columns/pillars seven. )
9.1 Sapientia ædificavit. Quia de æternitate divinitatis Christi sufficienter dixerat, etc., usque ad quia ab amore sæculi disjunctos ad portandam Ecclesiæ fabricam erexit. Columnas septem. Scilicet Ecclesias per orbem, etc., usque ad quasi sustentando continerent.
9.1 Wisdom he_built. Because from/about eternaltate of_divinity of_Christ sufficienter had_said, etc., until to because away with_love of_the_world/of_the_ages disyunctos to gate/doorndam Assemblies/Churches carpenterscam erexit. Columnas seven. Of_course Assembly/Churchs through the_world, etc., until to as_if sustentando continerent.
9:1 The number seven can denote grandeur or fullness, so the seven columns represent the grandeur of Wisdom’s house, the place where it dwells.
This section summarizes the main themes of chapters 1–8. It contains parallel appeals by Wisdom (9:1–6) and Folly (9:13–18), both personified as women. Both Wisdom and Folly appeal to the same audience, inviting them to come and eat in their homes. Between these two appeals is a summary of two opposite ways to respond to Wisdom (9:7–12). In the center of this paragraph, 9:10 contains a restatement of the first line of 1:7. These key verses mark chapters 1 and 9 as the beginning and end of the first major division of the book.
Some other headings for this section are:
Invitations of Wisdom and of Folly (NIV)
Wisdom and Foolishness each give a feast
Being Wise or Foolish (NCV)
This paragraph describes the preparations that Wisdom makes for a banquet (9:1–3) and the invitations that she sends out to the guests (9:4–6).
Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:
1a Wisdom has built her house;
1b she has carved out her seven pillars.
The second line specifies one thing that Wisdom did to build her house.
Wisdom has built her house;
¶ The one/woman called Wisdom has built her house.
¶ Wisdom is like a person who made/built a large, sturdy house
Wisdom has built her house: This clause is a metaphor that contains personification. In this metaphor, personified Wisdom is compared to a female builder or carpenter who has built a house. Another way to translate this figure of speech is to change the metaphor to a simile. For example:
Wisdom is like a carpenter who has built a house
Wisdom has built her own house, as a builder does (UBS)
See wisdom in the Glossary.
her house: This verse does not state explicitly what Wisdom’s house symbolizes. It may be a symbol of the earth or of Wisdom’s teaching. Because scholars interpret this symbol in different ways, you should not make one interpretation explicit in your translation. However, if you use footnotes, it may be helpful to your readers to add a footnote. For example:
Some scholars think that Wisdom’s house is a symbol of the earth. Others think that it symbolizes Wisdom’s teaching.
she has carved out her seven pillars.
She chiseled its seven pillars out of stone.
that had seven columns.
she has carved out her seven pillars: There is a textual difference here:
The Hebrew text has “hewn out.” For example:
she has carved its seven columns (NLT) (BSB, ESV, KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV, REB, NJB, NJPS, GW, NCV, NLT, GNT, NET)
The LXX has “set up.” For example:
she has set up her seven pillars (RSV) (NAB, RSV)
It is recommended that you follow option (1), along with most English versions.This option is also what the HOTTP recommends.
carved out: In this context, the verb carved out means to cut or chisel pillars out of rock. A description of cutting pillars out of rock may be awkward or put too much emphasis on the building process itself. If that is true in your language, you may want to translate more generally, as several English versions have done. For example:
she has made its seven columns (NCV)
and made seven columns for it (GNT)
her seven pillars: The number seven was a symbol of perfection, so a house with seven pillars symbolized an ideal or perfect house. If your readers are not aware of the significance of a house with seven pillars, you may want to add a footnote. For example:
Only a rich/important person owned a house with pillars. These pillars or columns probably supported a roofed porch that covered part of the inner courtyard of the house. A house with seven pillars symbolizes a perfect house.The function of these pillars is described by Delitzsch, Toy, Whybray, Fox, and UBS. All basically agree that the pillars supported an upper level gallery of some sort, not the main house itself.
The NLT96 may provide a good translation model for some languages, because it makes explicit the good quality of the house. At the same time, it leaves implicit the details of how the pillars were built:
Wisdom has built her spacious house with seven pillars.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / personification
חָ֭כְמוֹת בָּנְתָ֣ה בֵיתָ֑הּ חָצְבָ֖ה עַמּוּדֶ֣יהָ שִׁבְעָֽה
wisdom built house_of,her hewn pillars_of,her seven
In [9:1–12](../09/01.md), Wisdom is spoken of as if it were a woman. See the discussion of this in the Chapter Introduction. Alternate translation: “It is as if wisdom were a woman who has built her house and has hewn out her seven pillars”
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
חָצְבָ֖ה עַמּוּדֶ֣יהָ שִׁבְעָֽה
hewn pillars_of,her seven
This clause refers to part of the process of building the house that was mentioned in the previous clause. A house with seven pillars would have been very large. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “she has hewn out seven pillars to support the roof of her house”