Proverbs 27:23-27 New English Translation
23 Pay careful attention to[a] the condition of your flocks,[b]
set your mind[c] on your herds,
24 for riches do not last[d] forever,
nor does a crown last[e] from generation to generation.
25 When the hay is removed and new grass appears,
and the grass from the hills is gathered in,
26 the lambs will be for your clothing,
and the goats will be for the price of a field.[f]
27 And there will be enough goat’s milk for your food,[g]
for the food of your household,
and for the sustenance[h] of your servant girls.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 27:23 tn The sentence uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect from יָדַע (yadaʿ, “to know”). The imperfect here has been given the obligatory nuance, “you must know,” and that has to be intensified with the infinitive.
- Proverbs 27:23 tn Heb “the faces of your flock.”
- Proverbs 27:23 tn לֵב (lev) means “mind, heart” and by extension can refer to aspects of thinking or the will. The Hebrew idiom “set the mind (לֵב) on” or “put the mind (לֵב) to” transfers easily to English and is another way of saying to pay careful attention to something.sn The care of the flock must become the main focus of the will, for it is the livelihood. So v. 23 forms the main instruction of this lengthy proverb (vv. 23-27).
- Proverbs 27:24 tn Heb “riches are not forever” (so KJV, NASB); TEV “wealth is not permanent.” The term “last” is supplied in the translation for clarity.
- Proverbs 27:24 tn The conjunction and the particle indicate that the same nuance continues here in the second colon, and so “last” has been supplied here as well.
- Proverbs 27:26 sn Verse 25 is the protasis and v. 26 the apodosis. The two verses say that when the harvest is taken in, then the grass will grow, and they can sell and use their livestock. The lambs will provide clothing, and the goats when sold will pay for land.
- Proverbs 27:27 sn This part of the proverb shows the proper interplay between human labor and divine provision. It teaches people to take care of what they have because it will not last forever.
- Proverbs 27:27 tn Heb “life”; KJV, NAB “maintenance”; NRSV “nourishment.”
New English Translation (NET)
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