This saying expresses the idea that intelligent people, in contrast to the foolish, possess wisdom.

“Wisdom abides in the mind of a man of understanding”: “Abides in the mind” is literally “rests [settles down] in the heart.” New English Bible/Revised English Bible say “Wisdom is at home in . . . mind,” and New Jerusalem Bible has “Wisdom resides in . . . heart.” “A man of understanding” may be expressed as “an intelligent person,” “thoughtful people,” or “people with good sense” (see 1.5).

“But it is not known in the heart of fools”: In this line the Hebrew text has no word equivalent to “not”. See Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation footnotes. “Heart” translates a word that refers generally to the inner parts of the body, but is used here as the seat of thought and emotion. In some languages this is the stomach, spleen, liver, or kidneys. Hebrew Old Testament Text Project suggests two interpretations based upon the Hebrew text: “and even among fools is she [wisdom] known” or “but in the mind of fools she [wisdom] makes herself known.” Most modern translations, like Good News Translation, follow the Septuagint. In this case we may say, for example, “but fools know nothing about wisdom.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .