“Righteousness exalts a nation”: “Righteousness” refers here to moral integrity, that is, “uprightness,” “goodness,” or “practicing justice” (see 10.2). “Exalts” translates a verb meaning “raise” or “lift up,” especially in terms of rank, status, or character. The idea is that of raising the power, prosperity, or prestige of the people who form a political unit. Bible en français courant says “Practicing justice makes a nation great,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “Justice makes a people great.”

“But sin is a reproach to any people”: Here “sin” contrasts with “Righteousness” and so has the sense of “injustice,” “doing wrong or evil.” “Reproach” translates the Hebrew chesed and is a very rare meaning of this term (or it may be considered a different word but spelled the same as the word for “mercy”). The sense is “shame” or “disgrace.” “People” is to be taken in a collective sense, that is, the people who make up the nation. Contemporary English Version says, “Doing right brings honor to a nation, but sin brings disgrace.”

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 .