“By knowledge the rooms are filled”: The preposition “by” has the same sense as in the previous verse. “Knowledge” is a term that is almost the same in meaning as “wisdom” and “understanding” in the previous verse; see 1.4. “The rooms” may be the various rooms of the house, in which case the next line will refer to their furnishings and contents. So Scott renders the line “Through knowledge its rooms are furnished” (see also Good News Translation), and Revised English Bible uses the noun “furnishings” in the next line. However, “the rooms” may also be rendered “storerooms” (New Jerusalem Bible), in which case the next line will refer to “treasures” (New International Version) or valuable items that are part of the wealth of the owner. The verb “are filled” gives the idea of putting many things in the rooms.

“With all precious and pleasant riches”: This line is literally “all wealth precious and delightful.” The adjective “precious” may have a meaning like “rare” or “splendid”; in this context, as in 1.13, it may also mean “costly” (Revised English Bible). The other adjective “pleasant” may also mean “beautiful” (New International Version, Scott) or “desirable” (New Jerusalem Bible). As noted above, “riches” may refer to the “furnishings” of the rooms or to “treasures” held in the storerooms of the house. Some good models for this line are Scott “[furnished] with all manner of precious and beautiful things,” New International Version “with rare and beautiful treasures,” and Good News Translation “with valuable, beautiful things.”

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 .