“Fret not yourself because of evildoers”: This whole verse is almost identical with Psa 37.1. The verb “Fret . . . yourself” is literally “make yourself hot”; the sense may be “get angry” or “get worked up” about people who do evil. Both Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version render this as “Don’t let evil people worry you.” “Evildoers” comes from the same Hebrew root as “evil men” in verse 1.

“And be not envious of the wicked”: For “do not be envious” see verse 1. “The wicked” (plural) is different in Hebrew from “evil men” in verse 1, but the sense is the same. See verse 15.

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 .