20:27

In Hebrew, the two lines of this verse form a single sentence. The first line of this verse identifies a person’s spirit as the lamp of the LORD. The second line tells what the spirit/lamp reveals.

27a The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD,

27b searching out his inmost being.

The New Revised Standard Version has been used as the source line, because it follows the recommended interpretation for 20:27a.

20:27a

The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD: There are two main ways to interpret this clause:

(1) This clause identifies the human spirit as the lamp of the LORD. For example:

A person’s soul is the Lord ’s lamp. (God’s Word)

(2) This clause indicates that the lamp of the LORD reveals a person’s spirit. It does not identify the lamp of the LORD. For example:

The lamp of the Lord searches the spirit of a man (New International Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars.

This clause is a metaphor. It compares the human spirit to a lamp that the LORD uses or provides to mankind.

The phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the spirit of a man is literally “the breath of a human.” This is a reference to “the breath of life” that God breathed into man (Genesis 2:7). Here it represents a person’s spirit. It is the part of a person that enables him to think, to make moral decisions, and to relate to God.

Some ways to translate this metaphor are:

• Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:

The human spirit is like the lamp of the Lord (NET Bible)

• Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:

The Lord gave us mind and conscience (Good News Translation)

20:27b

searching out his inmost being: This phrase continues the metaphor that compares the human spirit to a lamp. It describes one of the functions of the human spirit. A lamp illuminates the darkest corners of a room. Similarly, the spirit, mind, or conscience of a human being enables him to examine his inmost being. It reveals to him the kind of person that he is.

Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

searching the deepest self (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
exposing every hidden motive (New Living Translation (2004))

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