“The righteous will never be removed”: “Removed” renders a verb meaning “shake,” “overthrow,” or “dislodge.” The image is that of being permanent and secure in contrast to the losing of the promised land by the wicked. The construction is passive and must often be expressed as active in translation; for example, “No one will remove the righteous from his place” or stated positively, “Good people will stand firm” (Contemporary English Version).

“But the wicked will not dwell in the land”: The language is that of the promise of the land to Israel. See also 2.21-22. However, it is applied here to individuals rather than to Israel as a nation. For “dwell” see 1.33. “In the land” is a concrete parallel with the more general idea of not being removed or standing firm in the first line. Although “will not dwell in the land” has particular reference to the land of Israel, it is used metaphorically here in the sense of “will perish.” It is possible, therefore, to translate as New English Bible does: “shall not remain on earth.” In many parts of the world, however, people still think of security and well-being in terms of being in their own land or country; for such people the figure is meaningful and may be kept. Bible en français courant is one version that keeps the figure, and it renders the whole verse: “Nothing can ever cause a just person to fall, but evil people will not dwell in the land.”

Others translate, for example, “Straight people will live well forever in their own land, but bad people will not last long there.”

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 .