The theme of this saying is “The price of pleasure-seeking” (Kidner). The same thoughts are expressed in 23.20-21. The verse consists of two parallel lines whose meaning is the same.

“He who loves pleasure will be a poor man”: “Pleasure” renders the same Hebrew term as in the first line of verse 15, where it is translated “joy.” The sense of “loves pleasure” here seems to be “having a good time”; Contemporary English Version translates “live only for pleasure.” “Will be a poor man” is literally “a man of poverty” without any verb. The expression uses the same Hebrew term rendered “want” in verse 5. The sense may be “. . . will become poor” (New International Version) or “. . . stay poor” (New Jerusalem Bible). New Revised Standard Version moves away from Revised Standard Version and says “will suffer want,” and Revised English Bible is similar with “will end in want.”

“He who loves wine and oil will not be rich”: “He who loves wine and oil” is parallel to “He who loves pleasure” in the previous line, and has much the same sense. “Wine and oil” were usually supplied at feasts, and so the expression “loves wine and oil” refers to one particular instance of enjoying pleasure, namely feasting on rich food. For the translation of “wine” see 9.2; “oil” is olive oil, not oil from the ground. Where these are not in common use, translators may use a more general rendering, such as “fine food and drink.” “Will not be rich” expresses the same thought in a negative way as “will be a poor man”. This may be better expressed as “will never be rich” or “will never get rich.”

In some languages the expression of a single thought in a positive and then a negative way is regarded as good style. In others, however, it may sound like needless repetition. Some translators may prefer to express the thought in a single sentence like that in Good News Translation, “Indulging in luxuries, wine, and rich food will never make you wealthy.” Another typical example of this approach is “If you keep spending your money to buy rich food and drink and other flashy stuff, you will never ever become rich.”

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 .