“A wise man is mightier than a strong man”: As the Revised Standard Version footnote shows, this rendering is based on ancient translations rather than on the Hebrew text as we have it. The Hebrew is literally “a man [or, warrior] of wisdom [is] in strength,” which is rendered in New International Version as “A wise man has great power.” Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers the Hebrew text (with a “C” rating) and suggests the translation “a wise man proves strong.” Other versions that follow the Hebrew are New Jerusalem Bible “The wise is mighty in power” and Contemporary English Version “Wisdom brings strength.” Of the versions that follow the ancient translations, Scott has “A wise man is superior to a strong one,” and Good News Translation “Being wise is better than being strong.” Translators may follow either of the above approaches to the text of this line. The Hebrew term for “strong” here refers to physical force or might.

“And a man of knowledge than he who has strength”: In the case of this line, the Hebrew is literally “and a man of knowledge increasing strength,” and again Hebrew Old Testament Text Project prefers this (with a “C” rating) over other possibilities. With a change in the vowels this is taken as “and a man of knowledge than the mighty [man] of strength,” which is parallel with the alternative based on the ancient translations for the previous line. Of the versions that follow the Hebrew, New International Version is quite literal with “and a man of knowledge increases strength,” while Contemporary English Version has “and knowledge gives power.” Of those that follow Revised Standard Version, Scott has “and a learned man is better than one who is physically powerful,” and Good News Translation “yes, knowledge is more important than strength.” Again, translators may follow either of these approaches. “Strength” renders a different Hebrew word than “strong” in the previous line; it can have the same meaning, but in a context like this it may also have the sense of ability or efficiency.

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 .