Proverbs 10:4 with its dichotomy of “negligent” and “diligent” (in the English translation) is translated into Poqomchi’ as “Whoever does not grab his heart to work, becomes poor, but whoever grabs his heart to work, becomes rich.” (Reminiscent of the biblical expression “gird up your loins.”)
Translation commentary on Proverbs 10:4
“A slack hand causes poverty”: “Slack” renders an adjective meaning “idle,” “lazy,” or “negligent” in this context. “Hand” is literally “palm,” in which a part of the hand poetically represents the entire hand, and, in fact, the person the hand belongs to. “Causes” is the Revised Standard Version rendering of the Hebrew participle ʿoseh, (“making”, “working”, or “doing”). The Hebrew for this line is literally “poverty making an idle palm.” In the life of a small farmer, “poverty” is looked upon as the result of failing to do the work required to obtain a minimum of life’s provisions. Good News Translation replaces “A slack hand” with the more general “Being lazy . . . poor.” Some translations say more directly “If you are lazy. . ..” We may follow this, but if we do, we should remember that it does away with the image of the hand which occurs in both lines.
“But the hand of the diligent makes rich”: “Hand” in this line is the literal word for hand. “Diligent” renders a word meaning “industrious” or “hard working”; the sense of the first part of the line is “if you work hard. . ..” “Makes rich” contrasts with “poverty” or being poor in the first line. Whybray takes “makes rich” to mean not the acquisition of wealth but “sufficient prosperity to confer an economic security. . ..” However, “rich” is a relative concept, and hard work results in riches compared with the poverty brought on by laziness.
The thought of this saying is: “Laziness results in poverty, but hard work enriches.”
In some languages the first line is expressed, for example, “To sit on the hands. . .,” “The person who folds his hands. . .,” or “Idle hands do not feed. . ..” The second line is sometimes expressed, for example, “But hands that work make large gardens,” “But busy hands bring profit,” or “But working hands feed many mouths.” Translators may find that this kind of saying is best expressed directly; for example, “If you have lazy hands. . ..”
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 .
complete verse (Proverbs 10:4)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 10:4:
- Kupsabiny: “(A) person who is lazy is poor,
and/but he who works hard lives well (gets a good life).” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation) - Newari: “Lazy people become poor,
hard-working people become rich.” (Source: Newari Back Translation) - Hiligaynon: “Being-lazy can-make- a man -poor, but being-industrious can-make- him -rich.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
- Kankanaey: “The person who is lazy will-be-poor, but the industrious-one will become-rich.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
- English: “Lazy people soon become poor;
it is those who work hard who become rich.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 10:4
10:4
Notice the parallel parts that contrast in meaning:
4a
Idle hands make one poor,
4b but diligent hands bring wealth.
10:4a–b
Idle hands…diligent hands: These phrases are figures of speech (synecdoche). In these figures of speech, hands are parts of the body that represent the entire person. Here they contrast a person who is lazy, idle, or negligent with one who is diligent, industrious, or hard working. For example:
The one who is lazy becomes poor, but the one who works diligently becomes wealthy. (NET Bible)
This meaning may also be expressed in other ways. For example:
Being lazy will make you poor, but hard work will make you rich (Good News Translation)
-or-
If a person is lazy, he will become poor, but if he is industrious, he will become rich.
-or-
Laziness causes poverty, but diligence results in wealth.
10:4a
poor: In Hebrew, this word for poor refers to people who are extremely poor. A person who is poor has no money or other resources to rely on.
In Proverbs, there are at least three other Hebrew word roots with similar aspects of meaning. In some contexts, they may emphasize one aspect of meaning more than another. But usually, they do not contrast with each other.
They all refer to people who lack money and other material resources. Often they are in need of food, clothing, and shelter. These people have low social status. They are often oppressed or treated unfairly by those who are wealthy and have higher status.
English versions translate them in different ways, depending on the context. Here almost all versions use the general words “poverty” or poor.
Some languages may have several words that refer to “poverty” or poor people. If that is true in your language, you may use a general word, as in most English versions. You may also use a more specific word that refers to extremely poor people.
In each verse where one of the Hebrew words for “poor” occurs, you will need to make a similar decision. In some languages, it will be appropriate to use the same word in most contexts. In other languages, it may be more effective to use a word that emphasizes a specific aspect of poverty.
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