complete verse (Proverbs 12:6)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 12:6:

  • Kupsabiny: “The mouth (speech) of a sinner destroys people,
    but the one (mouth/words) of the righteous person saves people.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The advice of the wicked
    causes one to be caught in fearful traps,
    But the words of the righteous save.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The words of the wicked can-kill, but the words of the righteous can-save.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “The words of a sinful-person, (they) can-be-compared to a person who waits-for someone-to-kill, but what the righteous/just say, that’s what will save them.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “What wicked people say is like a trap that kills people who pass by,
    but what righteous people say rescues those whom wicked people threaten to harm.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Proverbs 12:6

“The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood”: In this saying “The words of the wicked” pick up the theme of deceit from the previous line and picture the words as persons ready to ambush the righteous. For “lie in wait for blood” see the comments on 1.11. There the sense is literal, but in this verse “The words” “of the wicked” are represented as a deadly trap to ensnare and destroy others. In many languages this line must be reworded, since “words . . . wicked” cannot be used in this poetic manner. It may be possible to shift to a simile and say, for example, “The words of the wicked are like a trap” or “What the wicked say is like bandits lying in ambush.” Contemporary English Version has “Bad advice is a deadly trap.” See Good News Translation.

“But the mouth of the upright delivers men”: “Mouth” in this line matches “words” in the first line. “Mouth” and “words” may refer here to what is said by witnesses in a trial or similar situation. For “upright” see 2.7. “Delivers men” is literally “delivers them.” It is not certain who “them” represents, but it is probably the persons who may be ambushed and caught by the wicked in line 1. Bible en français courant says “What upright persons say protects others from death”; some others say “. . . help people when they are in trouble.” Note Good News Translation “those who are threatened” refers to the same victims as in line 1. Others make no attempt to do this. For example, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy says “The words of an evil person are a deadly trap; those of a good man are salvation.”

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 .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 12:6

12:6

Notice the parallel parts that contrast in meaning:

6a
The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood,

6b but the speech of the upright rescues them.

12:6a

The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood: This line means that wicked people say things with the hidden intention of causing the death of another person. This may refer to telling lies in court or to plotting someone’s murder. The verse itself does not specify how wicked people kill others with their words. This line has three figures of speech: personification, metaphor, and metonymy.

The words of the wicked lie in wait for: In this clause, The words of the wicked are personified. They are described as if they were people waiting in ambush. This clause also functions as a metaphor. It compares the words that wicked people speak to a person who waits in order to ambush someone.

blood: In this context, the word blood is a figure of speech (metonymy). It represents killing someone.

In some languages, a literal translation of these figures of speech may be difficult to understand. Some other ways to translate these figures of speech are:

• Change the metaphor to a simile. Translate the meaning of blood without using a figure of speech. For example:

The words of wicked people are like someone who lies in ambush in order to kill another person.

• Express the meaning of all three figures of speech directly. Do not use figurative language. For example:

Wicked people say things with the hidden intention of causing someone else to die.

12:6b

but the speech of the upright rescues them: This clause means that upright people say things that are needed to rescue or deliver others from death. In this clause, the speech of the upright is personified. Their speech is described as if it were a person who rescues others. It is parallel to “the words of the wicked” in 12:6a.

the upright: In Hebrew, this word refers to people whose conduct is fair and straightforward. See the note on upright in 11:3a.

them: The word them should not refer back to the wicked. It may refer to people who are about to be ambushed. For example:

but the words of the righteous rescue those who are threatened (Good News Translation)

It may also refer to people in general. For example:

but the words of the godly save lives (New Living Translation (2004))

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