vegetables . . . fatted ox

The Hebrew which is translated as “vegetables . . . fatted ox” or similar in English is translated in Chadian Arabic as “scrap of bread . . . chicken” as local equivalents. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

Translation commentary on Proverbs 15:17

This saying follows the pattern of verse 16 and means that love for others is more important than fine food.

“Better is a dinner of herbs where love is”: “A dinner of herbs” refers to a portion of herbs, or a ration of vegetables without meat. The sense of the expression is “a very slender meal” or “a meal consisting of very little food.” Contemporary English Version calls it “a simple meal.” Where people normally eat only vegetables, it is best to refer, for example, to “a meal of only one vegetable.” “Where love is” is literally “and love is there.” In many languages “love” must have a subject and an object, for example, “where people love each other.”

“Than a fatted ox and hatred with it”: “A fatted ox” parallels and contrasts with “a dinner” “of herbs”. “A fatted ox” is literally “a stalled ox,” that is, an ox that is kept in a stall and fed a great deal to make it become fat. “A fatted ox” represents a luxurious meal in contrast to the poor meal in the previous line. “Hatred” contrasts with “love”. Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates the whole verse “It is worth more to eat greens with love than beef with hate.” Bible en français courant has “It is better to eat a plate of vegetables prepared with love than the most tasty meat served with hate.” See also Good News Translation.

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 15:17)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 15:17:

  • Kupsabiny: “It is better to be eating vegetables and be in harmony,
    instead of eating meat and be hating one another.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Better to eat sour fruit
    with one’s loved ones
    than feast on rice and meat
    with one’s enemies.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “(It is) better to have just vegetable viand with loving-one-another, than to have a meat viand with hating-one-another.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “It-is-better to-eat- vegetables -as-viand (viand = any dish served with rice) having love than to eat-as-viand the most-delicious meat having hatred in the thoughts.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “Eating meals with people whom you love and having only vegetables to eat
    is better than eating with people who hate each other and having lots of good meat to eat.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 15:17

15:17

This proverb compares two kinds of meals. The people at each meal have different relationships with one another. The situation at the meal in 15:17a is better than the situation at the meal in 15:17b. Notice the parallel parts that contrast in meaning:

17a Better a dish of vegetables where there is love

17b than a fattened ox with hatred.

The first line describes a simple meal of vegetables with people who love one another. This kind of meal is more desirable than a feast of the finest food with people who hate one another.

This proverb has the same form as 15:16. The four parts are:

A: a simple meal of vegetables (undesirable)

B: a loving relationship (very desirable)

C: a feast with tasty meat (desirable)

D: a relationship of hatred (very undesirable)

See the note on 12:9 for more details on this kind of proverb.

15:17a–b

a dish of vegetables…a fattened ox: The phrase dish of vegetables refers to a very simple meal. It contrasts with a banquet at which the main dish is meat from an ox/cow that has been specially fattened.

a fattened ox: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as ox can refer to an ox or cow. It can be a male or female, of any age.

A fattened ox/cow was literally butchered for a special meal in OT times. But this phrase is also a figure of speech. It represents the finest, tastiest kind of meat. More generally, it represents any fine food. So it is not necessary to specify ox unless only oxen are butchered for food in your language area.

In addition to using the literal terms, some other ways to translate these phrases are.

• Use a more general phrase in each line. For example:

A simple meal…a feast (Contemporary English Version)

• Use foods that convey the same contrast in your culture. Try to use foods that would also have been found in the OT context. For example:

a bowl of soup…steak (New Living Translation (1996))

where there is love…with hatred: These phrases refer to mutual love and hatred. Some English versions specify the subject and object of love and hate. For example:

17a A bowl of vegetables with someone you love

17b is better than steak with someone you hate. (New Living Translation (2004))

Some versions use a different order of the subject and object. For example:

17a It is better to eat vegetables with those who love you

17b than to eat meat with those who hate you. (New Century Version)

The Hebrew text does not specify the subject or object. It only describes a situation in which there is love in contrast to one in which there is hatred. You may use the Berean Standard Bible or any of the examples cited here as models, depending on what is natural in your language.

General Comment on 15:17a–b

In some languages, it may be difficult to express a complex comparison in one sentence. Another way to translate it is to divide this verse into two sentences. You may need to change the order of the two lines or the order of the parts. For example:

17b Sometimes there is plenty of tasty meat to eat, but the people who are eating with you hate you.

17a It is better to eat with people who love you, even though there are only vegetables to eat.

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