pride

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The Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “pride” in English is translated as

  • “continually boasting” (Amganad Ifugao)
  • “lifting oneself up” (Tzeltal)
  • “answering haughtily” (Yucateco) (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • “unbent neck” (like llamas) (Kaqchikel) (source: Nida 1952, p. 151)
  • “praising oneself, saying: I am better” (Shipibo-Conibo) (source: Nida 1964, p. 237).
  • “bigness of head” (existing idiom: girman kai) in the Hausa Common Language Bible it is idiomatically translated as or (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • “trying to make yourself the leader” in Mairasi (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • “make oneself important” (sick upspeeln) in Low German (source: translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006)
  • “a haughty liver” in Yakan (source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • “lift head” in Upper Guinea Crioulo (source: Nicoleti 2012, p. 78)

See also proud / arrogant and haughty / proud / heart exalted / exalt oneself above.

a haughty spirit goes before a fall

The now commonly-used German idiom Hochmut kommt vor dem Fall, which means that too much prideful behavior often ends in ruin (literally “arrogance goes before the fall”), was made popular in 1534 in the German Bible translation by Martin Luther. (Source: Günther 2017, p. 80)

For other idioms or terms in German that were coined by Bible translation, see here.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 16:18

“Pride goes before destruction”: This line is literally “Before destruction pride.” There is no verb in either line of the saying. “Goes” is supplied by Revised Standard Version. The English word “Pride” occurs in Revised Standard Version in 8.13 and also in 11.2, where a different Hebrew word is used. “Pride” in the context of this saying refers to an arrogant attitude of independence from God and contrasts sharply with humility. The term “destruction” does not indicate the nature of this consequence but suggests that it is the punishment somehow given to the proud person. New English Bible/Revised English Bible say “disaster,” while others say “ruin.” Contemporary English Version has “Too much pride will destroy you,” and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “After pride comes a downfall.”

“And a haughty spirit before a fall”: This line follows the same word order as the first, “and before falling a haughty spirit.” “Haughty” renders a word used in reference to trees and hills to describe them as high or tall. When associated with people, as in verse 5, “a haughty spirit” means a person who is “arrogant,” “disdainfully proud.” “A fall” renders a noun drawn from the verb meaning to stumble or stagger. In translation it may be necessary to say, for example, “If you are proud you will be ruined; if you look down on others, you will be brought low.”

In some languages this saying may be expressed, for example, “People who have their noses in the air will be destroyed and people who are high in their hearts will be pushed down.”

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 16:18)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 16:18:

  • Kupsabiny: “Pride destroys people,
    and boasting makes people get lost.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “An arrogant spirit leads to destruction.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The boasting and pride/[lit. the thinking-of-oneself-high] of a man can-destroy him.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “The outcome of one-who-is-proud (lit. makes-high his thoughts) is his destruction/ruin.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “Being proud will lead to your having/cause you to have disasters;
    despising others will result in your being ruined.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 16:18

16:18

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

18a
Pride goes before destruction,

18b and a haughty spirit before a fall.

In Hebrew, there are no verbs in these parallel lines. The proverb is literally:

18a Before breaking, pride

18b and before stumbling, haughtiness of spirit

The overall meaning of both lines is that a person who is proud will experience disaster. It is implied that his pride ⌊will cause him to do foolish things that⌋ lead to his humiliation and ruin.

16:18a–b

Pride…a haughty spirit: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Pride occurs in 8:13b. The Berean Standard Bible translates it there as “arrogant pride.” The word translated here as a haughty spirit occurs in the phrase “proud in heart” in 16:5a. See the note there.

These words do not contrast in meaning. They both refer to someone who has a high opinion of himself and considers himself to be better than others.

If your language has two expressions for such a person, you may be able to use both of them. Otherwise, it is acceptable to use one expression that covers the same range of meaning.

before destruction…before a fall: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as destruction can refer literally to something that “breaks” or “shatters.” The word that it translates as a fall is literally “a stumbling.” In this context, both words have similar meanings. They refer figuratively to humiliation and destruction or ruin. The nature of this destruction is not stated.

Some other ways to translate these parallel lines are:

Pride leads to destruction, and arrogance to downfall. (Good News Translation)
-or-
Pride will destroy a person; a proud attitude leads to ruin. (New Century Version)
-or-
Pride precedes disaster, and an arrogant attitude precedes a fall. (God’s Word)

General Comment on 16:18a–b

In some languages, a literal translation of the parallel lines may wrongly imply that there is a contrast between “pride” and a “haughty spirit.” It may also wrongly imply a contrast between “destruction” and “a fall.” If that is true in your language, you may need to reorder the parallel parts. See 16:18a–b (combined/reordered) in the Display.

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