wisdom

Click here to view graphically

The Hebrew, Aramaic, Ge’ez, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “wisdom” in English is rendered in various ways:

  • Amganad Ifugao / Tabasco Chontal: “(big) mind”
  • Bulu / Yamba: “heart-thinking”
  • Tae’: “cleverness of heart” (source for this and all above: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Palauan: “bright spirit (innermost)” (source: Bratcher / Hatton)
  • Ixcatlán Mazatec: “with your best/biggest thinking” (source: Robert Bascom)
  • Noongar: dwangka-boola, lit. “ear much” (source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018 — see also remember)
  • Kwere “to know how to live well” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Dobel: “their ear holes are long-lasting” (in Acts 6:3) (source: Jock Hughes)
  • Gbaya: iŋa-mgbara-mɔ or “knowing-about-things” (note that in comparison to that, “knowledge” is translated as iŋa-mɔ or “knowing things”) (source: Philip Noss in The Bible Translator 2001, p. 114ff. )
  • Chichewa: nzeru, meaning both “knowledge” and “wisdom” (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Uma: “clearness” (source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Kako: “heart thinking” (source: Reyburn 2002, p. 190)

In Hungarian Sign Language it is translated with a hand gesture referring to God to indicate a human quality to communicate that wisdom does not originate from man but is linked to and connected with the fear of God (source: Jenjelvi Biblia and HSL Bible Translation Group):


“Wisdom” in Hungarian Sign Language (source )

See also wisdom (Proverbs) and knowledge.

wisdom ("word wisdom")

In the Tzeltal translation for the dialectal variant of Highland Tzeltal (Biblia Tzeltal yu’un Oxchuc soc Tenejapa, 2001) the translation team used three different words to translate the Hebrew term that is translated as “wisdom” in English. For the verses referenced here, it uses p’ijil c’op or “word wisdom.”

For the complete story and more background, please see wisdom (Proverbs).

See also buy wisdom.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 17:16

Some interpreters hold that this saying is evidence that in ancient Israel there were professional wisdom teachers who taught for money. However that may be, this saying is in the form of a rhetorical question that asserts that wisdom cannot be purchased by a fool since he does not have the intelligence necessary to understand it.

“Why should a fool have a price in his hand to buy wisdom”: We may render this line as a statement or as a question; for example, “It does a fool no good to buy wisdom,” or “Does it do any good for a fool to buy wisdom?” In some languages such a question must be answered in the negative: “Certainly not.” “Price in his hand” may refer to an offer to purchase. It may also refer to having money in the hand ready to purchase. Bible en français courant has “What can money do in the hand of a fool?”

“When he has no mind”: “Mind” translates the Hebrew “heart,” the center of intelligence and thought. This line is equivalent to “since he lacks intelligence” or “since he refuses to learn.”

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 17:16)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 17:16:

  • Kupsabiny: “There is no goodness/value if/when money is wasted on a fool,
    because he is not happy to be taught.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “It is useless for fools to spend money
    to get an education [Lit: to learn the alphabet],
    since they have no desire (Lit.: no heart) for learning.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “There is no value to spend-money to have/cause-go-to-school of a foolish man for he has no desire/[lit. appetite] to study.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “It is useless that a mindless-one spend-money to learn, because he dislikes to-be-taught.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “It is useless to allow foolish people to try to become wise by paying for it,
    because they do not have enough good sense to become wise.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 17:16

17:16

16a Why should the fool have money in his hand

16b with no intention of buying wisdom?

This verse probably describes a situation in which someone foolishly thinks he can buy wisdom like any other product in the marketplace. It probably does not refer to paying tuition or other fees at a school.

17:16a–b

Why should the fool have money in his hand with no intention of buying wisdom?: This verse is a sarcastic rhetorical question. Its function is to emphasize that a fool cannot use money to get wisdom. Even if he could buy it, it would do him no good, since he is not able or willing to learn. For example:

16a Why should fools have a price in hand to buy wisdom, 16b when they have no mind to learn? (New Revised Standard Version)

Some other ways to express the sarcastic emphasis of the rhetorical question are:

• Use a rhetorical question. For example:

Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom when he doesn’t have a mind to grasp anything? (God’s Word)

• Use a statement. For example:

It won’t do a fool any good to try to buy wisdom, because he doesn’t have the ability to be wise. (New Century Version)

fool:

17:16b

with no intention of buying wisdom: This clause indicates that even if wisdom could be bought, the fool’s money would not help him, because he does not have the mental ability or desire to become wise. Nor is he truly willing to acquire wisdom. See the New Revised Standard Version, God’s Word, and New Century Version (quoted in 17:16a) for other ways to express the meaning of this clause.

intention: The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates here as intention is literally “heart.” In Hebrew, the word “heart” includes the emotions, but it also refers to a person’s mental faculties. This includes the ability to think clearly and to make good decisions.

© 2012, 2016, 2020 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.