Translation commentary on Proverbs 22:27

“If you have nothing with which to pay”: The consequence of not heeding the warning of the previous verse is in two parts. This line invites the reader to consider the situation when the other person is not able to repay the debt or loan, and when the creditor or lender is demanding the money from you. The meaning is simply “If you cannot pay” (Revised English Bible, and see Good News Translation) or “If you don’t have the money” (Contemporary English Version).

“Why should your bed be taken from under you?”: This line is in the form of a question, which Revised Standard Version renders literally. But the question is a rhetorical question, and the meaning is that this is what is sure to happen. So most English versions say something like “your very bed will be taken from under you” (Revised English Bible). Perhaps the sense intended is that everything (or many things) that you own, including even your bed, will be taken. In languages without a passive construction it may be necessary to name the person(s) who takes away the bed; Good News Translation and others use an indefinite pronoun, “they will take away even your bed.” Another rendering of the whole verse is: “It will not be good if you can’t pay back the loan, and then they come and take everything that is yours, and your bed too.”

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 22:27)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 22:27:

  • Kupsabiny: “because if you cannot pay that debt, your bed might be taken from you.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “If anything happens and you are not able to pay,
    even the bed on which you sleep
    will be picked up and taken away.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “For if you (sing.) could- not -pay, they will-take-away even your (sing.) something-to-lie-down-on.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “because if you (sing.) have nothing to use-as-payment, they will take your (sing.) very sleeping-place (i.e. bed/mat).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “First, do the work that needs to be done outside your house,
    and prepare your fields, and then plant things,
    and after you finish doing that, build your house.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 22:27

22:27

This verse gives the reason or motivation for obeying the advice in 22:26. The reason is that a person who promises to pay someone else’s debt risks losing everything he owns if he does not have enough money.

27a If you have nothing with which to pay,

27b why should your bed be taken from under you?

The verse describes the situation that the loan guarantor will face if two things have happened:

(a) The borrower could not pay the loan.

(b) The lender then tried to collect the money from the loan guarantor.

These two events are implied by the general context. In some languages, it may be necessary to supply some of the implied information. For example:

27a
⌊The borrower may not be able to pay.⌋ If you ⌊also⌋ lack the money to pay,

27b
⌊the lender⌋ may take even the bed that you are lying on.

22:27a

If you have nothing with which to pay: Some other ways to translate this clause are:

If you cannot pay the loan (New Century Version)
-or-
If you don’t have the money (Contemporary English Version)

22:27b

why should your bed be taken from under you: This clause implies that someone will take all of the guarantor’s possessions in order to pay the loan. Even his bed will be taken away. The clause describes the situation in a humorous way. It describes someone pulling the bed away while the guarantor is still lying on it, so that he is left lying on the floor. If this kind of humor will reinforce the foolishness of guaranteeing another person’s loan, you may want to translate it in a similar way.

In Hebrew, this clause is a rhetorical question that emphasizes the extent of the guarantor’s financial disaster. Some versions are like the Berean Standard Bible and translate the question literally. For example:

If you have nothing with which to pay, why should your bed be taken from under you? (English Standard Version)

In many languages, a rhetorical question of this form will incorrectly imply that the guarantor’s bed should not be taken away, even though he fails to pay the debt. If that is true in your language, another way to express the emphasis is to use a statement. For example:

your own bed may be taken right out from under you (New Century Version)
-or-
your very bed will be snatched from under you (New International Version)

bed: In Hebrew, this word means “place for lying down.” Common people usually slept on the floor or on a mat. They wrapped themselves in a cloak. Wealthier people slept on a bed.

English versions use the word bed. In some languages, it may be more natural to use a more general expression. For example:

what you sleep on
-or-
your sleeping mat

Use a word or expression that would be appropriate in your culture for the situation that is described here.

be taken: This is a passive verb. In some languages, it will be necessary to use an active verb and to make the agent explicit. Some languages may use a general word such as “someone” or “they.” For example:

they will take away even your bed (Good News Translation)

Other languages may need to use a more specific phrase, such as “the lender” or “the loan collector.” See the example in the previous note under 22:27.

taken: In Hebrew, this verb is used in many contexts. It simply means “take” or “remove.” The New International Version has used a more specific word (“snatched”) to emphasize the unexpected and extreme consequences.

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