Noongar: koort-kwabba-djil or “heart very good” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “refreshed heart” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.).
HausaCommon Language Bible: farin ciki or “white stomach.” Other languages that use the same expression include Southern Birifor (pʋpɛl), Dera (popolok awo), Reshe (ɾipo ɾipuhã). (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
“Do not rejoice when your enemy falls”: The warning “Do not rejoice” means “don’t be happy” (Contemporary English Version), don’t take pleasure, because of what happens to someone else. For “enemy” see 16.7. “Falls” is the same word as in verse 15 and is used in the same sense: “when your enemies meet disaster” (Good News Translation).
“And let not your heart be glad when he stumbles”: “Let not your heart be glad” has the same sense as “Do not rejoice” in the previous line. “When he stumbles” matches “when your enemy falls”. “Stumbles” is the same word as used in verse 16. Because the sense of the two lines is very similar, Contemporary English Version combines them: “Don’t be happy to see your enemies trip and fall 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 .
The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “enemy” or “foe” in English is translated in the HausaCommon Language Bible as “friends of front,” i.e., the person standing opposite you in a battle. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
In North Alaskan Inupiatun it is translated with a term that implies that it’s not just someone who hates you, but one who wants to do you harm (Source: Robert Bascom), in Tarok as ukpa ìkum or “companion in war/fighting,” and in Ikwere as nye irno m or “person who hates me” (source for this and one above: Chuck and Karen Tessaro in this newsletter ).
In Cherokee it is either translated as “the one(s) who reprimand(s) you” or “the one(s) feared.” (Source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 47)
In this saying, the author advises the young man not to rejoice when an enemy suffers disaster. If he rejoices, The LORD will be angry at his attitude and will stop punishing the enemy.
This saying is related to the previous saying by the parallel verbs that refer to disaster.
24:17
Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning. In the New International Version, they form a chiasm. The parts in 24:17b occur in the opposite order from the parallel parts in 24:17a.
17a Do not gloatwhen your enemy falls;
17b when he stumbles,do not let your heart rejoiceIn Hebrew and in the Berean Standard Bible, there is no chiasm. The underlined parallel parts occur first in each line. For example:
17a If your enemy falls, do not exult ;
17b if he trips, let not your heart rejoice, (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
In the New Revised Standard Version, there is also no chiasm, but the underlined parallel parts occur first in each line:
17a Do not rejoicewhen your enemies fall,
17b and do not let your heart be gladwhen they stumble. (New Revised Standard Version)
You should use whatever order expresses the meaning of the parallel lines most effectively in your language.
24:17a–b
Do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice: In Hebrew, these two commands have almost the same meaning. The first command can also be translated as “rejoice” (New Revised Standard Version). Another way to translate these two commands is:
Do not be happy…do not feel glad (God’s Word)
The second command is a figure of speech. In this figure of speech, the heart represents the whole person. It refers to his thoughts and feelings of delight. It also includes the way he shows his feelings through his facial expressions, words, or actions.
If possible, choose parallel terms that will refer together to different kinds of joy, whether feelings, words, or actions.
when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles: In Hebrew, the words falls and stumbles are the same as the terms “fall” (24:16a) and “stumble” (24:16b). See the notes there. The parallel clauses both indicate that the enemy experiences a disaster that ruins his life.
In some languages, it will be appropriate to repeat the same terms here as in 24:16. In other languages, it will sound redundant. Choose terms that will show the connection to verse 16 without sounding redundant.
enemy…he: These parallel terms refer to one or more people who are in the category of “enemy.” The New Revised Standard Version (quoted above) uses “enemies…they.” You may use either singular or plural.
General Comment on 24:17a–b
In some languages, it will be more natural to combine and/or reorder the parallel parts. For example:
Don’t be happy to see your enemies trip and fall down. (Contemporary English Version)
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