The Greek that is translated as “two-edged sword” in English is translated in Alekano as “like a knife that is sharp at its mouth and its back” (source: Larson 1998, p. 170) and in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) as “the sharpest knife.”
The now commonly-used English idiom “two-edged sword” (meaning something that offers both a good and bad consequence) was first coined in 1560 in the Geneva Bible. (Source: Crystal 2010, p. 279)
Other languages that use this phrase idiomatically, include:
The Hebrew word la‘anah refers literally to a plant, but it is only used figuratively in the Old Testament, as something representing intense bitterness. Despite very little evidence, commentators and botanists have agreed that this word may refer to a substance derived from the white wormwood bush, which is found abundantly in the the deserts of the Holy Land.
White Wormwood Artemisia herba-alba is a bush less than half a meter (18 inches) high, with finely divided fuzzy leaves. These leaves drop at the end of the cool rainy season of Israel and are replaced with something like scales in the hot season. The flowers appear in clusters of two to four around September/October and mature into small, hairy fruits. When the plant matures, the leaves and flowers are dried to make a very bitter tea, or ground into powder, paste, or oil that is used in medicine.
Most of the references to wormwood in the Old Testament are paired with the Hebrew word for “poison/gall” (ro’sh) and are used metaphorically to represent painful experience and sorrow. In Revelation 8:11 a star named Wormwood (apsinthos in Greek) makes a third of the water on earth bitter and poisonous. The leaves of wormwood have a very bitter taste. In small quantities it was used as an anesthetic, and Europeans use it in concocting alcoholic drinks (absinthe, vermouth). It is also used to repel moths and fleas, and as an intestinal worm expeller.
The white wormwood of the Holy Land is found throughout the Middle East, North Africa (Egypt, Morocco) and Southwest Europe, but there are at least 300 species of Artemisia throughout the world, usually in dry areas. A Chinese type (huang huahaosu) is used as medicine against malaria. Artemisia cina and Artemisia maritima are found in Eurasia, where they produce santonica, an anti-worm medicine. Artemisia tilesii is used by the Inuits like codeine. The sagebrush plants of the American West also belong to this genus and were used by Native Americans for various conditions.
Most languages have words for plants that have bitter leaves and/or roots. Since all of the references to wormwood in the Old Testament are metaphorical, these plants can be used to convey the essential component of the passages. As noted above, most of the references to la‘anah are coupled with ro’sh, so the two must be dealt with together in those passages. If particular plants are not available, phrases such as “bitter fruit,” “bitter spice,” or “bitter thing” can be used.
In the structure of this verse the second line does not simply repeat the thought of the first line in other words; it extends the sense by adding a second picture to that given in the first line.
“But in the end she is bitter as wormwood”: “In the end” means the final result, after having a relationship with her, when it is all over and done. Contemporary English Version says, “But all that you really get from being with her. . ..” Some other translations say, “But when you’ve finished with her. . ..” “Wormwood” is usually a symbol of suffering as the result of injustice. See Amos 5.7; 6.12. It is a plant from which a bitter-tasting juice is made and used as a medicine. See Lam 3.15. If a medicine made from a local plant is known for its bitter or foul taste, it may be used here. Quinine is an example that is known in some parts of the world. The thought expressed in this line is what at first appeared so pleasant ends up like bitter tasting medicine. If there is no local plant that can serve, it may be possible to say, for example, “but that woman turns out to be like a bitter tasting plant” or “but after some time that woman is like poison.”
“Sharp as a two-edged sword”: This figure, which is literally “sword of edges,” is also used in Psa 149.6. It refers to that which causes wounds and pain. If the image of the sword is not suitable here, it may be possible to substitute a knife or other sharp instrument. It is also possible to include the nonfigurative meaning; for example, “and she wounds a person like a knife cuts them.”
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 .
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 5:4:
Kupsabiny: “But if you join with/follow the life of that woman you will meet a very painful word/matter. Her words will pierce you like a knife which is sharpened in both sides.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “Afterwards she becomes bitter like a gallbladder and like a double-edged sword.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “But later-on/[lit. at-the-end] what she will leave to you (sing.) is bitterness and affliction/[lit. hurt].” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “but at the end of it, that aforementioned woman can-be-compared to bitter poison and a sharp sword whose edges are on-both-sides.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
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