her feet do not stay at home

The Hebrew in Proverbs 7:11 that is translated as “her feet do not stay at home” or similar in English is translated in Kupsabiny as “her leg is sharpened for prostitution that (it) cannot make her stay in her house.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)

hardened / stubborn

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The Hebrew and Greek that is typically translated in English as “hardened” or “stubborn” is translated in the Hausa Common Language Bible idiomatically as taurin kai or “tough head.”

Other languages spoken in Nigeria translate similarly: Abua uses oḅom ẹmhu or “strong head,” Bura-Pabir kəra ɓəɓal or “hard head,” Gokana agẹ̀ togó or “hard/strong head,” Igede egbeju-ọngịrị or “hard head,” Dera gɨddɨng koi or “strong head,” Reshe ɾiʃitə ɾigbaŋgba or “strong head,” and in Chadian Arabic raas gawi (رَاسْكُو قَوِي) or “hard head” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

Other translation approaches include Western Bukidnon Manobo with “breath is very hard” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation) or Ixil with “callous heart” (source: Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 40).

See also hardness of heart.

Translation commentary on Proverbs 7:11

“She is loud and wayward”: “Loud” is a possible translation, but not a certain one. The word can also mean to be in turmoil as used in 1 Kgs 1.41 and Psa 42.5, 11 (42.6, 12 in Hebrew). The woman’s loudness may be a way of covering up her being “wayward”, which refers to her being rebellious or stubborn. A “wayward” person is someone who is in opposition to others. In this case she is probably opposed both to her husband and to the rules of her community.

“Her feet do not stay at home”: “Her feet” is a poetic way of saying “She does not stay at home.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch says “She was so rash and unrestrainable that she never stayed at home.”

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 7:11)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 7:11:

  • Kupsabiny: “This woman was quarrelsome and disrespectful, her leg/foot is sharpened/eager for prostitution that (it) cannot make her stay in her house.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “She was one
    who was always busy on the street
    and was a woman
    whose heart was unrestrained.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “This woman is talkative and has no shame. She does- not -stay-put in her house.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “She was bold having no (proper)-sense-of-shame and continually she did not stay in her house (= she was always away/outside the house).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 7:11

7:11–12

Verses 7:11–12 contain further information about the woman mentioned in 7:10. Some versions, like the New International Version, put these two verses in parentheses, because they describe the woman’s general pattern of behavior, not what happened in this particular story.

If your language has a way to indicate background information that is not part of the main action of the story, you will want to use it here. Another way to make clear that these verses do not describe the events of this story is to refer to immoral wives in general. For example, other ways to translate 7:11a are:

She was the brash, rebellious type (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
She was one of those women who are loud… (Contemporary English Version)

7:11a

She is loud: The word loud describes the woman’s voice. She speaks in a loud and boisterous manner.

and defiant: The word defiant indicates that the woman has a “stubborn” (New Century Version) and “rebellious” (God’s Word) attitude. She deliberately does what her husband does not want her to do.

7:11b

her feet do not remain at home: This phrase is a figure of speech (synecdoche) in which the woman’s feet represent the woman herself. It means that the woman never stays at home.

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