Passage

Proverbs 17.14

Book: Proverbs · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"12. Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, Rather than a fool in his folly. 13. Whoso rewardeth evil for good, Evil shall not depart from his house."

"14. The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: Therefore leave off contention, before there is quarrelling."

"15. He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to Jehovah. 16. Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom, Seeing he hath no understanding?" (Proverbs 17:12-16, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"12. Let a bear robbed of her cubs meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly. 13. Whoever rewards evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house."

"14. The beginning of strife is like breaching a dam, therefore stop contention before quarreling breaks out."

"15. He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to Yahweh. 16. Why is there money in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom, since he has no understanding?" (Proverbs 17:12-16, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"12. Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly. 13. Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house."

"14. The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with."

"15. He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both are abomination to the LORD. 16. Wherefore is there a price in the hand of a fool to get wisdom, seeing he hath no heart to it?" (Proverbs 17:12-16, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"12. The meeting of a bereaved bear by a man, And, not a fool in his folly. 13. Whoso is returning evil for good, Evil moveth not from his house."

"14. The beginning of contention [is] a letting out of waters, And before it is meddled with leave the strife."

"15. Whoso is justifying the wicked, And condemning the righteous, Even both of these [are] an abomination to Jehovah. 16. Why [is] this, a price in the hand of a fool to buy wisdom, And a heart there is none?" (Proverbs 17:12-16, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: Solomon (principal); Agur; Lemuel; wise men
Audience: young Israelite men in the wisdom tradition
Location: Israel, Solomonic court
Time period: principal composition c. 970-930 BC (Solomon); compilation c. 700 BC (Hezekiah)

Theological reading

Key words

H7225 - reshit, reshit (Strong's H7225). Also appears in: Genesis 1.1, Deuteronomy 21, 1 Samuel 15.

Quoted in

Spirit of Strife

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.