# Proverbs 27.17 **Book:** [Proverbs](/codex/proverbs/) · NASB95 ## Immediate context (±2 verses) **ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/)) > 15. A continual dropping in a very rainy day And a contentious woman are alike: 16. He that would restrain her restraineth the wind; And his right hand encountereth oil. > > **17. Iron sharpeneth iron; So a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.** > > 18. Whoso keepeth the fig-tree shall eat the fruit thereof; And he that regardeth his master shall be honored. 19. As in water face answereth to face, So the heart of man to man. (Proverbs 27:15-19, ASV) **WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/)) > 15. A continual dropping on a rainy day and a contentious wife are alike: 16. restraining her is like restraining the wind, or like grasping oil in his right hand. > > **17. Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens his friend’s countenance.** > > 18. Whoever tends the fig tree shall eat its fruit. He who looks after his master shall be honored. 19. Like water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man. (Proverbs 27:15-19, WEB) **KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/)) > 15. A continual dropping in a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike. 16. Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself. > > **17. Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.** > > 18. Whoso keepeth the fig tree shall eat the fruit thereof: so he that waiteth on his master shall be honoured. 19. As in water face answereth to face, so the heart of man to man. (Proverbs 27:15-19, KJV) **YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/)) > 15. A continual dropping in a day of rain, And a woman of contentions are alike, 16. Whoso is hiding her hath hidden the wind, And the ointment of his right hand calleth out. > > **17. Iron by iron is sharpened, And a man sharpens the face of his friend.** > > 18. The keeper of a fig-tree eateth its fruit, And the preserver of his master is honoured. 19. As [in] water the face [is] to face, So the heart of man to man. (Proverbs 27:15-19, YLT) ## Setting - **Speaker:** _TBD_ - **Audience:** _TBD_ - **Location:** _TBD_ - **Time period:** _TBD_ ## Theological reading _Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added._ ## Key words _Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap._ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ - _TBD_ ## Quoted in **Arguments and defeaters:** - [Misogyny in the Bible Objection Defeater](/codex/misogyny-in-the-bible-objection-defeater/) --- _Scripture quotations taken from the **New American Standard Bible®** (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by **The Lockman Foundation**. Used by permission. All rights reserved. [www.lockman.org](https://www.lockman.org)_ ## 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](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition. - **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English. - **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base. - **[YLT](/codex/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](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.