Internet Verse Search Commentaries Word Analysis ITL - draft

Proverbs 21:6

NETBible	Making a fortune¹ by a lying tongue is like² a vapor driven back and forth;³ they seek death.⁴
NIV © biblegateway Pro 21:6	A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapour and a deadly snare.
NASB © biblegateway Pro 21:6	The acquisition of treasures by a lying tongue Is a fleeting vapor, the pursuit of death.
NLT © biblegateway Pro 21:6	Wealth created by lying is a vanishing mist and a deadly trap.
MSG © biblegateway Pro 21:6	Make it to the top by lying and cheating; get paid with smoke and a promotion--to death!
BBE © SABDAweb Pro 21:6	He who gets stores of wealth by a false tongue, is going after what is only breath, and searching for death.
NRSV © bibleoremus Pro 21:6	The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.
NKJV © biblegateway Pro 21:6	Getting treasures by a lying tongue Is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death.
[+] More English


KJV	The getting <06467> of treasures <0214> by a lying <08267> tongue <03956> [is] a vanity <01892> tossed to and fro of <05086> (8737) them that seek <01245> (8764) death <04194>_.
NASB © biblegateway Pro 21:6	The acquisition <06467> of treasures <0214> by a lying <08267> tongue <03956> Is a fleeting <05086> vapor <01892> , the pursuit <01245> of death <04194> .
LXXM	o <3588> T-NSM energwn <1754> V-PAPNS yhsaurismata {N-APN} glwssh <1100> N-DSF qeudei <5571> A-DSM mataia <3152> A-APN diwkei <1377> V-PAI-3S epi <1909> PREP pagidav <3803> N-GSF yanatou <2288> N-GSM
NET [draft] ITL	Making <06467> a fortune <0214> by a lying <08267> tongue <03956> is like a vapor <01892> driven back and forth <05086> ; they seek <01245> death <04194> .
HEBREW	twm <04194> ysqbm <01245> Pdn <05086> lbh <01892> rqs <08267> Nwslb <03956> twruwa <0214> lep (21:6) <06467>

NETBible

Making a fortune¹ by a lying tongue is like² a vapor driven back and forth;³ they seek death.⁴

NET Notes

¹tn The first word of the verse is the noun meaning “doing, deed, work.” The BHS editors suggest reading with the LXX an active participle – “the one who makes” (cf. NAB “He who makes”). The second word means “treasure,” from the verb “lay up, store up.” It is an objective genitive here.

²tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.

³tn The Hebrew הֶבֶל נִדָּף (hevel nidaf) is properly “a driven vapor” (“driven” = the Niphal participle). The point of the metaphor is that the ill-gotten gains will vanish into thin air. The LXX has “pursues” (as if reading רֹדֵף, rodef); cf. NAB “chasing a bubble over deadly snares.”

⁴tn The Hebrew has “seekers of death,” meaning “[they that seek them] are seekers of death,” or that the fortune is “a fleeting vapor for those who seek death.” The sense is not readily apparent. The Greek and the Latin versions have “snares of death”; the form מוֹקְשֵׁי (moqÿshe) was read instead of מְבַקְשֵׁי (mÿvaqshe). This reading does not make a more credible metaphor, and one must explain the loss of the letter ב (bet) in the textual variant. It is, however, slightly easier to interpret in the verse, and is followed by a number of English versions (e.g., NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). But whether the easier reading is the correct one in this case would be difficult to prove.