19:19
This proverb is directed to a person who wants to help a hot-tempered man escape the consequences of his actions. The implied advice of the proverb is that the potential rescuer should not pay the penalty for the hot-tempered person. If he does, it will only add to the problem.
19a A man of great anger must pay the penalty;
19b if you rescue him, you will have to do so again.
19:19a
A man of great anger must pay the penalty: In some languages, it may be helpful to make the implied information explicit. The implied information is that the rescuer should allow the angry man to suffer the consequences for his own actions. For example:
If someone has a hot temper, let him take the consequences. (Good News Translation)
A man of great anger: The phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as A man of great anger is literally “great of anger.” In this context, it refers to a person who has expressed his extreme anger by doing something wrong or violent. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
A hot-tempered man (New International Version)
-or-
People with bad tempers (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
People with quick tempers (New Century Version)
If your language has an idiom that refers to people who lose their tempers, consider using it here.
must pay the penalty: This phrase refers to the legal consequences of the man’s action. It indicates that he must bear or suffer the penalty. The word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as penalty probably refers specifically to a fine. The guilty person would need to pay for the damage or harm that he had done.
Most English versions use a more general word that can also refer to other punishments. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:
must bear the consequences (Revised English Bible)
-or-
will incur the punishment (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
19:19b
if you rescue him, you will have to do so again: These clauses indicate that it is useless to rescue an extremely angry person. If you pay his fine or help him to avoid the punishment, it will not solve the problem.
you will have to do so again: In Hebrew, this clause is literally “again you will add/repeat.” This clause probably means that the rescuer will have to help the angry person again. It is implied that he will keep losing his temper and getting in trouble. It may also be implied that rescuing this person will only make the situation worse. The next time he loses his temper, he may end up with a more severe punishment.
Some ways to translate 19:19b are:
If you get him out of trouble once, you will have to do it again. (Good News Translation)
-or-
if you try to save him, you will only make it worse (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
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