“He who oppresses a poor man insults his Maker”: “He who” is better expressed in many languages as “anyone who,” “whoever,” or “if you.” “Oppresses” refers to the abuse of power or authority of the strong over the weak, or to burdening someone unjustly. “A poor man” in Hebrew is singular but is often expressed as plural in translation. “Insults” renders a form of a verb meaning to “reproach,” “say something bad about,” or “scorn.” “His Maker” is the equivalent of “God his creator,” that is, “the God who made him,” where the pronoun refers back to the poor man, not the person who oppresses.

“But he who is kind to the needy honors him”: “He who” should agree with the subject in the first line. “Is kind” means being caring, helpful, or considerate (see verse 21). “The needy”, which refers to the “poor man” in line 1, is again a singular adjective in Hebrew but must often be rendered in the plural to agree with the rendering of “a poor man” in the first line. “Honors him”, means “honors or respects God.” In some languages this is expressed as “says that God is great.”

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 .