“Do you see a man skilful in his work?”: Although Revised Standard Version and others render this line as a rhetorical question, it does not have a question form in Hebrew. It is simply “You see. . .” (as in Revised English Bible) or “You observe. . .,” inviting the reader to consider a situation or focus on a person. In this case it is “a man skilful in his work”, where “skilful” renders a word meaning “quick” or “skilled.” In some languages this line is expressed as “When a person does good work” or “If there is a person who works well” (compare Contemporary English Version “If you do your job well”).

“He will stand before kings”: This is the reward or recognition for the person who fits the description in the previous line. To “stand before” means to “enter the service of.” So the sense of this line is that the skilful or outstanding workman will “serve kings” (Revised English Bible) or “work for a ruler” (Contemporary English Version).

“He will not stand before obscure men”: This has practically the same meaning as the second line of the verse. Some commentators suggest that this line should not be part of the text, since it is just a variant of the previous line. However, there is no basis for this in the text itself; and when it comes to translation, there are many languages in which people appreciate the repetition of an idea, expressing it first in a positive way and then in a negative way. “Obscure men” are “common people” (New Revised Standard Version) or people who are “low” and count for nothing. Many languages have special terms or idioms to refer to such people. One translation of this line says, “He will never become the worker of a person who has no name.”

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 .