Translation commentary on Proverbs 23:33

The next three verses present pictures of the feelings and behavior of a drunken person. Verse 33 describes his strange thoughts and absurd talk; verse 34 is a picture of his unsteady stance and movement; and verse 35 describes how he wakes up with a hangover.

“Your eyes will see strange things”: The second person singular pronouns from here to the end of the saying refer back to the young person who is given the command in verse 31. “Strange things” is a plural form of the adjective “strange.” Some versions say “strange sights”; others use expressions like “weird things” or “peculiar things,” which are appropriate in this context in English. An example of the way this may be expressed in other languages is “Your mind will be confused and you will think you see all sorts of things.”

“And your mind utter perverse things”: As in verse 26 above, “your mind” represents the Hebrew “your heart.” For “utter perverse things” see the comments on 2.12, where “perverted speech” represents the same Hebrew words as used here. Here where a drunken person is described, the sense is probably “confused speech”; Revised English Bible says “your wits and your speech will be confused,” and New Jerusalem Bible “you will talk nonsense from your heart.” However, the verb translated “utter” in Revised Standard Version, which generally means “speak,” may also be taken in the sense of “tell you” or “imagine.” So New International Version, for instance, has “and your mind imagine confusing things,” and Contemporary English Version says “and your mind will play tricks on you.” Translators are advised to follow the majority of versions, which refer to both “mind” and “speech” in this line. Scott “your mind and speech will be confused” and Good News Translation “you will not be able to think or speak clearly” are both good models.

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 .

complete verse (Proverbs 23:33)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 23:33:

  • Kupsabiny: “You will see delusions and you will speak words that are just nonsense.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Amazing sights will appear before your eyes,
    and [you] will not even be able to speak or think clearly.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “And just whatever you will-see, and you (sing.) can- not -think well.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “You (sing.) will see many-things that are whatever and your (sing.) thoughts and your (sing.) words will not be proper.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)

SIL Translator’s Notes on Proverbs 23:33

23:33–34

In these two verses, the teacher uses “you/your(sing) ” pronouns to help the young man imagine more clearly what a drunk person experiences.

23:33

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

33a
Your eyes will see strange things

33b and your mind will utter perversities.

23:33a

Your eyes will see strange things: In Hebrew, this line is literally “your eyes will see strange(plur).” English versions supply a plural word such as things or “sights” (New International Version) to fit English usage.

This line probably refers to what a drunk person “sees” in his mind. He thinks that he sees strange or abnormal things. But the things that he imagines are not really there. Some other ways to translate this line are:

Weird sights will appear before your eyes (Good News Translation)
-or-
You will see hallucinations (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
You will imagine that you see things, but they are not really there.

23:33b

and your mind will utter perversities: In Hebrew, this line is literally “and your heart will speak perversities.” There are three ways to interpret this line:

(1) The drunk person’s words will be confusing. He will not speak clearly. For example:

and you will say crazy things (New Living Translation (2004))

(2) The drunk person’s thoughts will be confusing. He will not think clearly. For example:

and your mind will be confused (New Century Version)

(3) The drunk person’s thoughts and words will be confusing. He will not think or speak clearly. For example:

and you will not be able to think or speak clearly (Good News Translation)

(4) The drunk person’s thoughts will be especially inappropriate, offensive, or evil. For example:

and your mind will utter perversities (Berean Standard Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most commentaries. With this interpretation, the drunk person’s heart (or mind) is understood to be the source of his words. See 15:28 and 16:23. Both these verses clearly show the connection between heart/mind and words.

However, you may also follow interpretation (3). In Hebrew, the heart is the source of a person’s thoughts as well as his words.

perversities: The word that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as perversities, when used in other verses, refers to words, actions, or people that are evil or deceive others. See the notes on 2:12b and 2:14b.

Here, in the context of a drunk person, it indicates that his words are confusing. Their meaning is not clear. They may also be inappropriate or offensive.

Some other ways to translate this line are:

you will talk nonsense from your heart (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
your mouth will say embarrassing things (God’s Word)
-or-
you will not be able to speak clearly

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