Proverbs 14:32

The wicked will be thrown down in his trouble, ¹  but the righteous have refuge ²  even in the threat of death. ³ 

When calamity comes, the wicked are brought down, but even in death the righteous have a refuge.

The wicked is thrust down by his wrongdoing, But the righteous has a refuge when he dies.

The wicked are crushed by their sins, but the godly have a refuge when they die.

The evil of bad people leaves them out in the cold; the integrity of good people creates a safe place for living.

The sinner is overturned in his evil-doing, but the upright man has hope in his righteousness.

The wicked are overthrown by their evil-doing, but the righteous find a refuge in their integrity.

The wicked is banished in his wickedness, But the righteous has a refuge in his death.

The wicked will be thrown down in his trouble, ¹  but the righteous have refuge ²  even in the threat of death. ³ 

¹ tn The prepositional phrase must be “in his time of trouble” (i.e., when catastrophe comes). Cf. CEV “In times of trouble the wicked are destroyed.” A wicked person has nothing to fall back on in such times.

² sn The righteous have hope in a just retribution – they have a place of safety even in death.

³ tc The LXX reads this as “in his integrity,” as if it were בְּתוּמּוֹ (bÿtumo) instead of “in his death” (בְּמוֹתוֹ, bÿmoto). The LXX is followed by some English versions (e.g., NAB “in his honesty,” NRSV “in their integrity,” and TEV “by their integrity”).

tn Heb “in his death.” The term “death” may function as a metonymy of effect for a life-threatening situation.