Proverbs 29:3

The man ¹  who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, ²  but whoever associates ³  with prostitutes wastes ⁴  his wealth. ⁵ 

A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but a companion of prostitutes squanders his wealth.

A man who loves wisdom makes his father glad, But he who keeps company with harlots wastes his wealth.

The man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but if he hangs around with prostitutes, his wealth is wasted.

If you love wisdom, you'll delight your parents, but you'll destroy their trust if you run with whores.

A man who is a lover of wisdom is a joy to his father: but he who goes in the company of loose women is a waster of wealth.

A child who loves wisdom makes a parent glad, but to keep company with prostitutes is to squander one’s substance.

Whoever loves wisdom makes his father rejoice, But a companion of harlots wastes his wealth.

The man ¹  who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, ²  but whoever associates ³  with prostitutes wastes ⁴  his wealth. ⁵ 

¹ tn Heb “a man.” Here “man” is retained in the translation because the second colon mentions prostitutes.

² tn Or “causes his father to rejoice”; NAB “makes his father glad.”

³ tn The active participle רֹעֶה (ro’eh) is from the second root רָעָה (ra’ah), meaning “to associate with.” The verb occurs only a few times, and mostly in the book of Proverbs. It is related to רֵעֶה (re’eh, “friend; companion; fellow”). To describe someone as a “companion” or “friend” of prostitutes is somewhat euphemistic; it surely means someone who is frequently engaging the services of prostitutes.

⁴ tn The Hebrew verb יְאַבֶּד (yÿ’abbed) means “destroys”; it is the Piel imperfect of the verb that means “to perish.”

⁵ sn Wealth was seen as a sign of success and of God’s blessings, pretty much as it always has been. To be seen as honorable in the community meant one had acquired some substance and kept his reputation. It would be a disgrace to the family to have a son who squandered his money on prostitutes (e.g., Prov 5:10; 6:31).