Proverbs 11:30
(KJV)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
(1611 KJV)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life: and hee that winneth soules, is
wise.
(1587 Geneva Bible)
The fruite of the righteous is as a tree of life, and he that winneth soules, is
wise.
(1568 Bishops Bible)
The fruite of the ryghteous is a tree of life: and he that winneth mens soules
is wise.
(Geneva Bible 1560)
The fruite of the righteous is as a tree of life, and he that winneth soules, is
wise.
(The Great Bible 1539)
The frute of the ryghteous is a tree of lyfe: and he that endeuoureth him selfe
to wynne mens soules is wyse.
(Matthew's Bible 1537)
The frute of the righteous is as the tree of lyfe, a wyse man also wynneth mens
soules.
(Coverdale Bible 1535)
The frute of the rightuous is as the tre of life, a wyse man also wynneth mens
soules.
(1388 Wycliffe)
The fruyt of a riytful man is the tre of lijf; and he that takith soulis, is a
wijs man.
(Webster's Bible 1833)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
Counterfeit Versions
(GNB)
Righteousness
gives life, but violence takes it away.
(HCSB)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but violence takes lives.
(The MESSAGE)
A good life is a fruit-bearing tree; a violent life destroys souls.
(NLT)
The seeds of good deeds become a tree of life; a wise person wins friends.
(NRSV)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but violence takes lives away.
(RSV)
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, but lawlessness takes away lives.
Hebrew Text
¶ פְּרִי־צַדִּיק עֵץ חַיִּים (3)
וְלֹקֵחַ (2)
נְפָשׂוֹת (1) חָכָם׃
(1) חָכָם׃ – (Chakham) Wise
(2) נְפָשׂוֹת – (Nephesh) Soul
(3) וְלֹקֵחַ - (laqach) means win or take
Affected
Teaching
As you can see in the above 6 versions that 5 of them
state lawlessness or violence takes away lives.
The NLT states that a wise person wins friends.
There is nothing in the Hebrew Text which even comes close to both of
those interpretations. The gist of
meaning in Proverbs 11:30 is that those who bring the message of the Gospel to
people and they become saved, then that is a wise thing to do.
Just like a fowler catches birds in his net, the wise Christian brings
the true Gospel to the people he or she comes in contact with so they may become
saved. The wise man in Scripture is
one who is saved. The NLT speaks
about a wise person who wins friends and that is good advice.
It is better to win friends than enemies but the word friend is not in
view in this verse. The fact that
souls are in view means it is a verse focusing on salvation.
The term “fruit” characterizes everything which the righteous tend to do. Their goal in this life is to bring the Gospel to as many as they can and in the process, they are bearing fruit, as a tree bears fruit except they are likened to a tree of life and that tree of life is the eternal Gospel. In Revelation, the term, tree of life is a synonym for the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who are saved show their salvation in the form of being wise as they send out the Gospel to win souls for the Lord Jesus Christ. As Christians, our reason of continued existence in this world is to send forth the gospel and to make new converts for the Lord Jesus Christ. Without us sending forth the Gospel, what reason does God have to keep us here after salvation, He may as well just take us home but He keeps us here to continue to evangelize until the last day.