Whoever restrains her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.
Parallel translations
- WEB restraining her is like restraining the wind, or like grasping oil in his right hand.
- KJV Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.
- BSB restraining her is like holding back the wind or grasping oil with one’s right hand.
- NASB He who would restrain her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.
- NLT Stopping her complaints is like trying to stop the wind or trying to hold something with greased hands.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Trying to control a contentious spouse is as futile as holding the wind or grasping oil. It depicts how ungovernable persistent strife can be.
Overview
Completing the previous verse, this saying stresses the impossibility of restraining a quarrelsome person by force, like catching wind or gripping slippery oil. The point is not despair but the need for a different remedy than mere control. Lasting peace in relationships comes through hearts transformed by grace, where the Spirit produces gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 1
- John 12:3Mary, therefore, took a pound of ointment of pure nard, very precious, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 27:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.