Whoever hides her hides the wind ¹  or grasps ²  oil with his right hand. ³ 

biblegateway Pro 27:16

He who would restrain her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.

The one who controls her controls the wind and grasps oil with his right hand.

Whoever can control her can control the wind. He can even pick up olive oil with his right hand.

biblegateway Pro 27:16

restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand.

to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in one's right hand.

bibleoremus Pro 27:16

to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in the right hand.

As well try to control the wind as to control her! As well try to pick up oil in one's fingers!

biblegateway Pro 27:16

Whoever restrains her restrains the wind, And grasps oil with his right hand.

Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, [which] bewrayeth [itself].

biblegateway Pro 27:16

Whoever hides her hides the wind ¹  or grasps ²  oil with his right hand. ³ 

¹ tn The participle and verb both are from the root צָפַן (tsafan, “to hide”). This combination could be translated “hiding her is [like] hiding the wind.”

¹ sn A contentious woman is uncontrollable. The wind can gust at any moment; so too the contentious woman can nag or complain without warning. If anyone can hide the wind he can hide her.

² sn The verb is the Qal imperfect of קָרָא (qara’); BDB 895 s.v. 5.b defines it here as “call for = demand, require,” but acknowledge that it is probably corrupt. R. B. Y. Scott interprets it to mean “grasping” oil in the hand, an expression he compares to the modern “butterfingers” (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes [AB], 163). Others have interpreted it to mean “betrays” – “ointment of his right hand betrays itself,” meaning its smell persists. However, the connection to the proverb does not seem obvious with that interpretation.

³ tc The LXX took an etymologizing approach to the whole verse and translated it “the north wind is a severe wind, but by its name is termed auspicious.” In this rendering the Hebrew text’s “oil” became “its name,” “right hand” became “auspicious,” and “grasp” became “called.”