Pro 6:1 | NETfull | STEP | My child, if you have made a pledge for your neighbor, and have become a guarantor for a stranger,

Proverbs 6:1

1 My child, ^{▼▼ Heb “my son” (likewise in vv. 3, 20).} if you have made a pledge ^{▼▼ It was fairly common for people to put up some kind of financial security for someone else, that is, to underwrite another’s debts. But the pledge in view here was foolish because the debtor was a neighbor who was not well known (זָר, zar), perhaps a misfit in the community. The one who pledged security for this one was simply gullible.} for your neighbor,
and ^{▼▼ The conjunction “and” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of smoothness.} have become a guarantor ^{▼▼ Heb “struck your hands”; NIV “have struck hands in pledge”; NASB “have given a pledge.” The guarantee of a pledge was signaled by a handshake (e.g., 11:15; 17:18; 22:26).} for a stranger, ^{▼▼ Heb “stranger.” The term זוּר (zur, “stranger”) probably refers to a neighbor who was not well-known. Alternatively, it could describe a person who is living outside the norms of convention, a moral misfit in the community. In any case, this “stranger” is a high risk in any financial arrangement.}