Translations
F.O.G.MPrimary
F.O.G MessageLike a sparrow flitting here and there, like a swallow swooping through the sky—an undeserved curse goes nowhere. It simply will not land.
F.O.GSecondary
The F.O.GLike a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its darting—so a causeless curse finds nowhere to alight.
KJV
King James VersionAs the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come.
BSB
Berean Standard BibleLike a fluttering sparrow or darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.
Footnotes
The verb *nud* (נוּד) describes restless, aimless darting motion. The theological weight is significant: a *qilelat chinam* (קִלְלַת חִנָּם), literally a 'grace-less' or causeless curse, has no moral target to find. This counters ANE fears of magical cursing: in Israel's wisdom tradition, curses track moral reality, not raw power. An undeserved curse is homeless and weightless—both translations preserve the image of the curse as a bird that cannot land.