Slippery

(Proverbs 27:16 KJV)  Whosoever hideth her hideth the wind, and the ointment of his right hand, which bewrayeth itself.

The last phrase of this verse is confusing when you compare translations.  The basic difference is shown between the KJV which says “bewrayeth” (7121) and the NASB which has “grasps” with a footnote giving a literal meaning of “encounter”.  As I read through the different translations on my computer I saw the two threads.  The most common translation in both KJV and NASB is a variation of “call.” 

It is a problem of translation.  As Adam Clarke says, “The Hebrew is very obscure, and is variously translated.”  “Bewrayeth” is an archaic word that meant “to make clear or evident” in 1611.  By 1823 it had taken on a negative sense as in “expose or betray.”

So?  There are situations and people in life that we can do nothing about.  Any attempt at correction or improvement will come back to bite you.  The hard part is recognizing when this is the case.  Since the context here is marriage, which is for a lifetime, I would suggest that the only way you can learn this is through trying repeatedly and failing.  We must try to reach out to people but with experience we can learn when to back off.