> betur hafa
> have better (luck? judgement?)

I don't know what the implied noun would be (if any), but the sense is
"be better off", "do better". See CV under 'hafa' [
http://lexicon.ff.cuni.cz/png/oi_cleasbyvigfusson/b0229.png ], the
lower part of the right hand column, section D, subsection Beta. Our
example is the second to last cited there.

ok þykkist sá betr hafa, er lausa lætr, en hinn, er við tekr
"and the seller is always better off than the buyer"
http://www.usask.ca/english/icelanders/proverbs_SDS.html

sá mun betr hafa er við yðr tekr
"he may be better off who accepts you"
http://books.google.com/books?id=nfU5YglHXvgC&pg=PA310&lpg=PA310&dq=%22betr+hafa%22&source=web&ots=UwAKQAHyrO&sig=5D5qsrMQ-uNetuekCoMaZT6msqg

> "Menn erum við til þess," segir Helgi, "að launa þér það þá er

stundir líða."

> 'We are people in that (regard).' Says Helgi, `to (ie who will)

repay you that when time goes-by (later).

"We are men (sufficient, capable, suitable) for (the task of) paying
you back later." Konráð Gíslason and Eiríkur Jónsson's edition
confirms that 'við' is the dual pronoun = Old Norse 'vit', matching
'it' (Modern Icelandic 'þið').

þat mynda ek vilja' segir hrappr `at it
hlytið af mjer mest illt'. `menn eru vit til þess'
segir helgi `at launa þjer þat þá er stundir líða'.

http://dp.rastko.net/projects/projectID438a3f4017f9f/projectID438a3f4017f9f_TEI.txt

In Faarlund's terminology 'þess' is the (optional) antecedent of the
subordinate clause 'að launa þér það þá er stundir líða' (Faarlund:
The Syntax of old Norse, § 10.1.3 Nominal clauses). He also describes
the 'að' clause as the complement of the demonstrative 'þess'. He
gives an example of a similar sentence where the antecedent is left out:

skal ek nauðga þeim til at þeir segi mér it sanna
"I shall force them to tell me the truth"

...but says that the antecedent is used as a rule when the subordinate
clause "has the role of a subject or an adjunct":

er þat minn vili at svá gerim vér allir
"it is my wish that we all do so" (subject)

eigi vil ek úr ganga því at ek em maðr gamall
"I do not want to go out because I am an old man" (adjunct)

Google produces 1950 hits for 'til að launa' and 1120 for 'til þess að
launa', e.g.

og loks kom móðir þeirra til að launa stúlkunni góðmennsku hennar
"and in the end their mother came to reward the girl for her kindness"

Ég hef velt því svolítið fyrir mér af hverju ekki er gerð alvarleg
tilraun til þess að launa fólki það að spara.
"I've thought a bit about why a serious attempt isn't made to reward
people for saving."

LN