Proverbs 29:5

5 If you flatter your friends, you set a trap for yourself.

Proverbs 29:5 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 29:5

A man that flattereth his neighbour
That speaks smooth things to him gives him flattering titles, speaks fair to his face, highly commends him on one account or another: spreadeth a net for his feet;
has an idle design upon him, and therefore should be guarded against; his view is to draw him into a snare and make a prey of him; he attacks him on his weak side, and hopes to make some advantage of it to himself; wherefore flatterers should be avoided as pernicious persons; or he spreads a net for his own feet, and is taken in the snare which he had laid for his neighbour; or falls into the pit he dug for him, as Gersom observes; see ( Psalms 140:5 ) ( Hosea 5:1 ) .

Proverbs 29:5 In-Context

3 If you appreciate wisdom, your parents will be proud of you. It is a foolish waste to spend money on prostitutes.

4 When the king is concerned with justice, the nation will be strong, but when he is only concerned with money, he will ruin his country.

5 If you flatter your friends, you set a trap for yourself.

6 Evil people are trapped in their own sins, while honest people are happy and free.

7 A good person knows the rights of the poor, but wicked people cannot understand such things.

Footnotes

• [a] yourself; [or] them.