Proverbs 28:24

24 Anyone who robs father and mother and says, "So, what's wrong with that?" is worse than a pirate.

Proverbs 28:24 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 28:24

Whoso robbeth his father or his mother
As Micah did of eleven hundred shekels of silver, ( Judges 17:2 ) ; and saith, [it is] no transgression;
what is his father's or his mother's is his own, or as good as his own, it will come to him at their death; and if he wants it before, he thinks he ought to have it; and if they are not willing to give it him, it is with him no sin to rob them of it; and this he says within himself, to quiet his conscience when he has done it; or to others who may charge him with it: but, whatever such a man thinks, sins against parents are greater than against others; as parricide is a greater sin than any other kind of murder, so robbing of parents is greater than any other kind of theft; it is more aggravated, especially when parents are aged, and cannot work for themselves, but depend on what they have for their livelihood; whereas a young man can, and ought, and should rather give to his parents than rob them of what they have; the same [is] the companion of a destroyer;
of a murderer; either he has got into such company which have put him upon such wicked practices; or he will soon get into such a society, and, from a robber of his father and mother, become a robber on the highway, and a murderer; and he has wickedness enough to be a destroyer of the lives of his parents, as well as of their substance; and sometimes the one sin leads to the other.

Proverbs 28:24 In-Context

22 A miser in a hurry to get rich doesn't know that he'll end up broke.
23 In the end, serious reprimand is appreciated far more than bootlicking flattery.
24 Anyone who robs father and mother and says, "So, what's wrong with that?" is worse than a pirate.
25 A grasping person stirs up trouble, but trust in God brings a sense of well-being.
26 If you think you know it all, you're a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.