Proverbs 15:20

20 A wise son makes his father glad. But a foolish son hates his mother.

Proverbs 15:20 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 15:20

A wise son maketh a glad father
(See Gill on Proverbs 10:1); but a foolish man despiseth his mother;
that bore him and brought him up, and perhaps was too indulgent to him; which aggravates his sin and her sorrow; (See Gill on Proverbs 10:1); or causes her to be despised by others, as Jarchi interprets it; such a man's sin, which is great folly, and shows him to be a foolish man, is highly resented by the Lord, and will be severely punished; see ( Proverbs 30:17 ) . The Targum is,

``a foolish son despises his mother;''

and so the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions, which makes the antithesis more clear; and the Hebrew text designs one grown up to man's estate.

Proverbs 15:20 In-Context

18 A man who burns with anger stirs up fights. But a person who is patient calms things down.

19 The way of people who don't want to work is blocked with thorns. But the path of honest people is a wide road.

20 A wise son makes his father glad. But a foolish son hates his mother.

21 A person who has no sense enjoys doing foolish things. But a man who has understanding walks straight ahead.

22 Plans fail without good advice. But they succeed when there are many advisers.