Proverbs 19:3-23

3 When a man's folly ¹brings his way to ruin, his heart ²rages against the LORD.

4 ³Wealth brings many new friends, ⁴but a poor man is deserted by his friend.

5 ⁵A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who ⁶breathes out lies will not escape.

6 Many seek the favor of a generous man,^[a] and everyone is a friend to a man who gives ⁷gifts.

7 ⁸All a poor man's brothers hate him; ⁹how much more do his friends go far from him! He pursues them with words, but does not have them.^[b]

8 ¹⁰Whoever gets sense loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will ¹¹discover good.

9 ¹²A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who ¹³breathes out lies will perish.

10 ¹⁴It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury, much less for ¹⁵a slave to rule over princes.

11 ¹⁶Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

12 A king's wrath is like ¹⁷the growling of a lion, but his ¹⁸favor is like ¹⁹dew on the grass.

13 ²⁰A foolish son is ruin to his father, and ²¹a wife's quarreling is ²²a continual dripping of rain.

14 ²³House and wealth are inherited from fathers, but a prudent wife is ²⁴from the LORD.

15 ²⁵Slothfulness casts into ²⁶a deep sleep, and ²⁷an idle person will suffer hunger.

16 Whoever ²⁸keeps the commandment keeps his life; he who despises his ways will die.

17 ²⁹Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD, and he ³⁰will repay him for his ³¹deed.

18 ³²Discipline your son, for there is hope; do not set your heart on ³³putting him to death.

19 A man of great wrath will pay the penalty, for if you deliver him, you will only have to do it again.

20 Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in ³⁴the future.

21 ³⁵Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but ³⁶it is the purpose of the LORD ³⁷ that will stand.

22 What is desired in a man is steadfast love, and a poor man is better than a liar.

23 The fear of the LORD ³⁸leads to life, and whoever has it rests ³⁹satisfied; he will ⁴⁰not be visited by harm.

Proverbs 19:3-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 8

This chapter gives an account of the introduction of the ark into the temple, 1Ki 8:1-9 of the glory of the Lord filling it, 1Ki 8:10,11 of a speech Solomon made to the people concerning the building of the temple, and how he came to be engaged in it, 1Ki 8:12-21, of a prayer of his he put up on this occasion, requesting, that what supplications soever were made at any time, or on any account, by Israelites or strangers, might be accepted by the Lord, 1Ki 8:22-53, and of his blessing the people of Israel at the close of it, with some useful exhortations, 1Ki 8:54-61, and of the great number of sacrifices offered up by him, and the feast he made for the people, upon which he dismissed them, 1Ki 8:62-66.

Cross References

• 1. [Proverbs 11:3]
• 2. [Psalms 37:7; Isaiah 8:21; Revelation 16:11]
• 3. Proverbs 14:20
• 4. Proverbs 14:20
• 5. [Proverbs 12:19; Proverbs 21:28]; See Deuteronomy 19:16-19
• 6. See Proverbs 6:19
• 7. See Proverbs 17:8
• 8. [ver. 4]
• 9. [Psalms 38:11]
• 10. [Proverbs 15:32]
• 11. Proverbs 16:20
• 12. [See ver. 5 above]
• 13. [See ver. 5 above]
• 14. [Proverbs 17:7; Proverbs 26:1]
• 15. Proverbs 30:22; Ecclesiastes 10:6, 7
• 16. See Proverbs 14:29
• 17. Proverbs 20:2; [Proverbs 16:14, 15; Proverbs 28:15]
• 18. Proverbs 14:35
• 19. Psalms 133:3; Hosea 14:5; Micah 5:7
• 20. Proverbs 10:1; Proverbs 17:21
• 21. See Proverbs 21:9
• 22. Proverbs 27:15
• 23. [2 Corinthians 12:14]
• 24. Proverbs 18:22
• 25. See Proverbs 6:9-11
• 26. Job 4:13
• 27. [Proverbs 10:4; Proverbs 20:4, 13; Proverbs 23:21]
• 28. [Proverbs 13:13; Luke 10:28]
• 29. [Proverbs 22:9; Proverbs 28:27; Ecclesiastes 11:1; Matthew 10:42; Hebrews 6:10]; See Deuteronomy 15:7-10; Matthew 25:40; 2 Corinthians 9:6-8
• 30. [Luke 6:38]
• 31. See Proverbs 12:14
• 32. See Proverbs 13:24
• 33. [Proverbs 23:13]; See Deuteronomy 21:18-21
• 34. Psalms 37:37
• 35. Psalms 33:10, 11
• 36. Job 23:13; Isaiah 14:26, 27
• 37. Isaiah 46:10
• 38. Proverbs 10:16; Proverbs 11:19; [Isaiah 38:5; Mark 10:30]
• 39. [Psalms 25:13]
• 40. [Leviticus 26:6]

Footnotes

• [a]. Or of a noble
• [b]. The meaning of the Hebrew sentence is uncertain