Proverbs 13:10
in Proverbs 13Arrogance leads only to strife, but wisdom is with the well-advised.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
By pride cometh only contention; But with the well-advised is wisdom.
KJV
Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom.
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This verse in Proverbs 13
Commentary
4 notes on this verseOnly by pride cometh contention,.... Though it comes by other things, yet by this chiefly, and there are no contentions without it: or "truly", "verily", "certainly (d), by pride", &c.
This site's exposition
Only by pride cometh contention
on Proverbs 13:10-12
Only by pride cometh contention names the single root under most quarrels, while the well advised carry wisdom instead of a grievance to defend. Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished, easy money that runs out as easily as it came, while wealth gathered by labor increases steadily, the same contrast the book draws between the diligent and the sluggard elsewhere. The cluster closes on its most quoted line: hope deferred maketh the heart sick, but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life, the same tree-of-life image the book uses for wisdom found and for the righteous man's fruit, now applied to a longing finally met.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
By pride cometh contention - Perhaps there is not a quarrel among individuals in private life, nor a war among nations, that does not proceed from pride and ambition. Neither man nor nation will be content to be less than another; and to acquire the wished-for superiority all is thrown into general confusion, both in public and private life. It was to destroy this spirit of pride, that Jesus was manifested in the extreme of humility and humiliation among men. The salvation of Christ is a deliverance from pride, and a being clothed with humility.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Either: (1) “By pride alone comes contention” - that is the one unfailing spring of quarrels; or (2) “By pride comes contention only” - it, and it alone, is the fruit of pride.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Only with wickedness does one cause quarrels Heb. מצה, controversy.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
Wealth gotten by vanity One who makes his study in bundles. shall be diminished For he will forget it little by little.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 3 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
7 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| רַק־ | rak- | only | H7535 → | |
| בְּ֭זָדוֹן | bezadon | with pride | H2087 → | 11 times |
| יִתֵּ֣ן | yiten | it gives | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| מַצָּ֑ה | matzah | contention | H4683 → | |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and [is] with | H854 → | 929 times |
| נ֖וֹעָצִ֣ים | noatzim | [those who] receive advice | H3289 → | 79 times |
| חָכְמָֽה׃ | chokhmah | wisdom | H2451 → | 153 times |
רַק־only
rak-H7535 →
בְּ֭זָדוֹןwith pride
bezadonH2087 →11 times
יִתֵּ֣ןit gives
yitenH5414 →2011 times
מַצָּ֑הcontention
matzahH4683 →
וְאֶת־and [is] with
veetH854 →929 times
נ֖וֹעָצִ֣ים[those who] receive advice
noatzimH3289 →79 times
חָכְמָֽה׃wisdom
chokhmahH2451 →153 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
James 4:1What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you?
it leads to
- 1 Peter 2:11
Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.
- Galatians 5:17
For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want.
- Romans 7:23
But I see another law at work in my body, warring against the law of my mind and holding me captive to the law of sin that dwells within me.
- James 1:14
But each one is tempted when by his own evil desires he is lured away and enticed.
- Romans 8:7
because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.
- 1 Peter 2:11
Through
Proverbs 19:20Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days.
it leads to
- Proverbs 12:15
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to counsel.
- Proverbs 8:34–35
Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.
- Proverbs 2:1–9
My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you,
- Proverbs 12:15
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Proverbs of Solomon; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.