Proverbs 14:19
in Proverbs 14The evil bow before the good, and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The evil bow down before the good; And the wicked, at the gates of the righteous.
KJV
The evil bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
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This verse in Proverbs 14
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThe evil bow before the good - They are almost constrained to show them respect; and the wicked, who have wasted their substance with riotous living, bow before the gates of the righteous - of benevolent men - begging a morsel of bread.
This site's exposition
The evil bow before the good
on Proverbs 14:19-21
The evil bow before the good and the wicked wait at the gates of the righteous, a reversal the proverb states plainly though the world often runs the other way in the meantime. The chapter's cluster on poverty opens here without softening it: the poor is hated even of his own neighbour, while the rich collects friends by the simple gravity of having something to give. Despising a neighbour is named sin outright, and mercy toward the poor is named happiness outright, so the two verses that follow are not observation only but instruction.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
The wicked will lie down before the good, etc. In the last judgment, when the righteous are crowned, the reprobate who oppressed them in the present will be condemned. For what is said, Before, that is, before the good, and before the gates of the …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The evil bow before the good,.... Wicked men before good men.
The words behind it
8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| שַׁח֣וּ | shachu | they bow | H7817 → | |
| רָ֭עִים | raim | evil [people] | H7451 → | 662 times |
| לִפְנֵ֣י | lifnei | <to> before | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| טוֹבִ֑ים | tovim | good [people] | H2896 → | 538 times |
| וּ֝רְשָׁעִ֗ים | ureshaim | and wicked [people] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| עַֽל־ | ʾal- | at | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| שַׁעֲרֵ֥י | shaarei | [the] gates of | H8179 → | 374 times |
| צַדִּֽיק׃ | tzadik | [the] righteous | H6662 → | 206 times |
שַׁח֣וּthey bow
shachuH7817 →
רָ֭עִיםevil [people]
raimH7451 →662 times
לִפְנֵ֣י<to> before
lifneiH6440 →2123 times
טוֹבִ֑יםgood [people]
tovimH2896 →538 times
וּ֝רְשָׁעִ֗יםand wicked [people]
ureshaimH7563 →263 times
עַֽל־at
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
שַׁעֲרֵ֥י[the] gates of
shaareiH8179 →374 times
צַדִּֽיק׃[the] righteous
tzadikH6662 →206 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
Malachi 4:3Then you will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the LORD of Hosts.
it leads to
- Job 40:12
Look on every proud man and humble him; trample the wicked where they stand.
- Romans 16:20
The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.
- Zechariah 10:5
They will be like mighty men in battle, trampling the enemy in the mire of the streets. They will fight because the LORD is with them, and they will put the horsemen to shame.
- Micah 7:10
Then my enemy will see and will be covered with shame—she who said to me, “Where is the LORD your God?” My eyes will see her; at that time she will be trampled like…
- Micah 5:8
Then the remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, which…
- Job 40:12
Through
Exodus 8:8Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the LORD to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go, that they may sacrifice to the…
it leads to
- Exodus 10:17
Now please forgive my sin once more and appeal to the LORD your God, that He may remove this death from me.”
- Exodus 8:25–28
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Go, sacrifice to your God within this land.”
- Exodus 10:17
Through
Exodus 11:8And all these officials of yours will come and bow before me, saying, ‘Go, you and all the people who follow you!’ After that, I will depart.” And hot with anger, Moses left Pharaoh’s…
it leads to
- Exodus 12:31–33
Then Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron by night and said, “Get up, leave my people, both you and the Israelites! Go, worship the LORD as you have requested.
- Exodus 12:31–33
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.