Proverbs 15:13
in Proverbs 15A joyful heart makes a cheerful countenance, but sorrow of the heart crushes the spirit.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
A glad heart maketh a cheerful countenance; But by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.
KJV
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance: but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
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This verse in Proverbs 15
Commentary
6 notes on this verseBy sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken - Every kind of sorrow worketh death, but that which is the offspring of true repentance. This alone is healthful to the soul. The indulgence of a disposition to sighing tends to destroy life. Every deep sigh throws off a portion of the vital energy.
This site's exposition
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance
on Proverbs 15:13-15
A merry heart shows itself on the face, a cheerful countenance, while sorrow works from the inside to break the spirit that carries it. The heart of understanding actively seeks knowledge, hungry for it, while a fool's mouth is satisfied to feed on foolishness instead. The days of the afflicted are named evil without disguise, yet the same chapter insists that a merry heart turns even those days into a continual feast, the state of the heart outweighing the state of the circumstances.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
The church explains how it can please the Lord in the light of the living, which means in the brightness of the saints, among whom [the church] is made beautiful, spotless and without wrinkle. Whatever befalls them shines from its face. Just as a man's …
Those who live under discipline should avoid very carefully even such intemperate action as is commonly regarded lightly. Indulging in unrestrained and immoderate laughter is a sign of intemperance, of a want of control over one's emotions and of failure to repress the soul's frivolity by a stern use of reason.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Some prefer to render the last clause, “In sorrow of heart the breath is oppressed.”
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לֵ֣ב | lev | a heart | H3820 → | 595 times |
| שָׂ֭מֵחַ | sameach | joyful | H8056 → | 21 times |
| יֵיטִ֣ב | yeitiv | it makes good | H3190 → | 117 times |
| פָּנִ֑ים | panim | a face | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וּבְעַצְּבַת־ | uveatzevat- | and by sorrow of | H6094 → | |
| לֵ֝ב | lev | heart | H3820 → | 595 times |
| ר֣וּחַ | ruach | a spirit | H7307 → | 378 times |
| נְכֵאָֽה׃ | nekheah | [is] stricken | H5218 → | 4 times |
לֵ֣בa heart
levH3820 →595 times
שָׂ֭מֵחַjoyful
sameachH8056 →21 times
יֵיטִ֣בit makes good
yeitivH3190 →117 times
פָּנִ֑יםa face
panimH6440 →2123 times
וּבְעַצְּבַת־and by sorrow of
uveatzevat-H6094 →
לֵ֝בheart
levH3820 →595 times
ר֣וּחַa spirit
ruachH7307 →378 times
נְכֵאָֽה׃[is] stricken
nekheahH5218 →4 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
John 14:1“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe in Me as well.
it leads to
- Isaiah 26:3
You will keep in perfect peace the steadfast of mind, because he trusts in You.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9–10
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- John 16:22–23
So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy.
- Isaiah 12:2–3
Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. For the LORD GOD is my strength and my song, and He also has become my salvation.”
- John 14:27–28
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled; do not be afraid.
- Isaiah 26:3
Through
Proverbs 12:25Anxiety weighs down the heart of a man, but a good word cheers it up.
it leads to
- Proverbs 17:22
A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 17:22
Through
Proverbs 17:22A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.
it leads to
- Proverbs 12:25
Anxiety weighs down the heart of a man, but a good word cheers it up.
- Proverbs 18:14
The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, but who can survive a broken spirit?
- Proverbs 12:25
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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); Basil of Caesarea, THE LONG RULES 17; Cassiodorus, EXPOSITION OF THE PSALMS 55:13; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.