Proverbs 18:18
in Proverbs 18Casting the lot ends quarrels and separates strong opponents.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The lot causeth contentions to cease, And parteth between the mighty.
KJV
The lot causeth contentions to cease, and parteth between the mighty.
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This verse in Proverbs 18
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Compare Pro 16:33 note. A tacit appeal to the Divine Judge gave a fairer prospect of a just decision than corruption Pro 18:16 or hasty onesidedness Pro 18:17.
This site's exposition
The first to state his case
on Proverbs 18:17-19
The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him, a warning that one side of a story always sounds complete. An offended brother is harder to win than a fortified city, the strongest bond made the hardest breach once it is broken.
This site's exposition
Casting the lot ends quarrels
Albert Barnes reads the lot as a quiet appeal to the Divine Judge, and he compares 16:33. It gave a fairer hope of justice than the gift of verse 16 or the one-sided case of verse 17. It separates strong opponents.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"The lot suppresses contentions and determines even between the mighty." For it is better for God to decide in uncertainties of this kind than for people, whether he deigns to call the better ones to a share in his passion and to spare the weak, or to strengthen the former to bear these evils and to withdraw from this life those whose survival cannot be as beneficial to the church as theirs would be. It will be an unusual thing to proceed in this matter by drawing lots, but, if it is done, who will dare to judge it adversely? Surely, everyone but the envious or those ignorant of this appropriate quotation will praise it.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The lot causeth contentions to cease,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
The lot causeth contentions to cease - See note on Pro 16:33.
The words behind it
6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מִ֭דְיָנִים | midyanim | contentions | H4079 → | 10 times |
| יַשְׁבִּ֣ית | yashbit | it puts an end to | H7673 → | |
| הַגּוֹרָ֑ל | hagoral | the lot | H1486 → | 78 times |
| וּבֵ֖ין | uvein | and between | H996 → | 407 times |
| עֲצוּמִ֣ים | ʾatzumim | mighty [people] | H6099 → | 31 times |
| יַפְרִֽיד׃ | yafrid | it separates | H6504 → | 26 times |
מִ֭דְיָנִיםcontentions
midyanimH4079 →10 times
יַשְׁבִּ֣יתit puts an end to
yashbitH7673 →
הַגּוֹרָ֑לthe lot
hagoralH1486 →78 times
וּבֵ֖יןand between
uveinH996 →407 times
עֲצוּמִ֣יםmighty [people]
ʾatzumimH6099 →31 times
יַפְרִֽיד׃it separates
yafridH6504 →26 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
Proverbs 16:33The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.
it leads to
- Acts 1:26
Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.
- Jonah 1:7
“Come!” said the sailors to one another. “Let us cast lots to find out who is responsible for this calamity that is upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
- 1 Samuel 14:41–42
So Saul said to the LORD, the God of Israel, “Why have You not answered Your servant this day? If the fault is with me or my son Jonathan, respond with Urim; but if…
- Proverbs 29:26
Many seek the ruler’s favor, but a man receives justice from the LORD.
- Numbers 26:55–65
Indeed, the land must be divided by lot; they shall receive their inheritance according to the names of the tribes of their fathers.
- Acts 1:26
Through
Nehemiah 11:1Now the leaders of the people settled in Jerusalem, and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in the holy city of Jerusalem, while the remaining…
it leads to
- Isaiah 48:2
who indeed call yourselves after the holy city and lean on the God of Israel; the LORD of Hosts is His name.
- Isaiah 48:2
Through
Joshua 14:2Their inheritance was assigned by lot for the nine and a half tribes, as the LORD had commanded through Moses.
it leads to
- Numbers 33:54
And you are to divide the land by lot according to your clans. Give a larger inheritance to a larger clan and a smaller inheritance to a smaller one. Whatever falls to each one…
- Numbers 34:13
So Moses commanded the Israelites, “Apportion this land by lot as an inheritance. The LORD has commanded that it be given to the nine and a half tribes.
- Numbers 33:54
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this chapter
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); Augustine of Hippo, LETTER 228; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).