Proverbs 18:5
in Proverbs 18Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
To respect the person of the wicked is not good, Nor to turn aside the righteous in judgment.
KJV
It is not good to accept the person of the wicked, to overthrow the righteous in judgment.
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This verse in Proverbs 18
Commentary
5 notes on this verseTo accept the person of the wicked - We must not, in judicial cases, pay any attention to a man’s riches, influence, friends, offices, etc., but judge the case according to its own merits. But when the wicked rich man opposes and oppresses the poor righteous, then all those things should be utterly forgotten.
This site's exposition
A fool hath no delight
on Proverbs 18:2-5
A fool takes no delight in understanding, only in showing his own heart off, and where the wicked come, contempt and reproach follow with them as their shadow. The words of a man's mouth are deep waters, a wellspring from which a flowing brook of wisdom may run, an image the commentators read as depth requiring the hearer to draw it out rather than have it forced on him. Accepting the person of the wicked to overthrow the righteous in judgment names the corruption the chapter keeps circling back to.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
John ChrysostomCOMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 18:5 · Written in the 5th century.
proposed
"It is not good to admire those who are impious," even though one of them has an important position or covers up what is right with persuasive speech. To admire the behavior of the impious is to sanction iniquity inspired by the devil.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
It is not good to accept the person of the wicked,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
"It is not good" is to be supplied before "to overthrow." 6, 7. The quarrelsome bring trouble on themselves. Their rash language ensnares them (Pr 6:2).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| שְׂאֵ֣ת | seet | to lift up | H5375 → | 656 times |
| פְּנֵי־ | penei- | [the] face of | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| רָשָׁ֣ע | rasha' | a wicked [person] | H7563 → | 263 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| ט֑וֹב | tov | [is] good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| לְהַטּ֥וֹת | lehatot | to turn aside | H5186 → | 214 times |
| צַ֝דִּ֗יק | tzadik | a righteous [person] | H6662 → | 206 times |
| בַּמִּשְׁפָּֽט׃ | bamishpat | in <the> judgment | H4941 → | 422 times |
שְׂאֵ֣תto lift up
seetH5375 →656 times
פְּנֵי־[the] face of
penei-H6440 →2123 times
רָשָׁ֣עa wicked [person]
rasha'H7563 →263 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
ט֑וֹב[is] good
tovH2896 →538 times
לְהַטּ֥וֹתto turn aside
lehatotH5186 →214 times
צַ֝דִּ֗יקa righteous [person]
tzadikH6662 →206 times
בַּמִּשְׁפָּֽט׃in <the> judgment
bamishpatH4941 →422 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
Leviticus 19:15You must not pervert justice; you must not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich; you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 1:17
Show no partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be intimidated by anyone, for judgment belongs to God. And bring to me any case too difficult for you, and I…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 24:23
These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Deuteronomy 27:19
‘Cursed is he who withholds justice from the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow.’ And let all the people say, ‘Amen!’
- Exodus 23:6–8
You shall not deny justice to the poor in their lawsuits.
- Exodus 23:2–3
You shall not follow the crowd in wrongdoing. When you testify in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.
- Deuteronomy 1:17
Through
Deuteronomy 16:19Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.
it leads to
- Leviticus 19:15
You must not pervert justice; you must not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich; you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 23:2
You shall not follow the crowd in wrongdoing. When you testify in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Leviticus 19:15
Through
Proverbs 24:23These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
it leads to
- Proverbs 28:21
To show partiality is not good, yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.
- Proverbs 28:21
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies2
On this verse
On this chapter
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Proverbs of Solomon; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 18:5 and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).