Proverbs 26:27
in Proverbs 26He who digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein; And he that rolleth a stone, it shall return upon him.
KJV
Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein: and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him.
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This verse in Proverbs 26
Commentary
5 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Rolleth a stone - The illustration refers, probably, to the use made of stones in the rough warfare of an earlier age. Compare Jdg 9:53; 2Sa 11:21. The man is supposed to be rolling the stone up to the heights.
This site's exposition
a potsherd covered with silver dross
on Proverbs 26:23-28
The chapter ends on the hater who speaks fair: burning lips over a wicked heart are a potsherd covered with silver dross, cheap clay under a thin bright wash. When he speaketh fair, believe him not, for there are seven abominations in his heart, the completeness number the book used of what the Lord hates at 6:16, here filling a flatterer. The pit-digger's proverb, whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein, with the stone returning on him that rolleth it, is the reversal figure the Psalms and Esther enact in story, and the commentators cross-reference Ps 7:15-16 and Haman's gallows by name; the chapter closes flatly, a flattering mouth worketh ruin.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Such a thing is malice! it will give way to nothing, it looks to one thing only, and that is, to destroy the person against whom it plotteth. But what saith the Scripture? "Whoso diggeth a pit for his neighbor, shall fill into it himself." Which was the case then. For they desired to kill Him, to stop, as they thought, His preaching; the result was the opposite. For the preaching flourishes by the grace of Christ, while all that was theirs is quenched and perished; they have lost their country, their freedom, their security, their worship, they have been deprived of all their prosperity, and are become slaves and captives. Knowing then this, let us never plot against others, aware that by so doing we whet the sword against ourselves, and inflict upon ourselves the deeper wound. Hath any one grieved thee, and desireth thou to avenge thyself on him? Avenge not thyself; so shalt thou be able to be avenged; but if thou avenge thyself, thou art not avenged. Think not that this is a riddle, but a true saying. "How, and in what way?" Because if thou avenge not thyself on him, thou makest God his enemy; but if thou avenge thyself, no longer so. "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, saith the Lord."
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein,.... That devises mischief against others, it shall come upon himself.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Whoso diggeth a pit - See note on Psa 7:15. There is a Latin proverb like this: Malum consilium consultori pessimum, “A bad counsel, but worst to the giver.” Harm watch; harm catch.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| כֹּֽרֶה־ | korehosha- | [one who] digs | H3738 → | |
| שַּׁ֭חַת | shachat | a pit | H7845 → | |
| בָּ֣הּ | bah | in it | ||
| יִפֹּ֑ל | yipol | he will fall | H5307 → | 435 times |
| וְגֹ֥לֵ֥ל | vegolel | and [one who] rolls | H1556 → | |
| אֶ֝בֶן | ʾeven | a stone | H68 → | 273 times |
| אֵלָ֥יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| תָּשֽׁוּב׃ | tashuv | it will return | H7725 → | 1056 times |
כֹּֽרֶה־[one who] digs
korehosha-H3738 →
שַּׁ֭חַתa pit
shachatH7845 →
בָּ֣הּin it
bah
יִפֹּ֑לhe will fall
yipolH5307 →435 times
וְגֹ֥לֵ֥לand [one who] rolls
vegolelH1556 →
אֶ֝בֶןa stone
ʾevenH68 →273 times
אֵלָ֥יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
תָּשֽׁוּב׃it will return
tashuvH7725 →1056 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
Ecclesiastes 10:8He who digs a pit may fall into it, and he who breaches a wall may be bitten by a snake.
it leads to
- Psalms 7:15–16
He has dug a hole and hollowed it out; he has fallen into a pit of his own making.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 7:15–16
Through
Psalms 10:2In pride the wicked pursue the needy; let them be caught in the schemes they devise.
it leads to
- Proverbs 5:22
The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 59:12
By the sins of their mouths and the words of their lips, let them be trapped in their pride, in the curses and lies they utter.
- Psalms 36:11
Let not the foot of the proud come against me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
- Psalms 7:16
His trouble recoils on himself, and his violence falls on his own head.
- Psalms 31:18
May lying lips be silenced— lips that speak with arrogance against the righteous, full of pride and contempt.
- Proverbs 5:22
Through
Proverbs 28:10He who leads the upright along the path of evil will fall into his own pit, but the blameless will inherit what is good.
it leads to
- Psalms 37:25–26
I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.
- Psalms 37:25–26
Through
Psalms 9:15The nations have fallen into a pit of their making; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.
it leads to
- Psalms 57:6
They spread a net for my feet; my soul was despondent. They dug a pit before me, but they themselves have fallen into it! Selah
- Psalms 57:6
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); Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Proverbs of Solomon; John Chrysostom, HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 51; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.