Proverbs 28:8
in Proverbs 28He who increases his wealth by interest and usury lays it up for one who is kind to the poor.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He that augmenteth his substance by interest and increase, Gathereth it for him that hath pity on the poor.
KJV
He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.
⋯
This verse in Proverbs 28
Commentary
4 notes on this verseHe that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance,.... By biting and oppressing the poor; letting him have money at an exorbitant interest, and goods at an exorbitant price, and so increases his substance in this scandalous manner; hence usury is in Lev 25:36, called "increase", and by the Greeks τοκος, a "birth", because money is the birth of money, as Aristotle (e) observes; and so by the Latins "foenus", as if it was "foetus" (f), "a birth".
This site's exposition
He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance
on Proverbs 28:8-9
He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor, states a reversal the book returns to often, that wealth taken by exploitation ends up serving the very poor it was taken from. He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination, pairs disobedience with worship and finds the second worthless without the first, since a closed ear makes an open mouth in prayer meaningless.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
He that by usury - increaseth his substance - By taking unlawful interest for his money; lending to a man in great distress, money, for the use of which he requires an exorbitant sum. O that the names of all those unfeeling, hard-hearted, consummate villains in the nation, who thus take advantage of their neighbour’s necessities to enrich themselves, were published at every market cross; and then the delinquents all sent to their brother savages in New Zealand. It would be a happy riddance to the country.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Unjust gain - Omit “unjust:” “usury and gain” make up the notion of “gain derived from usury.” Ill-gotten gains do not prosper, after a time they pass into hands that know how to use them better.
The words behind it
7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מַרְבֶּ֣ה | marbeh | [one who] increases | H7235 → | 227 times |
| ה֭וֹנוֹ | hono | wealth his | H1952 → | 26 times |
| בְּנֶ֣שֶׁךְ | beneshekh | by interest | H5392 → | |
| וְתַרְבִּ֑ית | uvetarbit | and usury | H8636 → | |
| לְחוֹנֵ֖ן | lechonen | for [one who] shows favor to | H2603 → | 78 times |
| דַּלִּ֣ים | dalim | poor [people] | H1800 → | 47 times |
| יִקְבְּצֶֽנּוּ׃ | yikbetzenu | he gathers it | H6908 → |
מַרְבֶּ֣ה[one who] increases
marbehH7235 →227 times
ה֭וֹנוֹwealth his
honoH1952 →26 times
בְּנֶ֣שֶׁךְby interest
beneshekhH5392 →
וְתַרְבִּ֑יתand usury
uvetarbitH8636 →
לְחוֹנֵ֖ןfor [one who] shows favor to
lechonenH2603 →78 times
דַּלִּ֣יםpoor [people]
dalimH1800 →47 times
יִקְבְּצֶֽנּוּ׃he gathers it
yikbetzenuH6908 →
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 13:22A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.
it leads to
- Job 27:16–17
Though he heaps up silver like dust and piles up a wardrobe like clay,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ecclesiastes 2:26
To the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner He assigns the task of gathering and accumulating that which he will hand over…
- Psalms 37:25
I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.
- Psalms 112:2
His descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
- Genesis 17:7–8
I will establish My covenant as an everlasting covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
- Job 27:16–17
Through
Ecclesiastes 2:26To the man who is pleasing in His sight, He gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner He assigns the task of gathering and accumulating that which he will hand over…
it leads to
- Proverbs 13:22
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.
- John 16:24
Until now you have not asked for anything in My name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
- Isaiah 3:10–11
Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their labor.
- Proverbs 13:22
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); Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament.