Proverbs 3:27
in Proverbs 3Do not withhold good from the deserving when it is within your power to act.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, When it is in the power of thy hand to do it.
KJV
Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it.
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This verse in Proverbs 3
Commentary
8 notes on this verseWithhold not good from them to whom it is due,.... Honour, reverence, and tribute, to civil magistrates, Rom 13:7; just payment of debts to creditors, and alms to the poor, which, by what follows, seems to be chiefly intended; and the Septuagint render it, "do not abstain to do well to the needy;'' and Aben Ezra interprets it of the poor; to them alms are due because of their wants, and by the appointment; of God; hence called "righteousness", in some copies of Mat 6:1; so money kept from the poor "mammon of unrighteousness", Luk 16:
This site's exposition
Do not withhold good from the deserving
on Proverbs 3:27-30
“Do not withhold good from the deserving when it is within your power to act” turns from inward trust to a neighbor's claim. The excuse “Come back tomorrow and I will provide” is forbidden, delay posing as future kindness when the means are at hand.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
"Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due," etc. Because above he diligently urged the observance of the law of the Lord and his counsel, and promised eternal rest to those who observe it, now he repeatedly explains in various ways what …
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
With-hold not - Do not deny it, but readily and chearfuly impart it. Good - Any thing which is good, either counsel, comfort, reproof, or the good things of the present life. Due - That is, to all men, by that great and sovereign law of love.
To be charitable to the poor and necessitous. If others want the necessary supports of life, and we have wherewithal to supply them, we must look upon it as due to them and not withhold it. Alms are called righteousness because they are a debt to the poor, and a debt which we must not defer to pay, Bis dat, qui cito dat -- He gives twice who gives speedily.
5 Trust in the L ORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. We are here taught to live a life of communion with God; and without controversy great is this mystery of godliness, and of great consequence to us, and, as is here shown, will be of unspeakable advantage.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
A marked change in style. The continuous exhortation is replaced by a series of maxims. From them to whom it is due - literally, as in the margin. The precept expresses the great Scriptural thought that the so-called possession of wealth is but a stewardship; that the true owners of what we call our own are those to whom, with it, we may do good. Not to relieve them is a breach of trust. Pro 3:28 Procrastination is especially fatal to the giving impulse.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Withhold not good from them to whom it is due - מבעליו mibbealaiv, from the lords of it. But who are they? The poor. And what art thou, O rich man? Why, thou art a steward, to whom God has given substance that thou mayest divide with the poor. They are the right owners of every farthing thou hast to spare from thy own support, and that of thy family; and God has given the surplus for their sakes. Dost thou, by hoarding up this treasure, deprive the right owners of their property? If this were a civil case, the law would take thee by the throat, and lay thee up in prison; but it is a case in which God alone judges. And what will he do to thee? Hear! “He shall have judgment without mercy, who hath showed no mercy;” Jas 2:13. Read, feel, tremble, and act justly.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אַל־ | ʾal- | may not | H408 → | 724 times |
| תִּמְנַע־ | timna'- | you withhold | H4513 → | 29 times |
| ט֥וֹב | tov | good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| מִבְּעָלָ֑יו | mibealav | from owners its | H1167 → | 84 times |
| בִּהְי֨וֹת | bihyot | when belongs | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| לְאֵ֖ל | leel | to [the] power of | H410 → | |
| יָדְךָ֣ | yadeikha | hand your | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| לַעֲשֽׂוֹת׃ | laasot | to do [it] | H6213 → | 2628 times |
אַל־may not
ʾal-H408 →724 times
תִּמְנַע־you withhold
timna'-H4513 →29 times
ט֥וֹבgood
tovH2896 →538 times
מִבְּעָלָ֑יוfrom owners its
mibealavH1167 →84 times
בִּהְי֨וֹתwhen belongs
bihyotH1961 →3559 times
לְאֵ֖לto [the] power of
leelH410 →
יָדְךָ֣hand your
yadeikhaH3027 →1618 times
לַעֲשֽׂוֹת׃to do [it]
laasotH6213 →2628 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
Galatians 6:10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.
it leads to
- Hebrews 13:16
And do not neglect to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:15
Make sure that no one repays evil for evil. Always pursue what is good for one another and for all people.
- Titus 3:8
This saying is trustworthy. And I want you to emphasize these things, so that those who have believed God will take care to devote themselves to good deeds. These things are excellent and profitable…
- Matthew 25:40
And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me.’
- Luke 6:35
But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them, expecting nothing in return. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He is…
- Hebrews 13:16
Through
James 5:4Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
it leads to
- Leviticus 19:13
You must not defraud your neighbor or rob him. You must not withhold until morning the wages due a hired hand.
- Jeremiah 22:13
“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,
- Leviticus 19:13
Through
Romans 13:7Pay everyone what you owe him: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.
it leads to
- Luke 20:25
So Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
- Luke 20:25
Where this verse is studied
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); Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.