Proverbs 12:27
in Proverbs 12A lazy man does not roast his game, but a diligent man prizes his possession.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting; But the precious substance of men is to the diligent.
KJV
The slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting: but the substance of a diligent man is precious.
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This verse in Proverbs 12
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThe slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting,.... Because he takes none. The slothful man takes no pains to get anything for a livelihood, by hunting or otherwise; and though he loves to live well, and eat roast meat, yet what he roasts is not what he has got himself, but what another has laboured for. It is observed (o) that fowlers burn the wings of birds taken by them, that they may not fly away; to which the allusion may be.
This site's exposition
A righteous man is cautious in friendship
on Proverbs 12:26-28
“A righteous man is cautious in friendship,” but “the ways of the wicked lead them astray”. “A lazy man does not roast his game,” too lazy to finish what his own hunting started. The chapter closes on its plainest line: “There is life in the path of righteousness”.
This site's exposition
A lazy man does not roast his game
Albert Barnes notes that the verb for roast occurs nowhere else in Scripture, and some render it as keeping the catch in the net. Either way the lazy man loses what he had in hand. The diligent man values what he has.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
The fraudulent one will not gain profit, etc. For money acquired by fraud adds more harm to the soul than profit to the chest. And he who knows how to dispense his own substance for the Lord, will receive celestial gifts as a reward for …
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
The word rendered “roasteth” occurs nowhere else; but the interpretation of the King James Version is widely adopted. Others render the first clause thus: “The slothful man will not secure (keep in his net) what he takes in hunting,” i. e., will let whatever he gains slip from his hands through want of effort and attention.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
(Compare Pr 12:24). took in hunting--or, "his venison." He does not improve his advantages. the substance . . . precious--or, "the wealth of a man of honor is being diligent," or "diligence." precious--literally, "honor" (Ec 10:1).
The slothful man roasteth not that which he took in hunting - Because he is a slothful man, he does not hunt for prey; therefore gets none, and cannot roast, that he may eat. There is some obscurity in the original on which the versions cast little light. Coverdale translates the whole verse thus: “A discreatfull man schal fynde no vauntage: but he that is content with what he hath, is more worth than golde.” My old MS. Bible: The gylful man schal not fynd wynnynge: and the substance of a man schal ben the pris of gold. By translating hymr remiyah the deceitful, instead of the slothful man, which appears to be the genuine meaning of the word, we may obtain a good sense, as the Vulgate has done: “The deceitful man shall not find gain; but the substance of a (just) man shall be the price of gold.” But our common version, allowing hymr remiyah to be translated fraudulent, which is its proper meaning, gives the best sense: “The fraudulent man roasteth not that which he took in hunting,” the justice of God snatching from his mouth what he had acquired unrighteously. But the substance of a diligent man - One who by honest industry acquires all his property - is precious, because it has the blessing of God in it.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יַחֲרֹ֣ךְ | yacharokh | he roasts | H2760 → | |
| רְמִיָּ֣ה | remiyah | idleness | H7423 → | 15 times |
| צֵיד֑וֹ | tzeido | game his | H6718 → | |
| וְהוֹן־ | vehon- | and [the] wealth of | H1952 → | 26 times |
| אָדָ֖ם | ʾadam | a person | H120 → | 551 times |
| יָקָ֣ר | yakar | precious | H3368 → | 36 times |
| חָרֽוּץ׃ | charutz | diligent | H2742 → | 19 times |
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יַחֲרֹ֣ךְhe roasts
yacharokhH2760 →
רְמִיָּ֣הidleness
remiyahH7423 →15 times
צֵיד֑וֹgame his
tzeidoH6718 →
וְהוֹן־and [the] wealth of
vehon-H1952 →26 times
אָדָ֖םa person
ʾadamH120 →551 times
יָקָ֣רprecious
yakarH3368 →36 times
חָרֽוּץ׃diligent
charutzH2742 →19 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 15:16Better a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure with turmoil.
it leads to
- Proverbs 16:8
Better a little with righteousness than great gain with injustice.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Timothy 6:6
Of course, godliness with contentment is great gain.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 37:16
Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.
- Ecclesiastes 5:10–12
He who loves money is never satisfied by money, and he who loves wealth is never satisfied by income. This too is futile.
- Proverbs 16:8
Through
Proverbs 13:4The slacker craves yet has nothing, but the soul of the diligent is fully satisfied.
it leads to
- Proverbs 12:24
The hand of the diligent will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.
- Proverbs 12:11
The one who works his land will have plenty of food, but whoever chases fantasies lacks judgment.
- Proverbs 12:24
Through
Psalms 37:16Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.
it leads to
- Proverbs 15:16–17
Better a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure with turmoil.
- Proverbs 15:16–17
Through
Proverbs 23:2and put a knife to your throat if you possess a great appetite.
it leads to
- Philippians 3:19
Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and their glory is in their shame. Their minds are set on earthly things.
- Philippians 3:19
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
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; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament.