Proverbs 13:22
in Proverbs 13A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children; And the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the righteous.
KJV
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children’s children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.
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This verse in Proverbs 13
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA good man leaveth an inheritance - He files many a prayer in heaven in their behalf, and his good example and advices are remembered and quoted from generation to generation. Besides, whatever property he left was honestly acquired, and well-gotten goods are permanent. The general experience of men shows this to be a common case; and that property ill-gotten seldom reaches to the third generation. This even the heathens observed. Hence: De male quaesitis non gaudet tertius haeres. “The third generation shall not possess the goods that have been unjustly acquired.”
This site's exposition
He who walks with the wise will become wise
on Proverbs 13:20-22
“He who walks with the wise will become wise,” but “the companion of fools will be destroyed” by the company he keeps. The cluster closes on generations: “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,” but “the sinner’s wealth is passed to the righteous”.
This site's exposition
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children
A good man's inheritance reaches his children's children. Adam Clarke counts his honestly gained property as part of it, and quotes the Latin saying that ill-gotten goods never reach the third heir. In the end the righteous receive the sinner's wealth.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
John ChrysostomCOMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 13:22 · Written before 407.
proposed
"A good man will inherit children's children." The verb "he will inherit" does not mean that he will take the inheritance from his sons; in fact, this would be the greatest curse. Rather, it means the opposite, that is, that he will transmit his riches to his posterity and will leave behind descendants. But the property of the ungodly is not transmitted to their sons but to those who can use them properly. Another interpretation may be: the mind, almost like a parent, generates good thoughts; and these become parents of similar actions.
The Medieval Church1 voice
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children, etc. We often see good men die without children, indeed promising greater rewards from the Lord to those who have preferred the chastity of virginity to the procreation of children, yet also the substance of the …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
An expression of trust, that in the long run the anomalies of the world are rendered even (compare the marginal references). The heaped up treasures of the wicked find their way at last into the hands of better men.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ט֗וֹב | tov | a good [person] | H2896 → | 538 times |
| יַנְחִ֥יל | yanchil | he leaves an inheritance to | H5157 → | 59 times |
| בְּנֵֽי־ | benei- | children of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| בָנִ֑ים | vanim | children | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וְצָפ֥וּן | vetzafun | and [is] stored up | H6845 → | 32 times |
| לַ֝צַּדִּ֗יק | latzadik | for the righteous | H6662 → | 206 times |
| חֵ֣יל | cheil | [the] wealth of | H2428 → | 246 times |
| חוֹטֵֽא׃ | chote' | a sinner | H2398 → | 238 times |
ט֗וֹבa good [person]
tovH2896 →538 times
יַנְחִ֥ילhe leaves an inheritance to
yanchilH5157 →59 times
בְּנֵֽי־children of
benei-H1121 →4930 times
בָנִ֑יםchildren
vanimH1121 →4930 times
וְצָפ֥וּןand [is] stored up
vetzafunH6845 →32 times
לַ֝צַּדִּ֗יקfor the righteous
latzadikH6662 →206 times
חֵ֣יל[the] wealth of
cheilH2428 →246 times
חוֹטֵֽא׃a sinner
chote'H2398 →238 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 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
- 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.
- Proverbs 28:8
He who increases his wealth by interest and usury lays it up for one who is kind to the poor.
- 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.
- Job 27:16–17
Through
Psalms 37:25I once was young and now am old, yet never have I seen the righteous abandoned or their children begging for bread.
it leads to
- Psalms 25:13
His soul will dwell in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”
- Psalms 37:28
For the LORD loves justice and will not forsake His saints. They are preserved forever, but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off.
- Psalms 112:2
His descendants will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.
- 1 Samuel 12:22
Indeed, for the sake of His great name, the LORD will not abandon His people, because He was pleased to make you His own.
- Psalms 25:13
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); Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 13:22; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).