Proverbs 14:15
in Proverbs 14The simple man believes every word, but the prudent man watches his steps.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
The simple believeth every word; But the prudent man looketh well to his going.
KJV
The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.
⋯
This verse in Proverbs 14
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
The simple man believes every word
on Proverbs 14:15-16
“The simple man believes every word,” an open door with no guard at it, while “the prudent man watches his steps” and tests the ground. “A wise man fears and turns from evil,” but “a fool is careless and reckless” in a confidence he has never earned.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
Desert FathersThe Desert Fathers, Sayings of the Early Christian Monks · Written before 500.
proposed
A hermit said, 'Do not be pleased at everything that is said, and do not agree with everything that is said. Be slow to believe, and quick to say what is true.'
The Medieval Church1 voice
The innocent believes every word, etc. John both prohibited this innocence and taught how to have this prudence, when he said, Beloved, do not believe every spirit; but test the spirits, whether they are of God (1 John IV).
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
The simple believeth every word,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Simple - In the bad sense (compare Pro 1:22).
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
A fool believes their words and is enticed after them. Another explanation: with laughter the heart aches It is sport for a fool to carry out a sinful plot (above:23), and ultimately, his heart will ache.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
The one with an impure heart shall have his fill from his ways Esau.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| פֶּ֭תִי | peti | a naive person | H6612 → | 19 times |
| יַאֲמִ֣ין | yaamin | he believes | H539 → | 106 times |
| לְכָל־ | lekhol | <to> every | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| דָּבָ֑ר | davar | thing | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| וְ֝עָר֗וּם | vearum | and a sensible [person] | H6175 → | 11 times |
| יָבִ֥ין | yavin | he considers | H995 → | 170 times |
| לַאֲשֻׁרֽוֹ׃ | laashuro | <to> step his | H838 → |
פֶּ֭תִיa naive person
petiH6612 →19 times
יַאֲמִ֣יןhe believes
yaaminH539 →106 times
לְכָל־<to> every
lekholH3605 →5413 times
דָּבָ֑רthing
davarH1697 →1440 times
וְ֝עָר֗וּםand a sensible [person]
vearumH6175 →11 times
יָבִ֥יןhe considers
yavinH995 →170 times
לַאֲשֻׁרֽוֹ׃<to> step his
laashuroH838 →
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
1 John 4:1Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.
it leads to
- 1 Thessalonians 5:21
but test all things. Hold fast to what is good.
- 2 Peter 2:1
Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on…
- 1 Timothy 4:1
Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,
- 2 John 1:7
For many deceivers have gone out into the world, refusing to confess the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist.
- Matthew 24:4–5
Jesus answered, “See to it that no one deceives you.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:21
Through
Ephesians 5:17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
it leads to
- Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of…
- 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Give thanks in every circumstance, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
- Romans 12:2
Through
Proverbs 4:26Make a level path for your feet, and all your ways will be sure.
it leads to
- Psalms 119:5
Oh, that my ways were committed to keeping Your statutes!
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 119:5
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; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; Desert Fathers, The Desert Fathers, Sayings of the Early Christian Monks and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).