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Proverbs 15:27

in Proverbs 15

He who is greedy for unjust gain brings trouble on his household, but he who hates bribes will live.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; But he that hateth bribes shall live.

KJV

He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live.

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This verse in Proverbs 15

Commentary

5 notes on this verse
Gifts - There is a special application to the office of the judge. The Aramaic Targum paraphrases the first words of this passage as: “he who gathers the mammon of unrighteousness,” using the words with special reference to wealth obtained by unjust judgments. May we infer that Christ’s adoption of that phrase Luk 16:9 had a point of contact with this proverb, through the version then popularly used in the synagogues of Palestine?

This site's exposition

The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked

on Proverbs 15:26-27

“The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked” before they become words or deeds, so the standard reaches back to the thinking behind speech. The man “greedy for unjust gain brings trouble on his household,” the household closest to him, “but he who hates bribes will live”.

This site's exposition

He who is greedy for unjust gain

Albert Barnes applies the bribes to the judge, whose unjust gain came from unjust judgments. The Aramaic Targum reads the first line as gathering the mammon of unrighteousness, and Barnes asks whether Jesus drew on it in Luke 16:9. The greedy man's whole household bears the trouble.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

He that is greedy of gain - He who will be rich; troubleth his own house - he is a torment to himself and his family by his avariciousness and penury, and a curse to those with whom he deals. But he that hateth gifts - Whatever is given to pervert judgment.

The words behind it

7 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • עֹכֵ֣ר[is] troubling

    ʾokherH5916 →14 times

  • בֵּ֭יתוֹown house his

    beitoH1004 →2046 times

  • בּוֹצֵ֣עַ[one who] gains unjustly

    botzea'H1214 →

  • בָּ֑צַעunjust gain

    batza'H1215 →23 times

  • וְשׂוֹנֵ֖אand [one who] hates

    vesone'H8130 →146 times

  • מַתָּנֹ֣תgifts

    matanotH4979 →

  • יִחְיֶֽה׃he will live

    yichyehH2421 →282 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Proverbs 23:4Do not wear yourself out to get rich; be wise enough to restrain yourself.11 works1 Timothy 6:9Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.10 worksExodus 23:8Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.9 worksProverbs 1:19Such is the fate of all who are greedy, whose unjust gain takes the lives of its possessors.8 worksJeremiah 17:11Like a partridge hatching eggs it did not lay is the man who makes a fortune unjustly. In the middle of his days his riches will desert him, and in the end he will be the fool.”6 worksProverbs 11:29He who brings trouble on his house will inherit the wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise of heart.5 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Isaiah 33:15–16He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity, who refuses gain from extortion, whose hand never takes a bribe, who stops his ears against murderous plots and shuts his eyes tightly against evil—5 worksDeuteronomy 16:19Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.5 worksJoshua 7:24Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the cloak, the bar of gold, his sons and daughters, his oxen and donkeys and sheep, his tent, and everything else he owned, and brought them to the Valley of Achor.5 worksExodus 18:21Furthermore, select capable men from among the people—God-fearing, trustworthy men who are averse to dishonest gain. Appoint them over the people as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.4 worksZechariah 5:3–4Then he told me, “This is the curse that is going out over the face of all the land, for according to one side of the scroll, every thief will be removed; and according to the other side, every perjurer will be removed.3 worksHabakkuk 2:9–11Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, to place his nest on high and escape the hand of disaster!3 worksProverbs 20:21An inheritance gained quickly will not be blessed in the end.2 works1 Samuel 8:3–5But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside toward dishonest gain, accepting bribes and perverting justice.2 worksProverbs 29:4By justice a king brings stability to the land, but a man who exacts tribute demolishes it.2 worksIsaiah 5:8–10Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no place is left and you live alone in the land.2 worksProverbs 28:16A leader who lacks judgment is also a great oppressor, but he who hates dishonest profit will prolong his days.2 works2 Kings 5:27Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman will cling to you and your descendants forever!” And as Gehazi left his presence, he was leprous—as white as snow.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Exodus 23:8

    Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.

    it leads to

    • Deuteronomy 16:19

      Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.

    • Proverbs 17:23

      A wicked man takes a covert bribe to subvert the course of justice.

    • Isaiah 5:23

      who acquit the guilty for a bribe and deprive the innocent of justice.

    • 1 Samuel 8:3

      But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside toward dishonest gain, accepting bribes and perverting justice.

  • Through

    Jeremiah 17:11

    Like a partridge hatching eggs it did not lay is the man who makes a fortune unjustly. In the middle of his days his riches will desert him, and in the end he will…

    it leads to

    • Proverbs 28:20

      A faithful man will abound with blessings, but one eager to be rich will not go unpunished.

    • Proverbs 21:6

      Making a fortune by a lying tongue is a vanishing mist, a deadly pursuit.

    • Jeremiah 22:17

      “But your eyes and heart are set on nothing except your own dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood, on practicing extortion and oppression.”

  • Through

    Proverbs 1:19

    Such is the fate of all who are greedy, whose unjust gain takes the lives of its possessors.

    it leads to

    • 2 Peter 2:3

      In their greed, these false teachers will exploit you with deceptive words. The longstanding verdict against them remains in force, and their destruction does not sleep.

Where this verse is studied

About Proverbs

The Judgment of Solomon, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Judgment of Solomon, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Proverbs: the study guide →Read Proverbs 15 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament.

Read on in Proverbs 15 →