Proverbs 17:5
in Proverbs 17He who mocks the poor insults their Maker; whoever gloats over calamity will not go unpunished.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker; And he that is glad at calamity shall not be unpunished.
KJV
Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker: and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.
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This verse in Proverbs 17
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
He that is glad at calamities - A temper common at all times as the most hateful form of evil; the Greek ἐπιχαιρεκακία epichairekakia. The sins spoken of in both clauses occur also in Job’s vindication of his integrity Pro 31:13, Pro 31:29.
This site's exposition
A wicked man listens to evil lips
on Proverbs 17:4-5
The wicked man who listens to evil lips and the liar who gives ear to a destructive tongue show the heart that owns them. Mocking the poor reaches past the poor man to insult "their Maker," and whoever gloats over another's calamity "will not go unpunished."
This site's exposition
whoever gloats over calamity
Albert Barnes calls gloating over calamity a temper common in every age and the most hateful evil, one the Greeks named with a single word. Job disowns both sins of this verse in his vindication. To mock the poor insults their Maker.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
Let no man suppose that because he is rich more deference ought to be shewn him. In the Church he is rich, who is rich in faith, for the faithful have a whole world of riches. What wonder is it that the faithful should possess the world, seeing he possesses the heritage of Christ, which is more precious than the world? Ye were redeemed with precious blood, is said to all, and not to the rich only.
A commentator
John ChrysostomCOMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 17:5 · Written before 407.
proposed
"He who laughs at the poor irritates his creator." Why? Because God is the creator of the poor. Who is so cruel, who is so inhuman, that when he should be moved to compassion he laughs instead? Certainly this too will have to be punished. That person will perish because he sins against the high and wise providence of God.
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Whoso mocketh the poor reproacheth his Maker,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
He that is glad at calamity - He who is pleased to hear of the misfortune of another will, in the course of God’s just government, have his own multiplied.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לֹעֵ֣ג | loeg | [one who] mocks | H3932 → | 18 times |
| לָ֭רָשׁ | larosh | <to> the poor [person] | H7326 → | 24 times |
| חֵרֵ֣ף | cheref | he reproaches | H2778 → | 41 times |
| עֹשֵׂ֑הוּ | ʾosehu | maker his | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| שָׂמֵ֥חַ | sameach | [a person] joyful | H8056 → | 21 times |
| לְ֝אֵ֗יד | leeid | for calamity | H343 → | 24 times |
| לֹ֣א | lo' | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִנָּקֶֽה׃ | yinakeh | he will go unpunished | H5352 → | 44 times |
לֹעֵ֣ג[one who] mocks
loegH3932 →18 times
לָ֭רָשׁ<to> the poor [person]
laroshH7326 →24 times
חֵרֵ֣ףhe reproaches
cherefH2778 →41 times
עֹשֵׂ֑הוּmaker his
ʾosehuH6213 →2628 times
שָׂמֵ֥חַ[a person] joyful
sameachH8056 →21 times
לְ֝אֵ֗ידfor calamity
leeidH343 →24 times
לֹ֣אnot
lo'H3808 →5168 times
יִנָּקֶֽה׃he will go unpunished
yinakehH5352 →44 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
1 John 3:17If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?
it leads to
- Proverbs 19:17
Kindness to the poor is a loan to the LORD, and He will repay the lender.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- Hebrews 13:16
And do not neglect to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
- Isaiah 58:7–10
Isn’t it to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your home, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to turn away from your own…
- 1 John 4:20
If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
- Deuteronomy 15:7–11
If there is a poor man among your brothers within any of the gates in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, then you are not to harden your heart or…
- Proverbs 19:17
Through
Job 31:29If I have rejoiced in my enemy’s ruin, or exulted when evil befell him—
it leads to
- Proverbs 24:17–18
Do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,
- Proverbs 24:17–18
Through
Proverbs 14:31Whoever oppresses the poor taunts their Maker, but whoever is kind to the needy honors Him.
it leads to
- Proverbs 22:2
The rich and the poor have this in common: The LORD is Maker of them all.
- Proverbs 22:16
Oppressing the poor to enrich oneself or giving gifts to the rich will surely lead to poverty.
- Proverbs 22:2
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); Ambrose of Milan, Letters 61-70; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 17:5; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.