Proverbs 21:13
in Proverbs 21Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too shall cry out and receive no answer.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, He also shall cry, but shall not be heard.
KJV
Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.
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This verse in Proverbs 21
Commentary
8 notes on this verseBenefactions to the needy, financed by unjust gains, are not acceptable with God. Even one who refrains from committing injustices, and yet does not share the goods he possesses with anyone, is not deserving of praise.… If you will make an offering to God from the fruits of injustice and rapine, it would be better not to possess such wealth and not to make an offering.
This site's exposition
When a mocker is punished
on Proverbs 21:11-13
When a mocker is punished, "the simple gain wisdom," public justice teaching by example a lesson the onlooker learns without paying the mocker's price. Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor "shall cry out and receive no answer," the punishment fitted exactly to the failure.
This site's exposition
shuts his ears to the cry
Adam Clarke recalls the priest and Levite who passed by. The man who shuts his ear to the poor, he warns, will find the ear of God shut to his own cry. Basil of Caesarea adds that keeping one's goods from the needy earns no praise.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
Do you not agree that poverty, as I said, is more cruel than any beast of prey? Therefore you must aid those who are fallen under it. Incline your ear to the poor and listen to them, as it is written: "For he who stops his ears that he may not hear the feeble shall also cry, and there shall be none to listen." Give so that you may receive; hear so that you may be heard; sow the little you have so that you may reap much. Besides, the pleasure of the body is short and temporary and ends in rottenness. But almsgiving and charity to the poor crown those who practice them with glory from God and lead to that incorruptible happiness which Christ bestows on those who love him.
He will not be able to merit the mercy of God who himself has not been merciful, nor will [he] gain any request from the divine love by his prayers who has not been humane toward the prayer of the poor.
The Medieval Church1 voice
He who stops his ear to the cry of the poor, etc. This sentence should be taken generally, and not only for the needy or physically infirm: for even he who, in the face of others' crimes, prefers to hold the judgment of a judge …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor,.... For want of bread; or, "of the weak", as the Septuagint and other versions; for want of help and protection, when in the greatest distress; and, with the most pressing importunity, entreats his assistance, and yet refuses to hear him out: or, if he does, will not relieve him, which is all one as if he heard him not, or denied him a hearing; he also shall cry himself; the Targum and Syriac version add, "unto God".
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Whoso stoppeth his ears - See the conduct of the priest and Levite to the man who fell among thieves; and let every man learn from this, that he who shuts his ear against the cry of the poor, shall have the ear of God shut against his cry. The words are quite plain; there is no difficulty here.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
The Righteous One considers The Righteous One of the world sets His heart to destroy the house of the wicked, e.g. the remembrance of Amalek.
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. 4 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
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אֹטֵ֣ם | ʾotem | [one who] shuts | H331 → | |
| אָ֭זְנוֹ | ʾazeno | ear his | H241 → | 187 times |
| מִזַּעֲקַת־ | mizaakat- | from [the] cry of | H2201 → | |
| דָּ֑ל | dal | [the] poor | H1800 → | 47 times |
| גַּֽם־ | gam- | also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| ה֥וּא | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| יִ֝קְרָ֗א | yikra' | he will call out | H7121 → | 733 times |
| וְלֹ֣א | velo' | and not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יֵעָנֶֽה׃ | yeaneh | he will be answered | H6030 → | 331 times |
אֹטֵ֣ם[one who] shuts
ʾotemH331 →
אָ֭זְנוֹear his
ʾazenoH241 →187 times
מִזַּעֲקַת־from [the] cry of
mizaakat-H2201 →
דָּ֑ל[the] poor
dalH1800 →47 times
גַּֽם־also
gam-H1571 →769 times
ה֥וּאhe
hu'H1931 →1879 times
יִ֝קְרָ֗אhe will call out
yikra'H7121 →733 times
וְלֹ֣אand not
velo'H3808 →5168 times
יֵעָנֶֽה׃he will be answered
yeanehH6030 →331 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
Matthew 6:14For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
it leads to
- Ephesians 4:32
Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.
- James 2:13
For judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Mark 11:25
And when you stand to pray, if you hold anything against another, forgive it, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your trespasses as well.”
- Colossians 3:13
Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
- Matthew 7:2
For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
- Ephesians 4:32
Through
Matthew 7:2For with the same judgment you pronounce, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
it leads to
- Mark 4:24
He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and even more will be added to you.
- Obadiah 1:15
For the Day of the LORD is near for all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your recompense will return upon your own head.
- Luke 6:38
Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured…
- Mark 4:24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Basil of Caesarea, ON MERCY AND JUSTICE; Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Cyprian, Treatise VIII. On Works and Alms 5; Cyril of Alexandria, COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILY 103; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.