Proverbs 21:29
in Proverbs 21A wicked man hardens his face, but the upright man makes his way sure.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
A wicked man hardeneth his face; But as for the upright, he establisheth his ways.
KJV
A wicked man hardeneth his face: but as for the upright, he directeth his way.
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This verse in Proverbs 21
Commentary
7 notes on this verseThe impious man insolently stiffens his face, etc. Judas, because he was impious in heart, although reproved by the Lord himself, did not wish to restrain his evil beginnings; but Peter, because he was upright in heart, that is, a lover of uprightness, corrected himself …
This site's exposition
The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable
on Proverbs 21:27-29
"The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable" returns to the ground of verse 3, worship without obedience made worse when brought with ill intent. A lying witness will perish, but the man who listens to truth "will speak forever," true testimony outlasting the false.
This site's exposition
A wicked man hardens his face
Bede sets Judas and Peter side by side. Judas, reproved by the Lord himself, would not restrain his evil course, while Peter, upright in heart, corrected himself. One hardened his face and the other made his way sure.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
A wicked man hardeneth his face,....
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
hardeneth his face--is obstinate. directeth . . . way--considers it, and acts advisedly. Men's best devices and reliances are vain compared with God's, or without His aid (Pr 19:21;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase+unbalanced-parens
He directeth his way - Instead of יכין yachin, he directeth, upwards of fifty of Kennicott’s and De Rossi’s MSS., several ancient editions with some of the versions, read יבין yabin, he understands; and because he understands his way, he is able to direct himself in walking in it.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Directeth - i. e., Makes straight and firm. On one side it is the callousness of guilt; on the other side it is the confidence of integrity.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הֵעֵ֬ז | heez | he makes strong | H5810 → | 11 times |
| אִ֣ישׁ | ʾish | a person | H376 → | 1663 times |
| רָשָׁ֣ע | rasha' | wicked | H7563 → | 263 times |
| בְּפָנָ֑יו | befanav | with face his | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וְ֝יָשָׁ֗ר | veyashar | and an upright [person] | H3477 → | 119 times |
| ה֤וּא׀ | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| יָבִ֬ין | yachin | he considers | H995 → | 170 times |
| דַּרְכּֽוֹ׃ | derakhav | way his | H1870 → | 707 times |
הֵעֵ֬זhe makes strong
heezH5810 →11 times
אִ֣ישׁa person
ʾishH376 →1663 times
רָשָׁ֣עwicked
rasha'H7563 →263 times
בְּפָנָ֑יוwith face his
befanavH6440 →2123 times
וְ֝יָשָׁ֗רand an upright [person]
veyasharH3477 →119 times
ה֤וּא׀he
hu'H1931 →1879 times
יָבִ֬יןhe considers
yachinH995 →170 times
דַּרְכּֽוֹ׃way his
derakhavH1870 →707 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
Haggai 1:7This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Consider carefully your ways.
it leads to
- Psalms 119:59–60
I considered my ways and turned my steps to Your testimonies.
- Haggai 1:5
Now this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Consider carefully your ways.
- Psalms 119:59–60
Through
1 Thessalonians 3:11Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you.
it leads to
- Proverbs 3:5–6
Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
- Matthew 6:32
For the Gentiles strive after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
- Proverbs 3:5–6
Through
Jeremiah 5:3O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain. You finished them off, but they refused to accept discipline. They have made their faces harder than…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 2:30
“I have struck your sons in vain; they accepted no discipline. Your own sword has devoured your prophets like a voracious lion.”
- Jeremiah 7:28
Therefore you must say to them, ‘This is the nation that would not listen to the voice of the LORD their God and would not receive correction. Truth has perished; it has disappeared from…
- Jeremiah 2:30
Through
Jeremiah 8:12Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish…
it leads to
- Jeremiah 3:3
Therefore the showers have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to be ashamed.
- Jeremiah 6:15
Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish…
- Jeremiah 3:3
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; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.