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Proverbs 24:28

in Proverbs 24

Do not testify against your neighbor without cause, and do not deceive with your lips.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Be not a witness against thy neighbor without cause; And deceive not with thy lips.

KJV

Be not a witness against thy neighbour without cause; and deceive not with thy lips.

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This verse in Proverbs 24

Commentary

5 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

Be not a witness - Do not be forward to offer thyself to bear testimony against a neighbor, in a matter which may prejudice him, where the essential claims of justice do not require such interference; and especially do not do this in a spirit of revenge, because he has injured thee before.

This site's exposition

Do not testify against your neighbor

on Proverbs 24:28-29

"Do not testify against your neighbor without cause" forbids false or needless testimony. The next verse forbids the private urge to repay injury with injury. Forbidding the words "I will repay the man according to his work" leaves repayment to a judge or to God.

The record, by era

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Bede

Commentary on Proverbs · Written before 735.

proposed

Do not be a witness without cause against your neighbor, etc. This also pertains to the cultivation of our field, that is, to the pursuit of good action, namely, not to harm an innocent neighbor with false testimony, not to give any sinner the confidence …

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Be not a witness against thy neighbour without cause,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Deceive not with thy lips - Better, wilt thou deceive with thy lips?

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.

  • אַל־may not

    ʾal-H408 →724 times

  • תְּהִ֣יyou be

    tehiH1961 →3559 times

  • עֵד־a witness

    ʾed-H5707 →70 times

  • חִנָּ֣םwithout cause

    chinamH2600 →32 times

  • בְּרֵעֶ֑ךָin neighbor your

    bereekhaH7453 →188 times

  • וַ֝הֲפִתִּ֗יתָand ¿ will you deceive

    vahafititaH6601 →28 times

  • בִּשְׂפָתֶֽיךָ׃with lips your

    bisfateikhaH8193 →176 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.

Ephesians 4:25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.5 worksProverbs 12:17He who speaks the truth declares what is right, but a false witness speaks deceit.4 worksProverbs 25:18Like a club or sword or sharp arrow is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor.3 works1 Kings 21:9–13In the letters she wrote: “Proclaim a fast and give Naboth a seat of honor among the people.3 worksMatthew 26:59–60Now the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were seeking false testimony against Jesus in order to put Him to death.3 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.3 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Judges 16:10Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and lied to me! Now please tell me how you can be tied up.”3 worksLeviticus 6:2“If someone sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in regard to a deposit or security entrusted to him or stolen, or if he extorts his neighbor3 worksProverbs 19:5A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who utters lies will not escape.2 worksJob 2:3Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is blameless and upright, who fears God and shuns evil. He still retains his integrity, even though you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause.”2 worksRevelation 22:15But outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.2 worksPsalms 35:11Hostile witnesses come forward; they make charges I know nothing about.2 worksJohn 15:25But this is to fulfill what is written in their Law: ‘They hated Me without reason.’2 worksExodus 20:16You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.2 worksColossians 3:9Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices,2 works1 Samuel 22:9–10But Doeg the Edomite, who had stationed himself with Saul’s servants, answered: “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelech son of Ahitub at Nob.2 worksProverbs 14:5An honest witness does not deceive, but a dishonest witness pours forth lies.2 worksProverbs 19:9A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who pours out lies will perish.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

    Ephesians 4:25

    Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.

    it leads to

    • Colossians 3:9

      Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices,

    • Zechariah 8:16

      These are the things you must do: Speak truth to one another, render true and sound judgments in your gates,

    • Proverbs 12:22

      Lying lips are detestable to the LORD, but those who deal faithfully are His delight.

    • Romans 12:5

      so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another.

    • Ephesians 4:15

      Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head.

  • Through

    Proverbs 19:5

    A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who utters lies will not escape.

    it leads to

    • Proverbs 21:28

      A lying witness will perish, but the man who listens to truth will speak forever.

    • Proverbs 6:19

      a false witness who gives false testimony, and one who stirs up discord among brothers.

    • Exodus 23:1

      “You shall not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked by being a malicious witness.

Where this verse is studied

On this page

Studies1

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 24 →

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; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Proverbs 24 →