Proverbs 26:20
in Proverbs 26Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, a conflict ceases.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
For lack of wood the fire goeth out; And where there is no whisperer, contention ceaseth.
KJV
Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth.
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This verse in Proverbs 26
Commentary
4 notes on this verseWhere no wood is, there the fire goeth out - The tale-receiver and the tale-bearer are the agents of discord. If none received the slander in the first instance, it could not be propagated. Hence our proverb, “The receiver is as bad as the thief.” And our laws treat them equally; for the receiver of stolen goods, knowing them to be stolen, is hanged, as well as he who stole them.
This site's exposition
Like one who grabs a dog by the ears
on Proverbs 26:17-22
A passerby who meddles in a quarrel not his own has grabbed a dog by the ears, safe neither holding on nor letting go. The man who deceives his neighbor and calls it a joke is a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows. Strife dies when no one feeds it.
This site's exposition
Without wood, a fire goes out
Adam Clarke names both the one who tells tales and the one who receives them as agents of discord. And he cites the saying that the receiver is as bad as the thief. Without wood the fire goes out, and without gossip the conflict ceases.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out,....
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בְּאֶ֣פֶס | beefes | with not | H657 → | 44 times |
| עֵ֭צִים | ʾetzim | wood<s> | H6086 → | 328 times |
| תִּכְבֶּה־ | tikhbeh- | it is extinguished | H3518 → | |
| אֵ֑שׁ | ʾesh | a fire | H784 → | 378 times |
| וּבְאֵ֥ין | uveein | and with not | H369 → | 789 times |
| נִ֝רְגָּ֗ן | nirgan | a slanderer | H7279 → | 7 times |
| יִשְׁתֹּ֥ק | yishtok | it becomes quiet | H8367 → | |
| מָדֽוֹן׃ | madon | strife | H4066 → | 10 times |
בְּאֶ֣פֶסwith not
beefesH657 →44 times
עֵ֭צִיםwood<s>
ʾetzimH6086 →328 times
תִּכְבֶּה־it is extinguished
tikhbeh-H3518 →
אֵ֑שׁa fire
ʾeshH784 →378 times
וּבְאֵ֥יןand with not
uveeinH369 →789 times
נִ֝רְגָּ֗ןa slanderer
nirganH7279 →7 times
יִשְׁתֹּ֥קit becomes quiet
yishtokH8367 →
מָדֽוֹן׃strife
madonH4066 →10 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
James 3:6The tongue also is a fire, a world of wickedness among the parts of the body. It pollutes the whole person, sets the course of his life on fire, and is itself set on…
it leads to
- Psalms 120:2–3
Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips and a deceitful tongue.
- Proverbs 16:27
A worthless man digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.
- Mark 7:15
Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him; but the things that come out of a man, these are what defile him.”
- Matthew 15:11–20
A man is not defiled by what enters his mouth, but by what comes out of it.”
- Proverbs 15:1
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
- Psalms 120:2–3
Through
Proverbs 26:22The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.
it leads to
- Proverbs 18:8
The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 18:8
Through
Proverbs 16:28A perverse man spreads dissension, and a gossip divides close friends.
it leads to
- Proverbs 17:9
Whoever conceals an offense promotes love, but he who brings it up separates friends.
- Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger calms dispute.
- Proverbs 17:9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
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On this verse
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).