Proverbs 28:21
in Proverbs 28To show partiality is not good, yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
To have respect of persons is not good; Neither that a man should transgress for a piece of bread.
KJV
To have respect of persons is not good: for for a piece of bread that man will transgress.
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This verse in Proverbs 28
Commentary
4 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Dishonest partiality leads men who have enslaved themselves to it to transgress, even when the inducement is altogether disproportionate. A “piece of bread” was proverbial at all times as the most extreme point of poverty (compare the marginal reference).
This site's exposition
A faithful man will abound with blessings
on Proverbs 28:20-22
"A faithful man will abound with blessings, but one eager to be rich will not go unpunished" opens the chapter's clearest teaching on money. Verse 21 names favoritism as a temptation bought cheaply, "for a piece of bread." Verse 22 repeats the warning against haste.
This site's exposition
To show partiality is not good
Albert Barnes says partiality enslaves a man until he will do wrong for a very small inducement. A piece of bread was proverbial for the extreme point of poverty. The smallness of the price is the point.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
To have respect of persons is not good, &c.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הַֽכֵּר־ | haker- | to pay regard to | H5234 → | 49 times |
| פָּנִ֥ים | panim | face | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| לֹא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| ט֑וֹב | tov | [is] good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| וְעַל־ | veal- | and on | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| פַּת־ | pat- | a piece of | H6595 → | 15 times |
| לֶ֝֗חֶם | lechem | bread | H3899 → | 298 times |
| יִפְשַׁע־ | yifsha'- | he will transgress | H6586 → | |
| גָּֽבֶר׃ | gaver | a man | H1397 → | 65 times |
הַֽכֵּר־to pay regard to
haker-H5234 →49 times
פָּנִ֥יםface
panimH6440 →2123 times
לֹא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
ט֑וֹב[is] good
tovH2896 →538 times
וְעַל־and on
veal-H5921 →5755 times
פַּת־a piece of
pat-H6595 →15 times
לֶ֝֗חֶםbread
lechemH3899 →298 times
יִפְשַׁע־he will transgress
yifsha'-H6586 →
גָּֽבֶר׃a man
gaverH1397 →65 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
Exodus 23:8Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous.
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 16:19
Do 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.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 17:23
A wicked man takes a covert bribe to subvert the course of justice.
- Isaiah 5:23
who acquit the guilty for a bribe and deprive the innocent of justice.
- Proverbs 15:27
He who is greedy for unjust gain brings trouble on his household, but he who hates bribes will live.
- Deuteronomy 16:19
Through
Proverbs 18:5Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
it leads to
- Leviticus 19:15
You must not pervert justice; you must not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the rich; you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 82:2
“How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah
- Leviticus 19:15
Through
Micah 7:3Both hands are skilled at evil; the prince and the judge demand a bribe. When the powerful utters his evil desire, they all conspire together.
it leads to
- Micah 3:11
Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets practice divination for money. Yet they lean upon the LORD, saying, “Is not the LORD among us? No disaster…
- Micah 3:11
Through
Proverbs 24:23These also are sayings of the wise: To show partiality in judgment is not good.
it leads to
- Proverbs 18:5
Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
- Proverbs 18:5
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); Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).