Amplified Bible
Proverbs 23:34
34And you will be [as unsteady] as one who lies down in the middle of the sea, And [as vulnerable to disaster] as one who lies down on the top of a ship’s mast, saying,
Proverbs 23:34 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
- New International Version (NIV)You will be like one sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging.
- English Standard Version (ESV)You will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, like one who lies on the top of a mast.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:
Context of Proverbs 23:34
32At the last it bites like a serpent And stings like a viper. 33Your [drunken] eyes will see strange things And your mind will utter perverse things [untrue things, twisted things]. And you will be [as unsteady] as one who lies down in the middle of the sea, And [as vulnerable to disaster] as one who lies down on the top of a ship’s mast, saying, 35“They struck me, but I was not hurt! They beat me, but I did not feel it! When will I wake up? I will seek more wine.”
Read all of Proverbs 23Proverbs 23:34 word by word
וְ֭הָיִיתָ כְּשֹׁכֵ֣ב בְּלֶב־יָ֑ם וּ֝כְשֹׁכֵ֗ב בְּרֹ֣אשׁ חִבֵּֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 23:34
- 1 Samuel 25:33And blessed be your discretion and discernment, and blessed be you, who has kept me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself by my own hand.
- 1 Samuel 30:16When he brought David down, the Amalekites had disbanded and spread over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.
- 2 Samuel 13:28Now Absalom commanded his servants, “Notice carefully, when Amnon’s heart is joyous with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon,’ then kill him. Do not be afraid; have I not commanded you myself [and in doing so have I not taken full responsibility for his death]? Be courageous and brave.”
- 1 Kings 16:9His servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against Elah. Now Elah was in Tirzah, getting drunk in the house of Arza, who was in charge of the [king’s] household in Tirzah.
- 1 Kings 20:16They went out at noon, while Ben-hadad was getting drunk in the temporary shelters, he and the thirty-two kings who were helping him.
- Joel 1:5Awake [from your intoxication], you drunkards, and weep; Wail, all you drinkers of wine, Because of the [fresh] sweet wine That is cut off from your mouth.
- Matthew 24:38For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the [very] day when Noah entered the ark,
- Luke 17:27the people were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, [they were indifferent to God] until the day that Noah went into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.
- Luke 21:34“But be on guard, so that your hearts are not weighed down and depressed with the giddiness of debauchery and the nausea of self-indulgence and the worldly worries of life, and then that day [when the Messiah returns] will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
- 1 Thessalonians 5:2For you yourselves know perfectly well that the day of the [return of the] Lord is coming just as a thief [comes unexpectedly and suddenly] in the night.
- Exodus 15:8With the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up, The flowing waters stood up like a mound; The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.
Commentaries on Proverbs 23:34
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 34Lieth down in the midst of the sea - He is utterly regardless of life; which is expressed very forcibly by one in a state of intoxication ascending the shrouds, clasping the mast-head, and there falling asleep; whence, in a few moments, he must either fall down upon the deck and be dashed to pieces, or fall into the sea and be drowned. Reader, if thou be a man given to this appetite, put a knife to thy throat.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-35Verses 15-35 Another continuous exhortation rather than a collection of maxims. Proverbs 23:16 The teacher rejoices when the disciple‘s heart Proverbs 23:15 receives wisdom, and yet more when his lips can utter it. Reins - See Job 19:27 note. Proverbs 23:17 Envy sinners - Compare in Psalm 37:1; Psalm 73:3; the feeling which looks half-longingly at the prosperity of evil doers. Some connect the verb “envy” with the second clause, “envy not sinners, but…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 29-35Verses 29-35 Solomon warns against drunkenness. Those that would be kept from sin, must keep from all the beginnings of it, and fear coming within reach of its allurements. Foresee the punishment, what it will at last end in, if repentance prevent not. It makes men quarrel. Drunkards wilfully make woe and sorrow for themselves. It makes men impure and insolent. The tongue grows unruly; the heart utters things contrary to reason, religion, and common…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 29-35Saying 18: This saying highlights the foolishness of someone who drinks too much alcohol (see Proverbs 20:1).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 26-3526-35. A solemn warning against whoredom and drunkenness (Ho 4:11). give me--This is the address of that divine wisdom so often presented (Pr 8:1; 9:3, &c.). heart--confidence. observe--keep. my ways--such as I teach you (Pr 3:17; 9:6).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 23:34
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 23
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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