Amplified Bible
Proverbs 4:17
17For they eat the bread of wickedness And drink the wine of violence.
Proverbs 4:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
- New International Version (NIV)They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
- New King James Version (NKJV)For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.
Context of Proverbs 4:17
15Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on. 16For the wicked cannot sleep unless they do evil; And they are deprived of sleep unless they make someone stumble and fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness And drink the wine of violence. 18But the path of the just (righteous) is like the light of dawn, That shines brighter and brighter until [it reaches its full strength and glory in] the perfect day. 19The way of the wicked is like [deep] darkness; They do not know over what they stumble.
Read all of Proverbs 4Proverbs 4:17 word by word
כִּ֣י לָ֭חֲמוּ לֶ֣חֶם רֶ֑שַׁע וְיֵ֖ין חֲמָסִ֣ים יִשְׁתּֽוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 4:17
- Proverbs 9:17“Stolen waters (pleasures) are sweet [because they are forbidden]; And bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
- Proverbs 20:17Food gained by deceit is sweet to a man, But afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel [just as sin may be sweet at first, but later its consequences bring despair].
- Job 24:5Behold, as wild donkeys in the desert, The poor go to their work, diligently seeking food; As bread for their children in the desert.
- Psalms 14:4Have all the workers of wickedness and injustice no knowledge, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call upon the Lord?
- Jeremiah 5:26For wicked men are found among My people, They watch like fowlers who lie in wait; They set a trap, They catch men.
- Ezekiel 22:25There is a conspiracy of her [false] prophets in her midst, like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have devoured [human] life; they have taken [in their greed] treasure and precious things; they have made many widows among her.
- Amos 8:4Hear this, you who trample down the needy, and do away with the poor of the land,
- Micah 3:5Thus says the Lord concerning the [false] prophets who lead my people astray; When they have something good to bite with their teeth, They call out, “Peace,” But against the one who gives them nothing to eat, They declare a holy war.
- Micah 6:12For the rich men of the city are full of violence [of every kind]; Her inhabitants speak lies And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
- Zephaniah 3:3Her officials within her are roaring lions; Her judges are [as hungry as] the wolves at evening, They leave nothing for the morning.
- Matthew 23:14[Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you swallow up widows’ houses, and to cover it up you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.]
- James 5:4Look! The wages that you have [fraudulently] withheld from the laborers who have mowed your fields are crying out [against you for vengeance]; and the cries of the harvesters have come to the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth.
Commentaries on Proverbs 4:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17For they eat the bread of wickedness - By privately stealing. And drink the wine of violence - By highway robbery.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4-20Verses 4-20 The counsel which has come to him, in substance, from his father. Compare it with 2 Samuel 23:2 etc.; 1 Chronicles 28:9; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Psalm 15:1-5; Psalm 24:1-10; Proverbs 4:7 Or, “The beginning of wisdom is - get wisdom.” To seek is to find, to desire is to obtain. Proverbs 4:12 The ever-recurring parable of the journey of life. In the way of wisdom the path is clear and open, obstacles disappear; in the quickest activity (“when thou…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-27Verses 14-27 The way of evil men may seem pleasant, and the nearest way to compass some end; but it is an evil way, and will end ill; if thou love thy God and thy soul, avoid it. It is not said, Keep at a due distance, but at a great distance; never think you can get far enough from it. The way of the righteous is light; Christ is their Way, and he is the Light. The saints will not be perfect till they reach heaven, but there they shall shine as the sun…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17To eat wickedness and drink violence means these traits are central to someone's life. Just as we eat and drink to live, evil people sustain themselves by doing evil acts.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-1716-17. The reason is found in the character of sinners, whose zeal to do evil is forcibly depicted (Pr 6:4; Psa 36:5). They live by flagrant vices (Pr 1:13). Some prefer to render, "Their bread is wickedness, their drink violence" (compare Job 15:16; 34:7).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 4:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 4
- 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
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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