Berean Standard 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 from it and pass on by. 16For they cannot sleep unless they do evil; they are deprived of slumber until they make someone fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence. 18The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday. 19But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.
Read all of Proverbs 4Proverbs 4:17 word by word
כִּ֣י לָ֭חֲמוּ לֶ֣חֶם רֶ֑שַׁע וְיֵ֖ין חֲמָסִ֣ים יִשְׁתּֽוּ׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Proverbs 4:17
- Proverbs 9:17“Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is tasty!”
- Proverbs 20:17Food gained by fraud is sweet to a man, but later his mouth is full of gravel.
- Job 24:5Indeed, like wild donkeys in the desert, the poor go to work foraging for food; the wasteland is food for their children.
- Psalms 14:4Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the LORD.
- Jeremiah 5:26For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.
- Ezekiel 22:25The conspiracy of the princes in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing its prey. They devour the people, seize the treasures and precious things, and multiply the widows within her.
- Amos 8:4Hear this, you who trample the needy, who do away with the poor of the land,
- Micah 3:5This is what the LORD says: “As for the prophets who lead My people astray, who proclaim peace while they chew with their teeth, but declare war against one who puts nothing in their mouths:
- Micah 6:12For the wealthy of the city are full of violence, and its residents speak lies; their tongues are deceitful in their mouths.
- Zephaniah 3:3Her princes are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves, leaving nothing for the morning.
- James 5:4Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.
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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