Christian Standard Bible
Proverbs 31:8
8Speak up for those who have no voice, for the justice of all who are dispossessed.
Proverbs 31:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Open thy mouth for the dumb in the cause of all such as are appointed to destruction.
- New International Version (NIV)Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Open your mouth for the speechless, In the cause of all who are appointed to die.
Context of Proverbs 31:8
6Give beer to one who is dying and wine to one whose life is bitter. 7Let him drink so that he can forget his poverty and remember his trouble no more. Speak up for those who have no voice, for the justice of all who are dispossessed. 9Speak up, judge righteously, and defend the cause of the oppressed and needy. 10Who can find a wife of noble character? She is far more precious than jewels.
Read all of Proverbs 31Proverbs 31:8 word by word
פְּתַח־פִּ֥יךָ לְאִלֵּ֑ם אֶל־דִּ֝֗ין כָּל־בְּנֵ֥י חֲלֽוֹף׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 31:8
- Proverbs 24:7Wisdom is inaccessible to a fool; he does not open his mouth at the city gate.
- 1 Samuel 19:4Jonathan spoke well of David to his father, Saul. He said to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David. He hasn’t sinned against you; in fact, his actions have been a great advantage to you.
- 1 Samuel 20:32Jonathan answered his father back, “Why is he to be killed? What has he done?”
- 1 Samuel 22:14Ahimelech replied to the king, “Who among all your servants is as faithful as David? He is the king’s son-in-law, captain of your bodyguard, and honored in your house.
- Esther 4:13Mordecai told the messenger to reply to Esther, “Don’t think that you will escape the fate of all the Jews because you are in the king’s palace.
- Job 29:9City officials stopped talking and covered their mouths with their hands.
- Psalms 82:3Provide justice for the needy and the fatherless; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.
- Jeremiah 26:16Then the officials and all the people told the priests and prophets, “This man doesn’t deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God!”
- Jeremiah 38:7But Ebed-melech, a Cushite court official in the king’s palace, heard Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Benjamin Gate,
- John 7:51“Our law doesn’t judge a man before it hears from him and knows what he’s doing, does it?”
- Psalms 79:11Let the groans of the prisoners reach you; according to your great power, preserve those condemned to die.
Commentaries on Proverbs 31:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8Open thy mouth for the dumb - For such accused persons as have no counsellors, and cannot plead for themselves. Are appointed to destruction - חלוף בני beney chaloph, variously translated, children of passage - indigent travelers; children of desolation - those who have no possessions, or orphans. I believe it either signifies those who are strangers, and are travelling from place to place, or those who are ready to perish in consequence of want or…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8In contrast with the two besetting sins of Eastern monarchs stands their one great duty, to give help to those who had no other helper. Such as are appointed to destruction - literally, “children of bereavement,” with the sense, either, as in the text, of those “destined to be bereaved of life or goods,” or of “bereaved or fatherless children.”Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8-9Instead of drinking wine (Proverbs 31:4–7), the king should defend those who cannot protect themselves.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-93-9. Succinct but solemn warnings against vices to which kings are peculiarly tempted, as carnal pleasures and oppressive and unrighteous government are used to sustain sensual indulgence. strength--mental and bodily resources for health and comfort. thy ways--or course of life. to that ... kings--literally, "to the destroying of kings," avoid destructive pleasures (compare Pr 5:9; 7:22, 27; Ho 4:11).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 31:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 31
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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