Proverbs 17:21

Proverbs 17:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy.
• New International Version (NIV)To have a fool for a child brings grief; there is no joy for the parent of a godless fool.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He who sires a fool gets himself sorrow, and the father of a fool has no joy.
• New King James Version (NKJV)He who begets a scoffer does so to his sorrow, And the father of a fool has no joy.

Context of Proverbs 17:21

19He loveth transgression that loveth a quarrel; he that maketh high his gate seeketh destruction. 20He that hath a perverse heart findeth no good; and he that shifteth about with his tongue falleth into evil. He that begetteth a fool [doeth it] to his sorrow, and the father of a vile [man] hath no joy. 22A joyful heart promoteth healing; but a broken spirit drieth up the bones. 23A wicked [man] taketh a gift out of the bosom, to pervert the paths of judgment.

Proverbs 17:21 word by word

יֹלֵ֣ד כְּ֭סִיל לְת֣וּגָה ל֑וֹ וְלֹֽא־יִ֝שְׂמַ֗ח אֲבִ֣י נָבָֽל׃Read the interlinear

• foolכְּסִילkesîyl · foolH3684
• fatherאָב'âb · fatherH1

Cross-references for Proverbs 17:21

• Proverbs 17:25A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bore him.
• Proverbs 10:1The Proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father; but a foolish son is the grief of his mother.
• Proverbs 15:20A wise son maketh a glad father; but a foolish man despiseth his mother.
• Proverbs 19:13A foolish son is the calamity of his father; and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
• Genesis 26:34And Esau was forty years old, when he took as wives Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basmath the daughter of Elon the Hittite.
• 1 Samuel 2:32And thou shalt see an oppressor [in my] habitation, amidst all the good that shall be done to Israel; and there shall not be an old man in thy house for ever.
• 1 Samuel 8:3And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted justice.
• 2 Samuel 18:33And the king was much moved, and went up to the upper chamber of the gate, and wept; and as he went, he said thus: O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died in thy stead, O Absalom, my son, my son!
• Proverbs 23:15My son, if thy heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine;
• 2 Corinthians 2:3And I have written this very [letter] [to you], that coming I may not have grief from those from whom I ought to have joy; trusting in you all that my joy is [that] of you all.
• 3 John 1:4I have no greater joy than these things that I hear of my children walking in the truth.

Commentaries on Proverbs 17:21

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21Verse 21 This speaks very plainly what many wise and good men feel very strongly, how grievous it is to have a foolish, wicked child.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. (Compare Pr 23:24). Different words are rendered by "fool," both denoting stupidity and impiety.Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 17:21

• Children

In the dictionaries

• Fine
• Friend
• Glad
• Grief
• Price
• Rule
• Strike
• Fool; Folly
• Proverb
• Proverbs, the Book of

Commentaries on Proverbs 17

• 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