Proverbs 23:5

Proverbs 23:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.
• New International Version (NIV)Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.
• English Standard Version (ESV)When your eyes light on it, it is gone, for suddenly it sprouts wings, flying like an eagle toward heaven.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Will you set your eyes on that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; They fly away like an eagle toward heaven.

Context of Proverbs 23:5

3Be not desirous of his dainties; for they are deceitful food. 4Weary not thyself to become rich; cease from thine own intelligence: wilt thou set thine eyes upon it, it is gone; for indeed it maketh itself wings and it flieth away as an eagle towards the heavens. 6Eat thou not the food of him that hath an evil eye, neither desire thou his dainties. 7For as he thinketh in his soul, so is he. Eat and drink! will he say unto thee; but his heart is not with thee.

Proverbs 23:5 word by word

הֲתָ֤עִיף עֵינֶ֥יךָ בּ֗וֹ וְֽאֵ֫ינֶ֥נּוּ כִּ֤י עָשֹׂ֣ה יַעֲשֶׂה־לּ֣וֹ כְנָפַ֑יִם כְּ֝נֶ֗שֶׁר יָע֥וּף הַשָּׁמָֽיִם׃ פRead the interlinear

• eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869
• wingsכָּנָףkânâph · wingH3671
• eagleנֶשֶׁרnesher · eagleH5404
• heavensשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064

Cross-references for Proverbs 23:5

• Psalms 119:36Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to gain.
• Jeremiah 22:17But thine eyes and thy heart are only on thine extortion, and on the blood of the innocent, to shed it, and on oppression and on violence, to do it.
• 1 John 2:16because all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
• Genesis 42:3And Joseph's ten brethren went down to buy [grain] out of Egypt.
• Genesis 1:2And the earth was waste and empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
• Genesis 12:8And he removed thence towards the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, [having] Bethel toward the west, and Ai toward the east; and there he built an altar to Jehovah, and called on the name of Jehovah.
• Isaiah 55:2Wherefore do ye spend money for [that which is] not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye [that which is] good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.
• 1 Corinthians 7:29But this I say, brethren, the time is straitened. For the rest, that they who have wives, be as not having [any]:
• Proverbs 27:24for wealth is not for ever; and doth the crown [endure] from generation to generation?
• Job 1:14And there came a messenger to Job and said, The oxen were ploughing, and the asses feeding beside them;
• Psalms 39:6Verily, man walketh in a vain show; verily they are disquieted in vain; he heapeth up [riches], and knoweth not who shall gather them.
• Ecclesiastes 5:13There is a grievous evil that I have seen under the sun: riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt;
• Matthew 6:19Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust spoils, and where thieves dig through and steal;
• 1 Timothy 6:17Enjoin on those rich in the present age not to be high-minded, nor to trust on the uncertainty of riches; but in the God who affords us all things richly for [our] enjoyment;
• James 5:1Go to now, ye rich, weep, howling over your miseries that [are] coming upon [you].

Commentaries on Proverbs 23:5

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5Set thine eyes - literally, as in the margin, i. e., “gaze eagerly upon;” and then we get an emphatic parallelism with the words that follow, “they fly away as an eagle toward heaven;” “certainly make themselves wings.”Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-5Verses 4-5 Be not of those that will be rich. The things of this world are not happiness and a portion for a soul; those that hold them ever so fast, cannot hold them always, cannot hold them long.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-5Saying 7: Wealth can be a blessing from God (Proverbs 3:9–10, 15–16; 10:22), but some things in life matter more.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-54-5. (Compare 1Ti 6:9, 10). thine own wisdom--which regards riches intrinsically as a blessing.Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 23:5

• Covetousness
• Riches

In the dictionaries

• Clothe
• Correction
• Dainty
• Desirous
• Drunkard
• Poverty
• Riotous
• Sell
• Wine
• Eagle

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