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

3Do not desire his delicacies, For it is deceptive food. 4Do not weary yourself to gain wealth; Stop dwelling on it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings Like an eagle that flies toward the heavens. 6Do not eat the bread of a selfish person; Or desire his delicacies; 7For as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, “Eat and drink!” But his heart is not with you.

Proverbs 23:5 word by word

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

• When you setעוּף‛ûph · to flyH5774
• your eyesעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eyeH5869
• on it, it isאַ֫יִן'ayin · nothingH369
• certainlyעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
• itself wingsכָּנָףkânâph · wingH3671
• Like an eagleנֶשֶׁרnesher · eagleH5404
• the heavensשָׁמַיִםshâmayim shâmeh · heavenH8064

Cross-references for Proverbs 23:5

• Psalms 119:36Incline my heart to Your testimonies, And not to dishonest gain.
• Jeremiah 22:17“But your eyes and your heart Are intent only upon your own dishonest gain, And on shedding innocent blood, And on practicing oppression and extortion.”
• 1 John 2:16For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
• Genesis 42:3So ten of Joseph’s brothers went down to buy grain from Egypt.
• Genesis 1:2And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
• Genesis 12:8Then he proceeded from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord.
• Isaiah 55:2Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight yourself in abundance.
• 1 Corinthians 7:29But this I say, brothers, the time has been shortened, so that from now on those who have wives should be as though they had none;
• Proverbs 27:24For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations.
• Job 1:14a messenger came to Job and said, “The oxen were plowing and the female donkeys feeding beside them,
• Psalms 39:6Certainly every person walks around as a fleeting shadow; They certainly make an uproar for nothing; He amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.
• Ecclesiastes 5:13There is a sickening evil which I have seen under the sun: wealth being hoarded by its owner to his detriment.
• Matthew 6:19“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
• 1 Timothy 6:17Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to set their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.
• James 5:1Come now, you rich people, weep and howl for your miseries which 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