New English Translation
Proverbs 14:21
21The one who despises his neighbor sins, but whoever is kind to the needy is blessed.
Proverbs 14:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)He that despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he.
- New International Version (NIV)It is a sin to despise one’s neighbor, but blessed is the one who is kind to the needy.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Whoever despises his neighbor is a sinner, but blessed is he who is generous to the poor.
- New King James Version (NKJV)He who despises his neighbor sins; But he who has mercy on the poor, happy is he.
Context of Proverbs 14:21
19Those who are evil will bow before those who are good, and the wicked will bow at the gates of the righteous. 20A poor person is disliked even by his neighbors, but those who love the rich are many. The one who despises his neighbor sins, but whoever is kind to the needy is blessed. 22Do not those who devise evil go astray? But those who plan good exhibit faithful covenant love. 23In all hard work there is profit, but merely talking about it only brings poverty.
Read all of Proverbs 14Proverbs 14:21 word by word
בָּז־לְרֵעֵ֥הוּ חוֹטֵ֑א וּמְחוֹנֵ֖ן עֲנָוִ֣ים אַשְׁרָֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 14:21
- Proverbs 11:12The one who denounces his neighbor lacks wisdom, but the one who has discernment keeps silent.
- Proverbs 17:5The one who mocks the poor insults his Creator; whoever rejoices over disaster will not go unpunished.
- Proverbs 18:3When a wicked person arrives, contempt shows up with him, and with shame comes a reproach.
- Job 31:13“If I have disregarded the right of my male servants or my female servants when they disputed with me,
- Job 35:5Gaze at the heavens and see; consider the clouds, which are higher than you!
- Psalms 22:24For he did not despise or detest the suffering of the oppressed; he did not ignore him; when he cried out to him, he responded.
- Luke 18:9Jesus also told this parable to some who were confident that they were righteous and looked down on everyone else.
- James 2:5Listen, my dear brothers and sisters! Did not God choose the poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?
- Proverbs 14:31The one who oppresses the poor insults his Creator, but whoever shows favor to the needy honors him.
- Proverbs 11:24One person is generous and yet grows more wealthy, but another withholds more than he should and comes to poverty.
- Proverbs 19:17The one who is gracious to the poor lends to the Lord, and the Lord will repay him for his good deed.
- Daniel 4:27Therefore, O king, may my advice be pleasing to you. Break away from your sins by doing what is right, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps your prosperity will be prolonged.”
- Matthew 25:34Then the king will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
- Luke 6:30Give to everyone who asks you, and do not ask for your possessions back from the person who takes them away.
- Acts 20:35By all these things, I have shown you that by working in this way we must help the weak, and remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
- Hebrews 6:12so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and perseverance inherit the promises.
Commentaries on Proverbs 14:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21He that despiseth his neighbor sinneth - To despise a man because he has some natural blemish is unjust, cruel, and wicked. He is not the author of his own imperfections; they did not occur through his fault or folly; and if he could, he would not retain them. It is, therefore, unjust and wicked to despise him for what is not his fault, but his misfortune. But he that hath mercy on the poor - Who reproaches no man for his poverty or scanty intellect, but…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21Verse 21 To despise a man for his employment or appearance is a sin.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21blessed is he who shows kindness to the poor: See also Proverbs 3:27–28; 11:24; 28:27; 29:7, 14.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. For such contempt of the poor is contrasted as sinful with the virtuous compassion of the good.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 14:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 14
- 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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