New English Translation
Proverbs 16:27
27A wicked scoundrel digs up evil, and his slander is like a scorching fire.
Proverbs 16:27 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire.
- New International Version (NIV)A scoundrel plots evil, and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.
- English Standard Version (ESV)A worthless man plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.
- New King James Version (NKJV)An ungodly man digs up evil, And it is on his lips like a burning fire.
Context of Proverbs 16:27
25There is a way that seems right to a person, but its end is the way that leads to death. 26A laborer’s appetite works on his behalf, for his hunger urges him to work. A wicked scoundrel digs up evil, and his slander is like a scorching fire. 28A perverse person spreads dissension, and a gossip separates the closest friends. 29A violent person entices his neighbor, and leads him down a path that is terrible.
Read all of Proverbs 16Proverbs 16:27 word by word
אִ֣ישׁ בְּ֭לִיַּעַל כֹּרֶ֣ה רָעָ֑ה וְעַל־שְׂ֝פָת֗וֹ כְּאֵ֣שׁ צָרָֽבֶת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 16:27
- 1 Samuel 25:17Now be aware of this, and see what you can do. For disaster has been planned for our lord and his entire household. He is such a wicked person that no one tells him anything!”
- 2 Samuel 20:1Now a wicked man named Sheba son of Bicri, a Benjaminite, happened to be there. He blew the trumpet and said, “We have no share in David; we have no inheritance in this son of Jesse! Every man go home, O Israel!”
- Proverbs 2:4if you seek it like silver, and search for it like hidden treasure,
- Psalms 17:14Lord, use your power to deliver me from these murderers, from the murderers of this world! They enjoy prosperity; you overwhelm them with the riches they desire. They have many children, and leave their wealth to their offspring.
- Isaiah 5:18Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, who pull sin as with cart ropes.
- Habakkuk 2:13Be sure of this! The Lord who commands armies has decreed: The nations’ efforts will go up in smoke; their exhausting work will be for nothing.
- Psalms 52:2Your tongue carries out your destructive plans; it is as effective as a sharp razor, O deceiver.
- Psalms 57:4I am surrounded by lions; I lie down among those who want to devour me; men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are a sharp sword.
- James 3:6And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence – and is set on fire by hell.
Commentaries on Proverbs 16:27
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 27An ungodly man diggeth up evil - How will the following suit? Effodiuntur opes irritamenta malorum "Wealth, the incitement to all evil, is digged up out the earth." A wicked man labors as much to bring about an evil purpose, as the quarryman does to dig up stones. In his lips - a burning fire - His words are as inflammable, in producing strife and contention among his neighbors, as fire is in igniting dry stubble.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 27-30Verses 27-30 The four verses speak of the same thing, and the well-known opprobrious name, the “man of Belial,” stands at the head as stigmatizing the man who delights in causing the mischief of which they treat. Diggeth up evil - i. e., Digs an evil pit for others to fall into. Compare Psalm 7:15. Proverbs 16:30 The physiognomy of the man of Belial, the half-closed eyes that never look you straight in the face, the restlessness or cunning of which biting…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 27-28Verses 27-28 Ungodly men bestow more pains to do mischief than would be needful to do good. The whisperer separates friends: what a hateful, but how common a character!Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 27-29Scoundrels, troublemakers, and violent people disrupt relationships by causing harm with their actions.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2727. ungodly man--(Compare Pr 6:12). diggeth up evil--labors for it. in his lips ... fire--His words are calumniating (Jas 3:6).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 16:27
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 16
- 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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries