New English Translation
Proverbs 4:17
17For they eat bread gained from wickedness and drink wine obtained from violence.
Proverbs 4:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.
- New International Version (NIV)They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
- English Standard Version (ESV)For they eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
- New King James Version (NKJV)For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence.
Context of Proverbs 4:17
15Avoid it, do not go on it; turn away from it, and go on. 16For they cannot sleep unless they cause harm; they are robbed of sleep until they make someone stumble. For they eat bread gained from wickedness and drink wine obtained from violence. 18But the path of the righteous is like the bright morning light, growing brighter and brighter until full day. 19The way of the wicked is like gloomy darkness; they do not know what causes them to stumble.
Read all of Proverbs 4Proverbs 4:17 word by word
כִּ֣י לָ֭חֲמוּ לֶ֣חֶם רֶ֑שַׁע וְיֵ֖ין חֲמָסִ֣ים יִשְׁתּֽוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 4:17
- Proverbs 9:17“Stolen waters are sweet, and food obtained in secret is pleasant!”
- Proverbs 20:17Bread gained by deceit tastes sweet to a person, but afterward his mouth will be filled with gravel.
- Job 24:5Like wild donkeys in the desert they go out to their labor, seeking diligently for food; the wasteland provides food for them and for their children.
- Psalms 14:4All those who behave wickedly do not understand – those who devour my people as if they were eating bread, and do not call out to the Lord.
- Jeremiah 5:26“Indeed, there are wicked scoundrels among my people. They lie in wait like bird catchers hiding in ambush. They set deadly traps to catch people.
- Ezekiel 22:25Her princes within her are like a roaring lion tearing its prey; they have devoured lives. They take away riches and valuable things; they have made many women widows within it.
- Amos 8:4Listen to this, you who trample the needy, and do away with the destitute in the land.
- Micah 3:5This is what the Lord says: “The prophets who mislead my people are as good as dead. If someone gives them enough to eat, they offer an oracle of peace. But if someone does not give them food, they are ready to declare war on him.
- Micah 6:12The city’s rich men think nothing of resorting to violence; her inhabitants lie, their tongues speak deceptive words.
- Zephaniah 3:3Her princes are as fierce as roaring lions; her rulers are as hungry as wolves in the desert, who completely devour their prey by morning.
- James 5:4Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
Commentaries on Proverbs 4:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17For they eat the bread of wickedness - By privately stealing. And drink the wine of violence - By highway robbery.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4-20Verses 4-20 The counsel which has come to him, in substance, from his father. Compare it with 2 Samuel 23:2 etc.; 1 Chronicles 28:9; 1 Chronicles 29:17; Psalm 15:1-5; Psalm 24:1-10; Proverbs 4:7 Or, “The beginning of wisdom is - get wisdom.” To seek is to find, to desire is to obtain. Proverbs 4:12 The ever-recurring parable of the journey of life. In the way of wisdom the path is clear and open, obstacles disappear; in the quickest activity (“when thou…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-27Verses 14-27 The way of evil men may seem pleasant, and the nearest way to compass some end; but it is an evil way, and will end ill; if thou love thy God and thy soul, avoid it. It is not said, Keep at a due distance, but at a great distance; never think you can get far enough from it. The way of the righteous is light; Christ is their Way, and he is the Light. The saints will not be perfect till they reach heaven, but there they shall shine as the sun…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17To eat wickedness and drink violence means these traits are central to someone's life. Just as we eat and drink to live, evil people sustain themselves by doing evil acts.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-1716-17. The reason is found in the character of sinners, whose zeal to do evil is forcibly depicted (Pr 6:4; Psa 36:5). They live by flagrant vices (Pr 1:13). Some prefer to render, "Their bread is wickedness, their drink violence" (compare Job 15:16; 34:7).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 4:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 4
- 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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
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