New International Version
Proverbs 10:4
4Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.
Proverbs 10:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
- English Standard Version (ESV)A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
- New King James Version (NKJV)He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the diligent makes rich.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Lazy people are soon poor; hard workers get rich.
Context of Proverbs 10:4
2Ill-gotten treasures have no lasting value, but righteousness delivers from death. 3The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked. Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth. 5He who gathers crops in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son. 6Blessings crown the head of the righteous, but violence overwhelms the mouth of the wicked.
Read all of Proverbs 10Proverbs 10:4 word by word
רָ֗אשׁ עֹשֶׂ֥ה כַף־רְמִיָּ֑ה וְיַ֖ד חָרוּצִ֣ים תַּעֲשִֽׁיר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 10:4
- Proverbs 6:6Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!
- Proverbs 11:24One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
- Proverbs 12:24Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in forced labor.
- Proverbs 19:15Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless go hungry.
- Proverbs 20:4Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.
- Proverbs 24:30I went past the field of a sluggard, past the vineyard of someone who has no sense;
- Ecclesiastes 10:18Through laziness, the rafters sag; because of idle hands, the house leaks.
- John 6:27Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”
- Hebrews 6:11We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized.
- 2 Peter 1:5For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
- Proverbs 13:4A sluggard’s appetite is never filled, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.
- Proverbs 21:5The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.
- 1 Corinthians 15:58Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Commentaries on Proverbs 10:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4He becometh poor - God has ordered, in the course of his providence, that he who will not work shall not eat. And he always blesses the work of the industrious man.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Slack - The word is elsewhere translated as “deceitful” Job 13:7; Psalm 120:2-3; Hosea 7:16; Jeremiah 48:10. The two thoughts run easily into each other.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4Verse 4 Those who are fervent in spirit, serving the Lord, are likely to be rich in faith, and rich in good works.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-5Lazy people make unwise choices, but hard workers make wise decisions (see also Proverbs 10:26; 26:13–16).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. slack--literally, "deceitful," failing of its purpose (compare Ho 7:16). maketh rich--(compare Pr 10:22).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 10:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 10
- 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
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