New International Version
Proverbs 17:12
12Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool bent on folly.
Proverbs 17:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.
- New Living Translation (NLT)It is safer to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than to confront a fool caught in foolishness.
Context of Proverbs 17:12
10A rebuke impresses a discerning person more than a hundred lashes a fool. 11Evildoers foster rebellion against God; the messenger of death will be sent against them. Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool bent on folly. 13Evil will never leave the house of one who pays back evil for good. 14Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.
Read all of Proverbs 17Proverbs 17:12 word by word
פָּג֬וֹשׁ דֹּ֣ב שַׁכּ֣וּל בְּאִ֑ישׁ וְאַל־כְּ֝סִ֗יל בְּאִוַּלְתּֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 17:12
- Proverbs 28:15Like a roaring lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over a helpless people.
- 2 Samuel 17:8You know your father and his men; they are fighters, and as fierce as a wild bear robbed of her cubs. Besides, your father is an experienced fighter; he will not spend the night with the troops.
- 2 Kings 2:24He turned around, looked at them and called down a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys.
- Hosea 13:8Like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and rip them open; like a lion I will devour them— a wild animal will tear them apart.
- Proverbs 27:3Stone is heavy and sand a burden, but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.
- Matthew 2:16When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.
Commentaries on Proverbs 17:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Let a bear robbed of her whelps - At which times such animals are peculiarly fierce. See the note on 2 Samuel 17:8.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12The large brown bear of Syria, in her rage at the loss of her whelps, was to the Israelites the strongest type of brute ferocity. Compare 2 Samuel 17:8; 2 Kings 2:24.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12Verse 12 Let us watch over our own passions, and avoid the company of furious men.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12This saying warns against teaching fools. A fool stuck in foolishness may respond with anger and violence.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. They are less rational in anger than wild beasts.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 17:12
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 17
- 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
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