New International Version
Proverbs 9:17
17“Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!”
Proverbs 9:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant."
- New King James Version (NKJV)“Stolen water is sweet, And bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)“Stolen water is refreshing; food eaten in secret tastes the best!”
Context of Proverbs 9:17
15calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way, 16“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says, “Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” 18But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.
Read all of Proverbs 9Proverbs 9:17 word by word
מַֽיִם־גְּנוּבִ֥ים יִמְתָּ֑קוּ וְלֶ֖חֶם סְתָרִ֣ים יִנְעָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 9:17
- Proverbs 20:17Food gained by fraud tastes sweet, but one ends up with a mouth full of gravel.
- Proverbs 23:31Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly!
- Genesis 3:6When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.
- Romans 7:8But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead.
- James 1:14but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.
- Proverbs 7:18Come, let’s drink deeply of love till morning; let’s enjoy ourselves with love!
- Proverbs 30:20“This is the way of an adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth and says, ‘I’ve done nothing wrong.’
- 2 Kings 5:24When Gehazi came to the hill, he took the things from the servants and put them away in the house. He sent the men away and they left.
- Ephesians 5:12It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
Commentaries on Proverbs 9:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Stolen waters are sweet - I suppose this to be a proverbial mode of expression, importing that illicit pleasures are sweeter than those which are legal The meaning is easy to be discerned; and the conduct of multitudes shows that they are ruled by this adage. On it are built all the adulterous intercourses in the land.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17The besetting sin of all times and countries, the one great proof of the inherent corruption of man‘s nature. Pleasures are attractive because they are forbidden (compare Romans 7:7).Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-18Verses 13-18 How diligent the tempter is, to seduce unwary souls into sin! Carnal, sensual pleasure, stupifies conscience, and puts out the sparks of conviction. This tempter has no solid reason to offer; and where she gets dominion in a soul, all knowledge of holy things is lost and forgotten. She is very violent and pressing. We need to seek and pray for true wisdom, for Satan has many ways to withdraw our souls from Christ. Not only worldly lusts and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17Just like Wisdom, Folly has prepared a banquet for her guests (see Proverbs 9:2–5). However, this meal is deceitful and immoral.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. The language of a proverb, meaning that forbidden delights are sweet and pleasant, as fruits of risk and danger.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 9:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 9
- 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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