New King James Version
Proverbs 16:18
18Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.
Proverbs 16:18 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
- New International Version (NIV)Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall.
Context of Proverbs 16:18
16How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. 17The highway of the upright is to depart from evil; He who keeps his way preserves his soul. Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. 19Better to be of a humble spirit with the lowly, Than to divide the spoil with the proud. 20He who heeds the word wisely will find good, And whoever trusts in the Lord, happy is he.
Read all of Proverbs 16Proverbs 16:18 word by word
לִפְנֵי־שֶׁ֥בֶר גָּא֑וֹן וְלִפְנֵ֥י כִ֝שָּׁל֗וֹן גֹּ֣בַהּ רֽוּחַ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 16:18
- Proverbs 11:2When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom.
- Proverbs 17:19He who loves transgression loves strife, And he who exalts his gate seeks destruction.
- Proverbs 18:12Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.
- Proverbs 29:23A man’s pride will bring him low, But the humble in spirit will retain honor.
- Esther 3:5When Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay him homage, Haman was filled with wrath.
- Esther 6:6So Haman came in, and the king asked him, “What shall be done for the man whom the king delights to honor?” Now Haman thought in his heart, “Whom would the king delight to honor more than me?”
- Esther 7:10So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s wrath subsided.
- Isaiah 2:11The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, The haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
- Isaiah 37:10“Thus you shall speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: ‘Do not let your God in whom you trust deceive you, saying, “Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”
- Daniel 4:30The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?”
- Daniel 5:22“But you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, although you knew all this.
- Obadiah 1:3The pride of your heart has deceived you, You who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Whose habitation is high; You who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’
- Matthew 26:33Peter answered and said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.”
- Romans 11:20Well said. Because of unbelief they were broken off, and you stand by faith. Do not be haughty, but fear.
- 1 Timothy 3:6not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.
Commentaries on Proverbs 16:18
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Pride goeth before destruction - Here pride is personified: it walks along, and has destruction in its train. And a haughty spirit before a fall - Another personification. A haughty spirit marches on, and ruin comes after. In this verse we find the following Masoretic note in most Hebrew Bibles. הספר חצי chatsi hassepher : "the middle of the book." This verse is the middle verse; and the first clause makes the middle of the words of the book of Proverbs.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18Verse 18 When men defy God's judgments, and think themselves far from them, it is a sign they are at the door. Let us not fear the pride of others, but fear pride in ourselves.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18Those who resist God and rely on their own strength (Proverbs 16:5) are acting foolishly and harming themselves. Without God's help, no one has enough resources for life.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 18-1918-19. (Compare Pr 15:33). Haughtiness and pride imply self-confidence which produces carelessness, and hence a fall--literally, "sliding."Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 16:18
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 King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries