New King James Version
Proverbs 16:2
2All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the spirits.
Proverbs 16:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the Lord weigheth the spirits.
- New International Version (NIV)All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.
- English Standard Version (ESV)All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirit.
- New Living Translation (NLT)People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives.
Context of Proverbs 16:2
1The preparations of the heart belong to man, But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the spirits. 3Commit your works to the Lord, And your thoughts will be established. 4The Lord has made all for Himself, Yes, even the wicked for the day of doom.
Read all of Proverbs 16Proverbs 16:2 word by word
כָּֽל־דַּרְכֵי־אִ֭ישׁ זַ֣ךְ בְּעֵינָ֑יו וְתֹכֵ֖ן רוּח֣וֹת יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 16:2
- Proverbs 16:25There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
- Proverbs 21:2Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the hearts.
- Proverbs 30:12There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes, Yet is not washed from its filthiness.
- 1 Samuel 15:13Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord.”
- Psalms 36:2For he flatters himself in his own eyes, When he finds out his iniquity and when he hates.
- Jeremiah 2:22For though you wash yourself with lye, and use much soap, Yet your iniquity is marked before Me,” says the Lord God.
- Luke 18:9Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
- Romans 7:7What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”
- Proverbs 5:21For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, And He ponders all his paths.
- Proverbs 24:12If you say, “Surely we did not know this,” Does not He who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does He not know it? And will He not render to each man according to his deeds?
- 1 Samuel 16:7But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
- Isaiah 26:7The way of the just is uprightness; O Most Upright, You weigh the path of the just.
- Jeremiah 17:10I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.
- Daniel 5:27TEKEL: You have been weighed in the balances, and found wanting;
- Luke 16:15And He said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
- Revelation 2:18“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write, ‘These things says the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass:
Commentaries on Proverbs 16:2
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2We are blind to our own faults, do not see ourselves as others see us. There is One who tries not the “ways” only, but the “spirits” Hebrews 4:12: this is the true remedy against self-deceit.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 2Verse 2 Ignorance, pride, and self-flattery render us partial judges respecting our own conduct.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2God's judgment of right and wrong is what matters (see Genesis 8:21; 1 Samuel 13:14; 16:6–7; Luke 16:15). This saying is almost the same in Proverbs 21:2.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. clean--or, "faultless." weigheth--or, "tries," "judges," implying that they are faulty (Pr 21:2; 24:12).Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 16:2
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