Proverbs 13:23

Proverbs 13:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Much food is in the tillage of the poor: but there is that is destroyed for want of judgment.
• New International Version (NIV)An unplowed field produces food for the poor, but injustice sweeps it away.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The fallow ground of the poor would yield much food, but it is swept away through injustice.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Much food is in the fallow ground of the poor, And for lack of justice there is waste.

Context of Proverbs 13:23

21Trouble chases sinners, while blessings reward the righteous. 22Good people leave an inheritance to their grandchildren, but the sinner’s wealth passes to the godly. A poor person’s farm may produce much food, but injustice sweeps it all away. 24Those who spare the rod of discipline hate their children. Those who love their children care enough to discipline them. 25The godly eat to their hearts’ content, but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.

Proverbs 13:23 word by word

רָב־אֹ֭כֶל נִ֣יר רָאשִׁ֑ים וְיֵ֥שׁ נִ֝סְפֶּ֗ה בְּלֹ֣א מִשְׁפָּֽט׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Muchרֹבrôb · abundanceH7230
• foodאֹ֫כֶל'ôkel · foodH400
• the tillageנִירnîyr nir · fallow groundH5215
• of the poorרוּשׁrûsh · be poorH7326
• of the poorרֹאשׁrô'sh · headH7218
• but there isיֵשׁyêsh · thereH3426
• destroyedסָפָהsâphâh · to snatchH5595
• for wantלֹאlô' lô' lôh · notH3808
• of judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justiceH4941

Cross-references for Proverbs 13:23

• Proverbs 12:11A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies has no sense.
• Proverbs 27:18As workers who tend a fig tree are allowed to eat the fruit, so workers who protect their employer’s interests will be rewarded.
• Proverbs 28:19A hard worker has plenty of food, but a person who chases fantasies ends up in poverty.
• Ecclesiastes 5:9Even the king milks the land for his own profit!
• Proverbs 6:6Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise!
• Proverbs 11:5The godly are directed by honesty; the wicked fall beneath their load of sin.
• Psalms 112:5Good comes to those who lend money generously and conduct their business fairly.
• Ecclesiastes 8:5Those who obey him will not be punished. Those who are wise will find a time and a way to do what is right,
• Jeremiah 8:7Even the stork that flies across the sky knows the time of her migration, as do the turtledove, the swallow, and the crane. They all return at the proper time each year. But not my people! They do not know the Lord’s laws.

Commentaries on Proverbs 13:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23That is destroyed for want of judgment - O, how much of the poverty of the poor arises from their own want of management! They have little or no economy, and no foresight. When they get any thing, they speedily spend it; and a feast and a famine make the chief varieties of their life.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23The contrast is the ever recurring one between honest poverty and dishonest wealth. “The new-plowed field of the poor is much food, but there are those, who, though rich, perish through their disregard of right.”Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23Verse 23 The poor, yet industrious, thrive, though in a homely manner, while those who have great riches are often brought to poverty for want of judgment.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23Hard work does not always lead to success (see Proverbs 10:426; 12:11; 13:4) because injustice exists in the world.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. The laboring poor prosper more than those who injudiciously or wickedly strive, by fraud and violence, to supersede the necessity of lawful labor.Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 13:23

• Industry
• Poor

In the dictionaries

• Accomplish
• Advised
• Companion
• Defer
• Folly
• Hate
• Poetry
• Transgressor
• Wise
• Proverb

Commentaries on Proverbs 13

• 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