Proverbs 30:22

Proverbs 30:22 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For a servant when he reigneth; and a fool when he is filled with meat;
• New International Version (NIV)a servant who becomes king, a godless fool who gets plenty to eat,
• English Standard Version (ESV)a slave when he becomes king, and a fool when he is filled with food;
• New King James Version (NKJV)For a servant when he reigns, A fool when he is filled with food,

Context of Proverbs 30:22

20An adulterous woman consumes a man, then wipes her mouth and says, “What’s wrong with that?” 21There are three things that make the earth tremble— no, four it cannot endure: a slave who becomes a king, an overbearing fool who prospers, 23a bitter woman who finally gets a husband, a servant girl who supplants her mistress. 24There are four things on earth that are small but unusually wise:

Proverbs 30:22 word by word

תַּֽחַת־עֶ֭בֶד כִּ֣י יִמְל֑וֹךְ וְ֝נָבָ֗ל כִּ֣י יִֽשְׂבַּֽע־לָֽחֶם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For a servantעֶ֫בֶד‛ebed · servant/slaveH5650
• when he reignethמָלַךְmâlak · to reignH4427
• and a foolנָבָלnâbâl · foolishH5036
• when he is filledשָׂבֵעַώâba‛ ώâbêa‛ · to satisfyH7646
• with meatלֶ֫חֶםlechem · foodH3899

Cross-references for Proverbs 30:22

• Proverbs 19:10It isn’t right for a fool to live in luxury or for a slave to rule over princes!
• Proverbs 28:3A poor person who oppresses the poor is like a pounding rain that destroys the crops.
• Ecclesiastes 10:7I have even seen servants riding horseback like princes—and princes walking like servants!
• Isaiah 3:4I will make boys their leaders, and toddlers their rulers.
• 1 Samuel 25:3This man’s name was Nabal, and his wife, Abigail, was a sensible and beautiful woman. But Nabal, a descendant of Caleb, was crude and mean in all his dealings.
• 1 Samuel 30:16So he led David to them, and they found the Amalekites spread out across the fields, eating and drinking and dancing with joy because of the vast amount of plunder they had taken from the Philistines and the land of Judah.

Commentaries on Proverbs 30:22

• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21-23Verses 21-23 Four sorts of persons are very troublesome. Men of low origin and base spirit, who, getting authority, become tyrants. Foolish and violent men indulging in excesses. A woman of a contentious spirit and vicious habits. A servant who has obtained undue influence. Let those whom Providence has advanced from low beginnings, carefully watch against that sin which most easily besets them.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21-23This proverb lists four things that make the earth tremble because they disrupt the natural order. who is filled with food: In the ancient Near East, as in many non-industrialized parts of the world today, having enough food was a sign of prosperity.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 21-2321-23. Pride and cruelty, the undue exaltation of those unfit to hold power, produce those vices which disquiet society (compare Pr 19:10; 28:3).Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 30:22

• Gluttony
• Riddle
• Rulers
• Servant
• Wife
• Women

In the dictionaries

• Agur
• Convenient
• Folk
• Food
• Massa
• Proverbs, the Book of
• Zoology

Commentaries on Proverbs 30

• 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