New Living Translation
Proverbs 9:8
8So don’t bother correcting mockers; they will only hate you. But correct the wise, and they will love you.
Proverbs 9:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Reprove not a scorner, lest he hate thee: rebuke a wise man, and he will love thee.
- New International Version (NIV)Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.
Context of Proverbs 9:8
6Leave your simple ways behind, and begin to live; learn to use good judgment.” 7Anyone who rebukes a mocker will get an insult in return. Anyone who corrects the wicked will get hurt. So don’t bother correcting mockers; they will only hate you. But correct the wise, and they will love you. 9Instruct the wise, and they will be even wiser. Teach the righteous, and they will learn even more. 10Fear of the Lord is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in good judgment.
Read all of Proverbs 9Proverbs 9:8 word by word
אַל־תּ֣וֹכַח לֵ֭ץ פֶּן־יִשְׂנָאֶ֑ךָּ הוֹכַ֥ח לְ֝חָכָ֗ם וְיֶאֱהָבֶֽךָּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 9:8
- Proverbs 23:9Don’t waste your breath on fools, for they will despise the wisest advice.
- Proverbs 29:1Whoever stubbornly refuses to accept criticism will suddenly be destroyed beyond recovery.
- Numbers 14:6Two of the men who had explored the land, Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, tore their clothing.
- 1 Kings 22:8The king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, “There is one more man who could consult the Lord for us, but I hate him. He never prophesies anything but trouble for me! His name is Micaiah son of Imlah.” Jehoshaphat replied, “That’s not the way a king should talk! Let’s hear what he has to say.”
- Matthew 7:6“Don’t waste what is holy on people who are unholy. Don’t throw your pearls to pigs! They will trample the pearls, then turn and attack you.
- Matthew 15:14so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.”
- Hebrews 4:6So God’s rest is there for people to enter, but those who first heard this good news failed to enter because they disobeyed God.
- Proverbs 13:18If you ignore criticism, you will end in poverty and disgrace; if you accept correction, you will be honored.
- Proverbs 28:23In the end, people appreciate honest criticism far more than flattery.
- Leviticus 19:17“Do not nurse hatred in your heart for any of your relatives. Confront people directly so you will not be held guilty for their sin.
- 2 Samuel 12:7Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul.
- 1 Kings 1:23The king’s officials told him, “Nathan the prophet is here to see you.” Nathan went in and bowed before the king with his face to the ground.
- Psalms 141:5Let the godly strike me! It will be a kindness! If they correct me, it is soothing medicine. Don’t let me refuse it. But I pray constantly against the wicked and their deeds.
- Galatians 2:11But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong.
- 2 Peter 3:15And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him—
Commentaries on Proverbs 9:8
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7-9Verses 7-9 These verses seem somewhat to interrupt the continuity of the invitation which Wisdom utters. The order of thought is, however, this: “I speak to you, the simple, the open ones, for you have yet ears to hear: but from the scorner or evil doer, as such, I turn away.” The words are illustrated by Matthew 13:11 ff.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-9These verses create a break between the invitations of Wisdom and Folly. The purpose might be to warn the simple (Proverbs 9:4) that inviting mockers and the wicked is often pointless. These people have already chosen their path and respond to Wisdom's advice with violence. In contrast, the wise appreciate and benefit from corrective advice.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-87-8. shame--(Compare Pr 3:35). a blot--or, "stain on character." Both terms denote the evil done by others to one whose faithfulness secures a wise man's love.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 9:8
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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
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