PRO 16

Proverbs 16:27

WEB

A worthless man devises mischief. His speech is like a scorching fire.

BSB

A worthless man digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.

KJV

An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire.

Matthew Henry

Verses 27–28

Proverbs 16:27–28

There are those that are not only vicious themselves, but spiteful and mischievous to others, and they are the worst of men; two sorts of such are here described: - 1. Such as envy a man the honour of his good name, and do all they can to blast that by calumnies and misrepresentations: They dig up evil; they take a great deal of pains to find out something or other on which to ground a slander, or which may give some colour to it. If none appear above ground, rather than want it they will dig for it, by diving into what is secret, or looking a great way back, or by evil suspicions and surmises, and forced innuendos. In the lips of a slanderer and backbiter there is as a fire, not only to brand his neighbour's reputation, to smoke and sully it, but as a burning fire to consume it. And how great a matter does a little of this fire kindle, and how hardly is it extinguished! Jam 3:5, Jam 3:6. 2. Such as envy a man the comfort of his friendship, and do all they can to break that, by suggesting that on both sides which will set those at variance that are most nearly related and have been long intimate, or at least cool and alienate their affections one from another: A froward man, that cannot find in his heart to love any body but himself, is vexed to see others live in love, and therefore makes it is his business to sow strife, by giving men base characters one of another, telling lies, and carrying ill-natured stories between chief friends, so as to separate them one from another, and make them angry at or at least suspicious of one another. Those are bad men, and bad women too, that do such ill offices; they are doing the devil's work, and his will their wages be.

Cross-references: Jas 3:5 · Jas 3:6

Hebrew interlinear

H376

אִישׁʼîysh/eesh/

n-m — man

Derivation: contracted for 582 (or perhaps rather from an unused root meaning to be extant);

a man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term (and in such cases frequently not expressed in translation)

KJV: also, another, any (man), a certain, champion, consent, each, every (one), fellow, (foot-, husband-) man, (good-, great, mighty) man, he, high (degree), him (that is), husband, man(-kind), none, one, people, person, steward, what (man) soever, whoso(-ever), worthy. Compare 802.

אִישׁ

n.m — man

אִישׁ 2166 n.m. man (= vir)

H1100

בְּלִיַּעַלbᵉlîyaʻal/bel-e-yah'-al/

n-m — without profit, worthlessness, destruction, wickedness

Derivation: from 1097 and 3276;(often in connection with 376, 802, 1121, etc.)

without profit, worthlessness; by extension, destruction, wickedness

KJV: Belial, evil, naughty, ungodly (men), wicked.

בְּלִיַּ֫עַל

n.[m.] — worthlessness

בְּלִיַּ֫עַל 27 n.[m.] worthlessness

1. abstr.

2. concr. elliptical

3. ruin, destruction

H3738

כָּרָהkârâh/kaw-raw'/

v — dig, plot, bore, open

Derivation: a primitive root;

properly, to dig; figuratively, to plot; generally, to bore or open

KJV: dig, × make (a banquet), open.

כוּר

vb — bore

[כוּר] vb. mng. dub., perh. bore, or dig, or hew—only Qal ψ 22:17

כָּרָה

vb — dig

כָּרָה vb. dig

Qal dig a grave; a well; a pit

Niph. until the pit be digged of the wicked, fig. of judgment.

H7451

רַעraʻ/rah/

a n-m n-f — bad, evil

Derivation: from 7489;

bad or (as noun) evil (natural or moral)

KJV: adversity, affliction, bad, calamity, displease(-ure), distress, evil((-favouredness), man, thing), exceedingly, × great, grief(-vous), harm, heavy, hurt(-ful), ill (favoured), mark, mischief(-vous), misery, naught(-ty), noisome, not please, sad(-ly), sore, sorrow, trouble, vex, wicked(-ly, -ness, one), worse(-st), wretchedness, wrong. (Incl. feminine raaah; as adjective or noun.).

רַע

n.m — evil

רַע 126 n.m. evil, distress, misery, injury, calamity

1. evil, distress, adversity

2. evil, injury, wrong

3. ethical evil

רַע

adj — bad

רַע 228 adj. bad, evil

1. bad, disagreeable, malignant

2. bad, unpleasant, giving pain, unhappiness, misery

3. evil, displeasing

4. bad of its kind

5. bad, , i.e. of low value

6. מִן comp., worse than

7. sad, unhappy

8. devise evil (hurtful) device

9. bad, unkind, vicious in disposition or temper

10. ethically bad, evil, wicked

רָעָה

n.f — evil

רָעָה 310 n.f. evil, misery, distress, injury

1. evil, misery, distress

2. evil, injury, wrong

3. ethical evil

H5921

עַלʻal/al/

prep — above, over, upon, against

Derivation: properly, the same as 5920 used as a preposition (in the singular or plural often with prefix, or as conjunction with a particle following);

above, over, upon, or against (yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications

KJV: above, according to(-ly), after, (as) against, among, and, × as, at, because of, beside (the rest of), between, beyond the time, × both and, by (reason of), × had the charge of, concerning for, in (that), (forth, out) of, (from) (off), (up-) on, over, than, through(-out), to, touching, × with.

כִּי עַל כֵּן

forasmuch as

כִּי עַל כֵּן forasmuch as

עַל

subst — above

עַל, עָ֑ל

I. subst. height

II. As prep. upon, and hence on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against

1. Upon, of the substratum upon which an object in any way rests, or on which an action is performed

a.

(a). of clothing, etc., which any one wears

(b). With verbs of covering or protecting, even though the cover or veil be not over or above the thing covered, but around or before it

b. Of what rests heavily upon a person, or is a burden to him

c. Of a duty, payment, care, etc., imposed upon a person, or devolving on him

d. על is used idiom. to give pathos to the expression of an emotion, by emphasizing the person who is its subject, and who, as it were, feels it acting upon him

e. חָיָה עַל to live upon (as upon a foundation or support)

f. Of the ground or basis, on which a thing is done

2. It expresses excess

3. It denotes elevation or pre-eminence

4. It expresses addition

5. It expresses the idea of being extended, or suspended over anything, without however being in contact with it, above, over

6. From the sense of inclining or impending over, על comes to denote contiguity or proximity, Engl. by (or sts. on)

7. In connection with verbs of motion (actual or fig.)

8. By writers of the silver age, על is sts. used with the force of a dative

9. With other particles:

III. As conj.

a. עַל אֲשֶׁר because that

b. עַל כִּי similar in meaning, but less frequent

c. עַל alone:

(a). because

(b). notwithstanding that, although

IV. Compounds:

1. with כְּ (rare and late)

a. as concerning, as upon

b. the like of their deeds is the like of (that which) he will repay

2. מֵעַל from upon, from over, from by

H8193

שָׂפָהsâphâh/saw-faw'/

n-f — lip, language, margin

Derivation: or (in dual and plural) שֶׂפֶת; probably from 5595 or 8192 through the idea of termination (compare 5490);

the lip (as a natural boundary); by implication, language; by analogy, a margin (of a vessel, water, cloth, etc.)

KJV: band, bank, binding, border, brim, brink, edge, language, lip, prating, (sea-)shore, side, speech, talk, (vain) words.

שָׂפָה

n.f — lip

שָׂפָה 176 n.f. lip, speech, edge

1. lip

2. language

3. edge: shore of sea; bank of river

H784

אֵשׁʼêsh/aysh/

n-f — fire

Derivation: a primitive word;

fire (literally or figuratively)

KJV: burning, fiery, fire, flaming, hot.

אֵשׁ

n.f — fire

אֵשׁ 377 n.f. fire

1. fire, of conflagration

2. of supernatural fire

3. fire for cooking, roasting, parching

4. esp. of altar fire

5. fig. of Yahweh's anger

6. in various combinations

H6867

צָרֶבֶתtsârebeth/tsaw-reh'-beth/

a n-f — conflagration

Derivation: from 6866;

conflagration (of fire or disease)

KJV: burning, inflammation.

צָרָב

adj — burning

[צָרָב] adj. burning, scorching;—Pr 16:27

צָרֶ֫בֶת

n.f — scab

צָרֶ֫בֶת n.f. scab, scar, of a sore (lit. a burning, scorching)

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