Proverbs 28
The full text of Proverbs 28 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 The wicked flee when no one pursues,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.
2 When a land transgresses, it has many rulers,
but with a man of understanding and knowledge, order will last long.
3 A poor man who oppresses the poor
is like a driving rain that leaves no food.
4 Those who forsake the Torah praise the wicked,
but those who keep the Torah strive against them.
5 Evil people do not understand justice,
but those who seek the LORD understand it fully.
6 Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity
than one who is crooked in his ways, even if he is rich.
7 A son who keeps the Torah is discerning,
but one who is a companion of gluttons shames his father.
8 Whoever multiplies his wealth by interest and profit
gathers it for him who is generous to the poor.
9 If one turns away his ear from hearing the Torah,
even his prayer is an abomination.
10 Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way
will fall into his own pit,
but the blameless will have a goodly inheritance.
11 A rich man is wise in his own eyes,
but a discerning poor man sees through him.
12 When the righteous triumph, there is great glory,
but when the wicked rise, people hide themselves.
13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but whoever confesses and forsakes them will find mercy.
14 Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always,
but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity.
15 Like a roaring lion or a charging bear
is a wicked ruler over a poor people.
16 A ruler who lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor,
but the one who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.
17 A person burdened with the blood of another
will be a fugitive until death;
let no one help him.
18 Whoever walks in integrity will be saved,
but the one who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.
19 Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,
but whoever follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.
20 A faithful man will abound with blessings,
but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.
21 To show partiality is not good,
yet for a piece of bread a person does wrong.
22 A stingy man hurries after wealth
and does not know that want will come upon him.
23 Whoever rebukes a person will find favor in the end
more than one who flatters with his tongue.
24 Whoever robs his father or his mother and says,
'It is no transgression,' is a companion of a man who destroys.
25 A greedy person stirs up conflict,
but whoever trusts in the LORD will be richly satisfied.
26 Whoever trusts in his own heart is a fool,
but whoever walks in wisdom will be delivered.
27 Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing,
but one who closes his eyes to them will get many a curse.
28 When the wicked rise, people hide themselves,
but when they perish, the righteous increase.
Translation notes (6)
- Proverbs 28:2a The second line is terse in Hebrew, literally 'by a person of understanding, one who knows, ken is prolonged,' where ken (כֵּן), 'what is right' or 'order', serves as the subject. The Septuagint diverges widely in this verse, reading a statement about quarrels arising from the sins of the ungodly, which suggests the difficulty of the Hebrew was felt from an early period.
- Proverbs 28:8a Hebrew pairs two technical loan terms: neshek (נֶשֶׁךְ), 'interest', literally 'a bite', and tarbit (תַּרְבִּית), 'profit' or 'increase'. The pair appears together in the lending prohibitions of Leviticus 25:36-37 and Ezekiel 18:8, where neshek is often understood as interest exacted up front and tarbit as the gain collected at repayment.
- Proverbs 28:9a Hebrew torah (תּוֹרָה) means 'instruction' as well as 'law', and is retained here as a proper name for the divine teaching. To'evah, 'abomination', elsewhere describes idolatry and corrupt sacrifice, so the proverb applies cultic language to prayer itself: worship divorced from obedient hearing is repugnant to God, a theme echoed in Isaiah 1:15.
- Proverbs 28:17a Hebrew ashuq bedam-nafesh, literally 'oppressed by the blood of a life', pictures the guilt of bloodshed as a crushing load driving the killer toward bor, 'the pit', a common figure for the grave. The closing clause al-yitmekhu-vo, 'let them not take hold of him', is terse and contested; it is taken here as a prohibition against sheltering the fugitive from the justice pursuing him.
- Proverbs 28:24a The excuse 'It is no transgression' likely reflects the assumption of an heir who treats his parents' property as already his own; the proverb rejects this reasoning as theft. Hebrew ish mashchit, 'a man who destroys', closely echoes Proverbs 18:9, where the slacker is called brother to a master of destruction, pairing the rationalizing son with an open vandal.
- Proverbs 28:27a The Hebrew idiom maʿlim einav, literally 'one who hides his eyes', describes deliberate refusal to see rather than mere inattention, and is rendered here as 'closes his eyes'. The same verb alam, 'to hide', marks culpable avoidance of the needy in Isaiah 58:7 and of a neighbor's loss in Deuteronomy 22:1-4.
About this translation
The Trinity Bible Version (TBV) is Trinity Bible's own modern English translation, worked directly from the original Hebrew and honest to the earliest manuscripts. It was completed in 2026 — the most modern English Bible translation — and is exclusive to Trinity Bible. Every chapter, including all of Proverbs, is free to read here on the web.
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