Proverbs 10

Here the long collection of Solomon’s one-line sayings begins. Almost every verse sets two paths side by side, the wise and righteous against the foolish and wicked. The themes keep returning: work and money, the power of words, family joy and grief, and the safety found in living God’s way. Proverbs state how life usually goes under God’s rule. They are not promises that fit every single case.

Proverbs 10:1

A new section opens, and it starts at home. A child’s character reaches deep into the parents’ hearts. Wisdom gladdens a father, and folly wounds a mother. The verse shows that how we live is never only our own business.

BSA: foolish (“stupid, silly”): The fool here is not short of brains but shut to instruction, and that is what weighs down a mother’s heart.

Hebrew: מִשְׁלֵי (mishlei, H4912) — “proverbs, sayings of comparison.” The Hebrew word points to a saying that sets two things side by side so we can see the difference. That is exactly how this chapter works.

See also: Proverbs 15:20.

Proverbs 10:2

Wealth gained by cheating or violence cannot rescue anyone when real trouble comes. Righteous living can. The saying points to a deliverance money cannot buy, whether from danger now or from the final reckoning.

BSA: Ill-gotten (“gained through wickedness, unrighteous”): The problem is how the treasure was gained, and that makes it worthless when it matters most.

Hebrew: צְדָקָה (tsedaqah, H6666) — “righteousness, right living.” It means being right in conduct and in dealings with others and with God. It describes a whole life, not only a single act.

See also: Proverbs 11:4.

Proverbs 10:3

God watches over those who live uprightly and does not leave them to starve. The wicked pursue their cravings, but God stands in the way of what they most want. Behind both halves is the LORD’s own care and rule.

BSA: denies (“thrusts away, rejects”): God actively pushes aside the wicked person’s grasping desires rather than merely failing to supply them.

Hebrew: נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, H5315) — “soul, appetite, whole person.” The Hebrew speaks of the righteous person’s whole self, his very soul, being kept from hunger. The same word is used for the hungry craving of the wicked.

See also: Psalm 37:25.

Proverbs 10:4

Laziness leads to poverty, and steady, careful work usually leads to enough and more. The proverb states a general pattern of how God made the world to work. It is not a rule that fits every hardship.

BSA: Idle (“lazy, slothful”): The picture is of a person who lets the work slide, not someone who simply has no work to do.

Hebrew: רְמִיָּה (remiyyah, H7423) — “slack, loose, careless.” The idle hand is literally a slack hand, one with no grip on its task. The diligent hand is a hand that takes hold.

See also: Proverbs 6:6-8.

Proverbs 10:5

Harvest does not wait. A son who gathers the crop when it is ready shows good sense, and one who sleeps through it brings shame on the family. The lesson is to recognize the moment and use it.

BSA: sleeps (“is in a deep sleep, is unconscious”): He is not resting briefly but sunk in a stupor while the one chance to bring in the crop slips away.

Proverbs 10:6

Blessings rest on the righteous like a crown on the head. The wicked may talk smoothly, but violence lies hidden behind their words. The verse contrasts what God gives to the righteous with what the wicked quietly intend.

BSA: conceals (“covers, hides”): Sweet speech can act as a cover for harmful plans, so mouths are not always what they seem.

Proverbs 10:7

How a person is remembered after death often reflects how he lived. The righteous are recalled with thanks, and the wicked are forgotten or remembered with disgust. A good life leaves a good name behind.

BSA: memory (“remembrance, memorial”): The righteous leave behind something lasting, a memorial that blesses those who recall it.

Hebrew: יִרְקָב (yirqav, H7537) — “will rot.” The Hebrew uses the word for decay, like rotting wood or spoiled food. The wicked person’s name does not simply fade. It goes bad.

See also: Psalm 112:6.

Proverbs 10:8

The wise heart is teachable and welcomes God’s commands, even when they are hard. The person who babbles foolishly, who talks instead of listening, heads toward a fall. Wisdom begins with a willingness to be told.

BSA: ruin (“disaster, downfall”): The foolish talker does not merely look bad but falls into real collapse.

Proverbs 10:9

A person of honest, undivided character can go about life without fear of being caught out. Someone who twists his ways will sooner or later be exposed. Hidden crookedness does not stay hidden forever.

BSA: integrity (“completeness, moral purity”): Integrity means being whole, the same inside and out, with no hidden second life.

Hebrew: תֹּם (tom, H8537) — “wholeness, completeness, blamelessness.” The word carries the sense of being sound all the way through. That inner wholeness is why such a person walks without needing to look over his shoulder.

See also: Psalm 25:21.

Proverbs 10:10

A sly wink signals deceit, a way of hurting people while keeping a straight face. It brings grief to others. The second half repeats verse 8: the foolish talker is heading for downfall.

BSA: winks (“with sly intent, signalizing deceit”): The wink is a secret sign between schemers, and behind it lies an intent to deceive.

Proverbs 10:11

The words of a righteous person are like a spring of fresh water, refreshing and life-giving to those who hear them. The wicked offer only a cover for harm. What comes out of a mouth shows what is in the heart.

BSA: fountain (“spring, source of life”): A spring keeps flowing, so the righteous person’s speech is a steady supply of life and not a single drink.

Hebrew: מְקוֹר (meqor, H4726) — “spring, well-source.” This is not stored water but a flowing source from the ground. In a dry land it was a vivid picture of life itself.

See also: Psalm 36:9.

Proverbs 10:12

Hatred keeps old quarrels alive and stirs them up again. Love chooses not to broadcast or dwell on others’ faults and so forgives. This does not mean ignoring wrong, but refusing to let it destroy a relationship.

BSA: covers (“to hide, forgive”): Love draws a veil over offenses instead of exposing them, and in that way it forgives.

See also: 1 Peter 4:8; James 5:20.

Proverbs 10:13

A discerning person speaks wisdom, and his words are worth hearing. The one who lacks sense will not learn from words and needs the rod instead. Those who will not be taught by wisdom are taught by pain.

BSA: rod (“staff”): The rod stands for the hard discipline that falls on those who ignore gentle teaching.

Proverbs 10:14

The wise gather knowledge as one gathers a treasure, ready for the day it is needed. The fool’s mouth, always blurting out, brings ruin close. Wisdom builds up quietly, and folly gives itself away.

BSA: store up (“treasure, lay up”): The wise value knowledge as a treasure and keep it safe, rather than spending it carelessly in talk.

Proverbs 10:15

Money gives a measure of safety, like a walled city. Poverty leaves a person exposed to trouble. The proverb observes this honestly, and elsewhere the book reminds us that wealth has limits.

BSA: fortified (“strong, protected”): Wealth works like city walls, giving real if limited protection against life’s hardships.

See also: Proverbs 18:11.

Proverbs 10:16

What the righteous earn goes toward good and builds life. The wicked use their earnings in ways that lead to sin and its penalty. The same income can end up in very different places depending on the heart behind it.

BSA: labor (“wage, reward”): It includes the payoff of work as well as the work itself, and that payoff is turned toward life.

Proverbs 10:17

A person who welcomes correction is walking the road to life, and also helps others find it. Someone who brushes off a rebuke wanders off course and leads others astray. Being teachable keeps us on the path.

BSA: heeds (“pays attention to, regards”): Real heeding is more than hearing. It means giving instruction attention and acting on it.

See also: Hebrews 12:11.

Proverbs 10:18

Two opposite ways of mishandling hatred are named. One hides it behind a pleasant face, and the other lets it spill out in slander. Both are folly. Honest dealing with bitterness is far better than either.

BSA: slander (“evil reports, false accusations”): The slanderer passes along damaging claims about others, whether true or untrue.

Proverbs 10:19

The more we talk, the more chances we have to sin, whether by boasting, gossip, or harsh words. The wise person holds back his lips. This is not a call to silence always, but to speak with care.

BSA: restrains (“withholds, spares”): The wise person keeps back words that are better unsaid, and so spares others and himself.

Hebrew: פֶּשַׁע (pesha, H6588) — “rebellion, transgression.” This is a strong word for sin, meaning a breaking away from rightful authority. Endless talk readily slips into outright wrongdoing.

See also: James 3:2.

Proverbs 10:20

What a righteous person says is like refined silver, valuable and pure. The heart of the wicked, by contrast, is worth little. Good speech starts with a good heart, and that is why it carries such worth.

BSA: choice (“refined, pure”): Silver that has been refined has had its impurities burned off, so the righteous person’s words are cleansed of falsehood.

Proverbs 10:21

The words of the righteous nourish many people, like food that sustains. Fools, who refuse wisdom, bring death on themselves. Good counsel has the power to feed others, and lack of sense starves the one who lacks it.

BSA: feed (“care for, tend to”): The picture is of a shepherd tending flocks, because good words look after people as well as feeding them.

Proverbs 10:22

True prosperity is God’s gift, and what He gives does not come with a hidden sting. Wealth gained by anxious striving often brings worry with it. His blessing brings peace along with the riches.

BSA: sorrow (“toil, painful labor”): God’s blessing is not won by exhausting, anxious toil, and it does not burden the one who receives it.

Hebrew: עֶצֶב (etsev, H6089) — “pain, toil, sorrow.” This is the same word used for the painful labor that came into the world after Adam’s sin. God’s blessing is free of that grief.

See also: Psalm 127:2.

Proverbs 10:23

For a fool, doing wrong is like play, a pastime he enjoys. A person of understanding finds his pleasure in wisdom instead. What we enjoy shows who we really are.

BSA: delights in (“finds pleasure, has fun”): To the fool, wickedness feels like sport, and that casual enjoyment is what makes it so dangerous.

Proverbs 10:24

The wicked fear certain things, and those fears come true. The righteous long for good things, and God grants their desire. Each person’s life tends toward what he is truly set on.

BSA: dreads (“fears, is afraid of”): The wicked live with a hidden fear of judgment that eventually catches up with them.

Proverbs 10:25

When the storm of trouble or judgment sweeps through, the wicked are blown away. The righteous stand because they are built on something lasting. Jesus told a similar story of two houses, one on rock and one on sand.

BSA: whirlwind (“a hurricane or storm, Suphah”): The word names a violent, sudden storm, which suits the swift way judgment can come.

See also: Matthew 7:24-27.

Proverbs 10:26

A lazy messenger is as unpleasant as sour vinegar on the teeth or smoke in the eyes. Whoever sends him on an errand is left irritated and let down. Unreliable people wear out those who depend on them.

BSA: slacker (“a sluggard, habitually lazy”): He is not occasionally slow but a settled shirker, so his master can never count on him.

Proverbs 10:27

Honoring the LORD tends to add length and fullness to life, while a life of wickedness often ends early. Proverbs states a general rule here, not a promise for every person. It points to where real life is found.

BSA: prolongs (“adds to, increases”): Reverence for God adds to life, as if He were giving more days to those who honor Him.

Hebrew: יִרְאַת (yir’at, H3374) — “fear, reverent awe.” This is not mere terror. It is the deep respect that bows before God, and the book calls it the beginning of wisdom.

See also: Proverbs 9:10.

Proverbs 10:28

The righteous look ahead with hope and find joy there. The wicked look ahead too, but what they are counting on collapses. Hope placed in God lasts, and hope placed in sin does not.

BSA: hope (“trust and confidence, expectation”): This hope is a confident waiting on God, not a vague wish.

See also: Romans 5:5.

Proverbs 10:29

God’s way, His manner of acting and the life He calls us to, is a safe place for the upright. The same way is ruin to those who do evil. The path that shelters one person is the path the other has turned from.

BSA: refuge (“stronghold, security, or place of safety”): God’s way is not a burden but a fortress where the upright are protected.

Hebrew: מָעוֹז (ma’oz, H4581) — “stronghold, fortress.” This is a word for a fortified place of defense, the kind of refuge people ran to in war.

See also: Psalm 18:2.

Proverbs 10:30

The righteous will stand firm and not be uprooted. The wicked will be removed from the land. In Israel, living securely in the land was a sign of God’s blessing, and being cast out was a sign of judgment.

BSA: shaken (“to waver, made unstable”): The righteous are like a tree with deep roots that no wind can topple.

See also: Psalm 15:5.

Proverbs 10:31

The righteous person’s mouth is like a tree that bears the fruit of wisdom. The twisted tongue is cut off, like a branch that bears nothing. Speech that spoils others will itself be taken away.

BSA: perverse (“stubborn, disobedient”): The twisted tongue is stubbornly set against what is right, and that is why it is removed.

See also: Psalm 37:30.

Proverbs 10:32

The righteous have a sense for the right word at the right time. The wicked know only how to say what is twisted. The chapter ends where it often returns, on how much our speech reveals about our hearts.

BSA: fitting (“acceptable, pleasing”): The righteous know what is pleasing and suited to the moment, so their words are welcome and kind.