Bible Strands
Proverbs 15:29
The LORD is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — No single speaker or moment; this is a standalone aphorism in Solomon's collection of wisdom sayings, addressed to the reader as a general principle.
The words — רָחוֹק (ra.chok, "far") and יִשְׁמָֽע (yish.ma', "he hears") form the structural spine: a spatial distance set against an act of attention.
The thread — Proverbs 15:8 pairs the same contrast with sacrifice; John 9:31 restates it in the blind man's testimony; Psalms 145:18 pushes back, saying the LORD is near to all who call in truth.
Why it lands — It presents a binary with no middle ground: God is either far or He is listening, and the verse assigns the reader to one side or the other based on their standing.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
The Lord is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.
Cross-references
- John 9:31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but He does listen to the one who worships Him and does His will.
- Psalms 145:18 The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth.
- Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight.
- 1 Peter 3:12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
- Psalms 34:15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their cry.
- James 5:16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail.
- Romans 8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know how we ought to pray, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words.
- Ephesians 2:12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
- Psalms 66:18 If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
- Psalms 138:6 Though the LORD is on high, He attends to the lowly; but the proud He knows from afar.