Bible Strands
Proverbs 19:15
Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The wisdom author addresses a general student audience between instructions on inherited provision and the life-preserving value of obedience. The verse operates as a practical warning within a sequence of cause-and-effect directives.
The words — עַצְלָה ('Atz.lah) means laziness, and תַּרְדֵמָה (tar.de.Mah) translates literally to deep sleep. The text directly pairs these with תִרְעָב (tir.'Av), the verb form for he will be hungry.
The thread — This pattern repeats in Proverbs 20:13 and Proverbs 23:21, where drowsiness is tied to poverty and rags. The same principle is later formalized in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 regarding work and eating.
Why it lands — The text states that idleness physically produces hunger, establishing a direct causal chain. It requires the reader to treat active diligence as a practical necessity rather than a moral preference.
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
Slothfulness casteth into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 23:21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe them in rags.
- Proverbs 20:13 Do not love sleep, or you will grow poor; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of food.
- 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”
- Proverbs 6:9 How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?
- Proverbs 24:33 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
- Romans 13:11 And do this, understanding the occasion. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
- Proverbs 10:4 Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.
- Ephesians 5:14 So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
- Proverbs 19:24 The slacker buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth.
- Isaiah 56:10 Israel’s watchmen are blind, they are all oblivious; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they are dreamers lying around, loving to slumber.