Bible Strands
Proverbs 21:12
The Righteous One considers the house of the wicked and brings the wicked to ruin.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The wisdom teacher addresses a student or learner, following the immediate observation that punishment corrects the simple and instruction builds knowledge.
The words — צַדִּיק (Tza.dik) translates literally as "righteous one," while מְסַלֵּף (me.sa.Lef) means "subverting" or "overthrowing."
The thread — This pattern of divine judgment on the wicked appears in Proverbs 14:11, which contrasts the destruction of the wicked house with the flourishing tent of the upright, and echoes the warning in Psalm 37:35 that the flourishing wicked will ultimately be cut down.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to observe how God’s justice actively dismantles corrupt systems rather than merely leaving them to decay, demanding sober attention to moral consequences instead of hopeful speculation.
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 righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthroweth the wicked for their wickedness.
Cross-references
- Psalms 37:35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree,
- Psalms 107:43 Let him who is wise pay heed to these things and consider the loving devotion of the LORD.
- Proverbs 14:11 The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the upright will flourish.
- Proverbs 14:32 The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.
- 2 Peter 3:6 through which the world of that time perished in the flood.
- Job 5:3 I have seen a fool taking root, but suddenly his house was cursed.
- Job 8:15 He leans on his web, but it gives way; he holds fast, but it does not endure.
- Psalms 52:5 Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
- Proverbs 11:3 The integrity of the upright guides them, but the perversity of the faithless destroys them.
- Proverbs 13:6 Righteousness guards the man of integrity, but wickedness undermines the sinner.