Bible Strands
Proverbs 21:16
The man who strays from the path of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The text is a wisdom maxim within Proverbs, addressed to a general listener. It is positioned between a statement on the execution of justice and a warning about the poverty of hedonism.
The words — תּ֭וֹעֶה (To.'eh) translates as "[who] wanders," and רְפָאִ֣ים (re.fa.'Im) means "[the] shades." These terms frame the verse's contrast between active deviation and final rest among the dead.
The thread — The pattern of abandoning upright ways and facing judgment appears in Psalms 125:5, which records God banishing those who turn to crooked ways. The theme of divine rejection for shrinking back from commitment is echoed in Hebrews 10:38.
Why it lands — The text states that a person who leaves the path of insight will rest among the shades. It demands a deliberate choice to pursue understanding rather than indifference.
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 man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.
Cross-references
- Hebrews 10:38 But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”
- Psalms 125:5 But those who turn to crooked ways the LORD will banish with the evildoers. Peace be upon Israel.
- Psalms 49:14 Like sheep they are destined for Sheol. Death will be their shepherd. The upright will rule them in the morning, and their form will decay in Sheol, far from their lofty abode.
- Zephaniah 1:6 and those who turn back from following the LORD, neither seeking the LORD nor inquiring of Him.”
- Hebrews 10:26 If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins remains,
- 1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us.
- Proverbs 2:18 For her house sinks down to death, and her tracks to the departed spirits.
- Proverbs 7:26 For she has brought many down to death; her slain are many in number.
- Proverbs 13:20 He who walks with the wise will become wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed.
- John 3:19 And this is the verdict: The Light has come into the world, but men loved the darkness rather than the Light because their deeds were evil.