Bible Strands
Proverbs 21:29
A wicked man hardens his face, but the upright man makes his way sure.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The proverbial author addresses the community of Israel, positioning this saying between a warning about false testimony and a declaration that no human counsel can override the LORD.
The words — The text contrasts הֵעֵז (he.'Ez), literally "he makes strong" or hardens, with יָבִין (ya.chin), literally "he considers" or establishes firmly.
The thread — This contrast between defiant self-reliance and deliberate walking appears in Proverbs 11:5, where righteousness directs the path, and in Haggai 1:7 and 1 Thessalonians 3:11, which command careful examination of one's ways and divine direction.
Why it lands — The verse demands the reader examine whether their posture is one of hardened defiance or careful alignment with God's counsel, leaving no room for neutral moral ambiguity.
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
A wicked man hardeneth his face: but as for the upright, he directeth his way.
Cross-references
- Haggai 1:7 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Consider carefully your ways.
- 1 Thessalonians 3:11 Now may our God and Father Himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you.
- Proverbs 11:5 The righteousness of the blameless directs their path, but the wicked fall by their own wickedness.
- Psalms 119:5 Oh, that my ways were committed to keeping Your statutes!
- Psalms 119:59 I considered my ways and turned my steps to Your testimonies.
- Proverbs 28:14 Blessed is the man who is always reverent, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.
- Proverbs 29:1 A man who remains stiff-necked after much reproof will suddenly be shattered beyond recovery.
- Jeremiah 5:3 O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain. You finished them off, but they refused to accept discipline. They have made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent.
- Jeremiah 8:12 Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; when I punish them, they will collapse, says the LORD.
- Jeremiah 44:16 “As for the word you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not listen to you!