Bible Strands
Proverbs 24:17
Do not gloat when your enemy falls, and do not let your heart rejoice when he stumbles,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The sage addresses the reader as a student learning proper conduct toward adversaries. The instruction sits between a statement on the righteous man's resilience and a warning about divine observation.
The words — The Hebrew תִּשְׂמַח (tis'mach) means "you rejoice" and יָגֵל (yage'l) means "it rejoices," describing active internal gladness. The imperative אַל (al) commands the reader to suppress this emotional response toward an enemy's failure.
The thread — The prohibition against gloating over an adversary appears in Obadiah 1:12, Job 31:29, and Proverbs 17:5. These passages address the human impulse to celebrate the downfall of others, whether enemy, brother, or poor person.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to deny themselves satisfaction when an opponent fails. It establishes that withholding triumph is a disciplined response rather than a spontaneous reaction.
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
Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth:
Cross-references
- Obadiah 1:12 But you should not gloat in that day, your brother’s day of misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast proudly in the day of their distress.
- Job 31:29 If I have rejoiced in my enemy’s ruin, or exulted when evil befell him—
- Proverbs 17:5 He who mocks the poor insults their Maker; whoever gloats over calamity will not go unpunished.
- 1 Corinthians 13:6 Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth.
- 2 Samuel 16:5 As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the family of the house of Saul was just coming out. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and as he approached, he kept yelling out curses.
- Psalms 35:15 But when I stumbled, they assembled in glee; they gathered together against me. Assailants I did not know slandered me without ceasing.
- Psalms 35:19 Let not my enemies gloat over me without cause, nor those who hate me without reason wink in malice.
- Psalms 42:10 Like the crushing of my bones, my enemies taunt me, while they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”
- Judges 16:25 And while their hearts were merry, they said, “Call for Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison to entertain them. And they stationed him between the pillars.