Bible Strands
Proverbs 26:18
Like a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The wisdom teacher addresses a listener positioned between two warnings about reckless behavior in disputes. The verse appears as the central illustration in a triad condemning harmful speech disguised as play.
The words — מִתְלַהְלֵהַּ (mit.lah.le.ah) translates literally as "like a madman," while זִקִּים (zi.Kim) means "burning arrows" or firebrands. These terms frame the speaker's warning through violent imagery.
The thread — The metaphor of destructive projectiles appears in Proverbs 25:18 regarding false witness, Isaiah 50:11 regarding those who kindle their own fires, and Proverbs 7:23 regarding unsuspecting victims of sudden harm.
Why it lands — The text demands that readers stop excusing harmful speech as mere joking and recognize the lethal consequences of reckless words. It requires accountability for actions that wound others under the cover of humor.
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
As a mad man who casteth firebrands, arrows, and death,
Cross-references
- Proverbs 25:18 Like a club or sword or sharp arrow is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor.
- Isaiah 50:11 Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who array yourselves with firebrands, walk in the light of your fire and of the firebrands you have lit! This is what you will receive from My hand: You will lie down in a place of torment.
- Proverbs 7:23 until an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare—not knowing it will cost him his life.
- Genesis 49:23 The archers attacked him with bitterness; they aimed at him in hostility.