Proverbs 29:8
Proverbs 29:8 in Multiple Translations
Mockers inflame a city, but the wise turn away anger.
Scornful men bring a city into a snare: but wise men turn away wrath.
Scoffers set a city in a flame; But wise men turn away wrath.
Men of pride are the cause of violent acts in a town, but by wise men wrath is turned away.
Cynical people can inflame a whole city, but the wise calm angry people down.
Scornefull men bring a citie into a snare: but wise men turne away wrath.
Men of scorning ensnare a city, And the wise turn back anger.
Mockers stir up a city, but wise men turn away anger.
Scornful men bring a city into a snare: but wise men turn away wrath.
Corrupt men bring a city to ruin: but wise men turn away wrath.
Those who make fun of everything that is good say things that cause everyone in the city to ◄be agitated/in turmoil►; those who are wise enable people to remain calm.
Berean Amplified Bible — Proverbs 29:8
BAB
Word Study
Hover over any word to see its amplified meaning. Click a word to explore its full definition and translation comparisons.
Amplified text is generated using scripting to tie together English translations for comparison. Always refer to the core BSB translation and original Hebrew/Greek text for accuracy. Anomalies may occur.
Proverbs 29:8 Interlinear (Deep Study)
BIB
HEB
אַנְשֵׁ֣י
לָ֭צוֹן
יָפִ֣יחוּ
קִרְיָ֑ה
וַ֝/חֲכָמִ֗ים
יָשִׁ֥יבוּ
אָֽף
אַנְשֵׁ֣י
ʼîysh
H376
man
N-mp
לָ֭צוֹן
lâtsôwn
H3944
scorning
N-ms
יָפִ֣יחוּ
pûwach
H6315
to breathe
V-Hiphil-Imperf-3mp
קִרְיָ֑ה
qiryâh
H7151
town
N-fs
וַ֝/חֲכָמִ֗ים
châkâm
H2450
wise
Conj | Adj
יָשִׁ֥יבוּ
shûwb
H7725
to return
V-Hiphil-Imperf-3mp
אָֽף
ʼaph
H639
face
N-ms
Hebrew Word Study
Select any word above to explore its original meaning, root, and usage across Scripture.
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Hebrew Word Reference — Proverbs 29:8
אַנְשֵׁ֣י
ʼîysh
H376
"man"
N-mp
The Hebrew word for man, referring to a male person or individual, is used in the Bible to describe humans in contrast to God or animals, as seen in Genesis and Psalms. It can also mean husband or servant. In the KJV, it is translated as man or male.
Definition: : man 1) man 1a) man, male (in contrast to woman, female) 1b) husband 1c) human being, person (in contrast to God) 1d) servant 1e) mankind 1f) champion 1g) great man 2) whosoever 3) each (adjective)
Usage: Occurs in 1851 OT verses. KJV: also, another, any (man), a certain, [phrase] champion, consent, each, every (one), fellow, (foot-, husband-) man, (good-, great, mighty) man, he, high (degree), him (that is), husband, man(-kind), [phrase] none, one, people, person, [phrase] steward, what (man) soever, whoso(-ever), worthy. Compare H802 (אִשָּׁה). See also: Genesis 2:23; Genesis 42:25; Exodus 32:23.
לָ֭צוֹן
lâtsôwn
H3944
"scorning"
N-ms
This Hebrew word means to scorn or mock someone, showing contempt or disrespect. It is used in the Bible to describe people who ridicule or belittle others, like the scornful behavior in Proverbs 21:24. God warns against scornful behavior.
Definition: scorning, bragging
Usage: Occurs in 3 OT verses. KJV: scornful(-ning). See also: Proverbs 1:22; Proverbs 29:8; Isaiah 28:14.
יָפִ֣יחוּ
pûwach
H6315
"to breathe"
V-Hiphil-Imperf-3mp
This Hebrew word means to breathe or blow air, and is used in various ways, such as to fan a breeze or kindle a fire. It can also mean to utter or speak. In the Bible, it appears in contexts like Exodus and Psalms, describing God's breath or a person's utterance.
Definition: 1) to breathe, blow 1a) (Qal) to breathe 1b) (Hiphil) 1b1) to cause to exhale or breathe 1b2) to puff, snort 1b3) to excite, inflame 1b4) to puff, pant for it 1b5) to breathe out, utter 1b6) to blow, blast
Usage: Occurs in 14 OT verses. KJV: blow (upon), break, puff, bring into a snare, speak, utter. See also: Psalms 10:5; Proverbs 19:9; Psalms 12:6.
קִרְיָ֑ה
qiryâh
H7151
"town"
N-fs
This word refers to a town or city, a place where people live and work. It is used in the Bible to describe various urban areas.
Definition: 1) city, town 1a) in general 1b) in specific 1c) collective 1d) indefinite Aramaic equivalent: qir.yah (קִרְיָה "town" H7149)
Usage: Occurs in 29 OT verses. KJV: city. See also: Numbers 21:28; Isaiah 22:2; Psalms 48:3.
וַ֝/חֲכָמִ֗ים
châkâm
H2450
"wise"
Conj | Adj
This word means wise or skilled, describing someone intelligent or crafty, like a cunning man or a prudent leader.
Definition: 1) wise, wise (man) 1a) skilful (in technical work) 1b) wise (in administration) 1c) shrewd, crafty, cunning, wily, subtle 1d) learned, shrewd (class of men) 1e) prudent 1f) wise (ethically and religiously)
Usage: Occurs in 133 OT verses. KJV: cunning (man), subtil, (un-), wise((hearted), man). See also: Genesis 41:8; Proverbs 16:14; Psalms 49:11.
יָשִׁ֥יבוּ
shûwb
H7725
"to return"
V-Hiphil-Imperf-3mp
This Hebrew word means to return or turn back, and can be used literally or figuratively. It is often used to describe someone returning to God or repenting from sin, as seen in the book of Psalms and the prophets.
Definition: : return 1) to return, turn back 1a) (Qal) 1a1) to turn back, return 1a1a) to turn back 1a1b) to return, come or go back 1a1c) to return unto, go back, come back 1a1d) of dying 1a1e) of human relations (fig) 1a1f) of spiritual relations (fig) 1a1f1) to turn back (from God), apostatise 1a1f2) to turn away (of God) 1a1f3) to turn back (to God), repent 1a1f4) turn back (from evil) 1a1g) of inanimate things 1a1h) in repetition 1b) (Polel) 1b1) to bring back 1b2) to restore, refresh, repair (fig) 1b3) to lead away (enticingly) 1b4) to show turning, apostatise 1c) (Pual) restored (participle) 1d) (Hiphil) to cause to return, bring back 1d1) to bring back, allow to return, put back, draw back, give back, restore, relinquish, give in payment 1d2) to bring back, refresh, restore 1d3) to bring back, report to, answer 1d4) to bring back, make requital, pay (as recompense) 1d5) to turn back or backward, repel, defeat, repulse, hinder, reject, refuse 1d6) to turn away (face), turn toward 1d7) to turn against 1d8) to bring back to mind 1d9) to show a turning away 1d10) to reverse, revoke 1e) (Hophal) to be returned, be restored, be brought back 1f) (Pulal) brought back
Usage: Occurs in 953 OT verses. KJV: ((break, build, circumcise, dig, do anything, do evil, feed, lay down, lie down, lodge, make, rejoice, send, take, weep)) [idiom] again, (cause to) answer ([phrase] again), [idiom] in any case (wise), [idiom] at all, averse, bring (again, back, home again), call (to mind), carry again (back), cease, [idiom] certainly, come again (back), [idiom] consider, [phrase] continually, convert, deliver (again), [phrase] deny, draw back, fetch home again, [idiom] fro, get (oneself) (back) again, [idiom] give (again), go again (back, home), (go) out, hinder, let, (see) more, [idiom] needs, be past, [idiom] pay, pervert, pull in again, put (again, up again), recall, recompense, recover, refresh, relieve, render (again), requite, rescue, restore, retrieve, (cause to, make to) return, reverse, reward, [phrase] say nay, send back, set again, slide back, still, [idiom] surely, take back (off), (cause to, make to) turn (again, self again, away, back, back again, backward, from, off), withdraw. See also: Genesis 3:19; Numbers 8:25; Judges 8:13.
אָֽף
ʼaph
H639
"face"
N-ms
This Hebrew word can mean face, but also anger or nose. It is used to describe someone's countenance or emotions, like anger or patience. In the Bible, it appears in various contexts, including descriptions of God's emotions.
Definition: : face 1) nostril, nose, face 2) anger
Usage: Occurs in 269 OT verses. KJV: anger(-gry), [phrase] before, countenance, face, [phrase] forebearing, forehead, [phrase] (long-) suffering, nose, nostril, snout, [idiom] worthy, wrath. See also: Genesis 2:7; Nehemiah 8:6; Psalms 2:5.
Study Notes — Proverbs 29:8
Show Verse Quote Highlights
- Context
- Cross References
- Proverbs 29:8 Summary
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Reflection Questions
- Gill's Exposition on Proverbs 29:8
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 29:8
- Matthew Poole's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
- Trapp's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
- Ellicott's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
- Cambridge Bible on Proverbs 29:8
- Barnes' Notes on Proverbs 29:8
- Whedon's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
- Sermons on Proverbs 29:8
Context — The Flourishing of the Righteous
6An evil man is caught by his own sin, but a righteous one sings and rejoices.
7The righteous consider the cause of the poor, but the wicked have no regard for such concerns.
8Mockers inflame a city, but the wise turn away anger.
9If a wise man goes to court with a fool, there will be raving and laughing with no resolution. 10Men of bloodshed hate a blameless man, but the upright care for his life.Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proverbs 11:11 | By the blessing of the upright a city is built up, but by the mouth of the wicked it is torn down. |
| 2 | Jeremiah 15:1 | Then the LORD said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel should stand before Me, My heart would not go out to this people. Send them from My presence, and let them go. |
| 3 | James 5:15–18 | And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth yielded its crops. |
| 4 | Proverbs 16:14 | The wrath of a king is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it. |
| 5 | James 3:5–6 | In the same way, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it boasts of great things. Consider how small a spark sets a great forest ablaze. The tongue also is a fire, a world of wickedness among the parts of the body. It pollutes the whole person, sets the course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. |
| 6 | John 9:40–41 | Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard this, and they asked Him, “Are we blind too?” “If you were blind,” Jesus replied, “you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.” |
| 7 | Amos 7:2–6 | And when the locusts had eaten every green plant in the land, I said, “Lord GOD, please forgive! How will Jacob survive, since he is so small?” So the LORD relented from this plan. “It will not happen,” He said. This is what the Lord GOD showed me: The Lord GOD was calling for judgment by fire. It consumed the great deep and devoured the land. Then I said, “Lord GOD, please stop! How will Jacob survive, since he is so small?” So the LORD relented from this plan. “It will not happen either,” said the Lord GOD. |
| 8 | Deuteronomy 9:18–20 | Then I fell down before the LORD for forty days and forty nights, as I had done the first time. I did not eat bread or drink water because of all the sin you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the LORD and provoking Him to anger. For I was afraid of the anger and wrath that the LORD had directed against you, enough to destroy you. But the LORD listened to me this time as well. The LORD was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I also prayed for Aaron. |
| 9 | 2 Samuel 24:16–17 | But when the angel stretched out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD relented from the calamity and said to the angel who was destroying the people, “Enough! Withdraw your hand now!” At that time the angel of the LORD was by the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. When David saw the angel striking down the people, he said to the LORD, “Surely I, the shepherd, have sinned and acted wickedly. But these sheep, what have they done? Please, let Your hand fall upon me and my father’s house.” |
| 10 | Exodus 32:10–14 | Now leave Me alone, so that My anger may burn against them and consume them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” But Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God, saying, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people, whom You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians declare, ‘He brought them out with evil intent, to kill them in the mountains and wipe them from the face of the earth’? Turn from Your fierce anger and relent from doing harm to Your people. Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to whom You swore by Your very self when You declared, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give your descendants all this land that I have promised, and it shall be their inheritance forever.’” So the LORD relented from the calamity He had threatened to bring on His people. |
Proverbs 29:8 Summary
This verse teaches us that the words we speak can have a big impact on those around us, either stirring up anger and conflict or calming and soothing them. When we choose to speak kindly and gently, we can help to turn away anger and promote peace, as seen in Proverbs 15:1 and James 1:19-20. By being mindful of the power of our words, we can work to create a more peaceful and loving community, where everyone feels valued and respected. As we strive to follow God's command to love one another, we can ask for His help in speaking words that bring life and healing, rather than death and destruction (Ephesians 4:29-32).
Frequently Asked Questions
What does it mean for mockers to inflame a city?
According to Proverbs 29:8, mockers inflame a city, meaning their scornful and ridiculing words can stir up anger, conflict, and unrest among the people, as seen in the destructive power of gossip and slander in Proverbs 16:28.
How do the wise turn away anger?
The wise turn away anger by choosing not to engage with or respond to provocative and inflammatory comments, instead seeking to calm the situation with gentle and peaceful words, as encouraged in Proverbs 15:1 and James 1:19-20.
What is the relationship between mockery and wisdom?
Proverbs 29:8 suggests that mockery and wisdom are opposing forces, with mockers promoting strife and division, while the wise promote peace and understanding, as also seen in the contrast between the foolish and the wise in Proverbs 10:8 and Proverbs 11:2.
How can I apply this verse to my own life?
You can apply Proverbs 29:8 to your own life by being mindful of the impact of your words on others, choosing to speak words of kindness, encouragement, and peace, and seeking to diffuse tense situations with calm and gentle responses, as taught in Ephesians 4:29-32 and Colossians 4:6.
Reflection Questions
- In what ways have I contributed to inflaming or calming conflicts in my own community or relationships?
- How can I recognize and respond to mockery or ridicule in a way that promotes peace and understanding?
- What are some specific ways I can choose to speak words of kindness and encouragement to those around me, rather than words of scorn or ridicule?
- How can I cultivate wisdom and discernment in my own life, so that I can turn away anger and promote peace in difficult situations?
Gill's Exposition on Proverbs 29:8
Scornful men bring a city into a snare,.... Such as despise dominion, speak evil of dignities; proud and haughty men, that speak Loftily, and with a contempt of their superiors; or who make a mock at
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 29:8
Scornful men bring a city into a snare: but wise men turn away wrath. Scornful men (who, when reproved for sin, not only do not repent, but scorn at divine and human laws) bring a city into a snare.
Matthew Poole's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
Bring a city into a snare; expose it to God’ s wrath and to destruction by their self-conceit and wilfulness, by their wicked counsels and courses, whereby they seduce and infect the generality of the people, by their contempt of God, of his just laws and righteous judgments, and of the opinions and advice, of wise men. Wise men, who do not scorn, but hearken to the counsels of God and of prudent men, turn away wrath; the wrath of God or of men, who were enraged against it.
Trapp's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
Proverbs 29:8 Scornful men bring a city into a snare: but wise [men] turn away wrath.Ver. 8. Scornful men bring a city into a snare.] The Vulgate render it, Pestilent persons undo a city or a state; as Nahash did the Ammonites, and as his son Hanan did much more. Mocking is catching, as the pestilence, and no less pernicious to the whole country. Geraldus Cambrensis tells of three Irish kings that, being derided for their rude habits and fashions, rebelled, and set the country in a combustion. And the young King of France, jesting at William the Conqueror’ s great belly, whereof he said he lay in at Rouen, so irritated him, as he being recovered of a sickness, entered France in the chiefest time of their fruits, making spoil of all in his way, till he came even to Paris, where this scornful king then was, to show him of his visiting, and from thence marched to the city of Mants, which he utterly sacked and ransacked, razed and harassed. But wise men turn away wrath.] They stand in the gap, and divert the divine displeasure. Their persons are in acceptation; God will look upon them, and do much for them, when he is most of all angry with the wicked. Their prayers also are prevalent. Something the Lord will yield thereunto, when most bitterly bent against a people, and when unchangeably resolved upon their ruin, he takes course to silence such; "Pray not for this people." " Sanctum semen statumen terrae" "The innocent shall deliver the island." Dan. Chron., 42.
Ellicott's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
(8) Scornful men.—See above on Proverbs 1:22. Bring a city into a snare.—Rather, excite the passions of; literally, fan, as a flame. Wise men turn away wrath.—By their gentle counsels.
Cambridge Bible on Proverbs 29:8
8. bring a city into a snare] Rather, set a city on fire, A. V. marg., or, in a flame, R.V.; ἐξέκαυσαν, LXX. Comp. Proverbs 20:10; Proverbs 26:21; and, for an illustration of the proverb, the story of Sheba the son of Bichri and the wise woman, 2 Samuel 20.
Barnes' Notes on Proverbs 29:8
Scornful men - The men who head political or religious revolutions, who inflame (literally as in the margin) the minds of the people against the powers that be.
Whedon's Commentary on Proverbs 29:8
8. Scornful men — Those who scoff at prudent counsels and good management. Bring a city into a snare — The best critics prefer to render this, “inflame a city” — blow up a flame — incite the people.
Sermons on Proverbs 29:8
| Sermon | Description | |
|---|---|---|
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Abortion: Attitudes for Action by Melody Green | Melody Green preaches about the story of David and Goliath, drawing parallels to the modern-day giant of abortion that has paralyzed the Army of God through fear and intimidation. |
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Prayer, Monolog or Dialog? by Chuck Smith | In this sermon, the preacher discusses the story of Moses and his encounter with God at the burning bush. Moses had fled to the desert after killing an Egyptian and spent 40 years |
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Power With God Exemplified in Samuel by T. Austin-Sparks | T. Austin-Sparks emphasizes the significance of Samuel's ministry as a representation of power with God, particularly in a time when the people of Israel were not aligned with God' |
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Isaiah 50:4 by Chuck Smith | Chuck Smith emphasizes the importance of listening in prayer, asserting that prayer should not be a one-sided conversation but a dialogue with God. He illustrates that the mighties |
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Power With God Exemplified in Moses by T. Austin-Sparks | T. Austin-Sparks emphasizes the profound relationship between God and Moses, illustrating how Moses' deep commitment to God's purpose exemplifies true power with God. He argues tha |
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Has God Told You to Stop Praying? by David Smithers | David Smithers addresses the concern and hopelessness many Christians feel regarding the Church and the nation's desperate times, emphasizing the importance of not giving up on pra |
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God Requires Honesty and Compassion - Part 5 by Zac Poonen | This sermon emphasizes the importance of acknowledging our iniquity and confessing our sins to one another for physical and spiritual healing. It highlights the need for humility b |