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Proverbs 28

28 verses, grouped into the passages they belong to.

The wicked flee when no one pursues, But the righteous are bold as a lion.

Guilt invents pursuers. The verse contrasts a man running from nothing with one who has no reason to run.

Because of the transgression of a land, many are its princes; But by a man of understanding and knowledge Right will be prolonged.

A corrupt country churns through rulers. One person who actually understands things can make stability last.

Proverbs 28:3

A poor man who oppresses the poor Is like a driving rain which leaves no food.

The oppressor here is himself poor, and that is the whole point. The verse is about harm coming from the direction it was least expected.

Proverbs 28:4

Those who forsake the law praise the wicked, But such as keep the law contend with them.

Abandon the teaching and you end up applauding the people it warned you about. Keep it and you find yourself in conflict with them. The verse describes two trajectories, not two legal statuses.

Proverbs 28:5

Evil men do not understand justice, But those who seek the LORD understand all.

Some things are not visible from certain positions. The verse says justice is one of them, and that seeking God is what clears the view.

Proverbs 28:6

Better is the poor who walks in his integrity Than one perverse in his ways, though he be rich.

The same trade the book offered at 19:1, aimed at a different target. There the alternative was a fool; here it is a rich man.

Proverbs 28:7

Whoever keeps the law is a discerning son, But a companion of gluttons shames his father.

Keeping the teaching shows up as discernment; the company you keep shows up on your father. The verse measures a son by two visible things.

Proverbs 28:8

One who increases his possessions by usury and extortion Gathers it for him who will pity the poor.

Money made by bleeding people ends up in the hands of someone who will be generous with it. The verse says the accumulation does not stay where it was aimed.

Proverbs 28:9

One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.

A man who refuses to listen and still expects to be heard is the figure here. The verse is about that specific contradiction, and it is not a mechanism for switching prayer off.

Proverbs 28:10

Whoever causes the upright to go astray in an evil way, He himself will fall into his own pit; But the blameless will inherit good.

Lead a good man into harm and the trap closes on you. The third line adds what happens to the one who was targeted.

Proverbs 28:11

The rich man is wise in his own eyes, But the poor who has understanding searches him out.

Money feels like insight from the inside. The verse says a poor man with judgment can see straight through him.

Proverbs 28:12

When the righteous rejoice, there is great glory; But when the wicked arise, men hide themselves.

Public life has two weathers. Under one, celebration; under the other, people disappear.

Proverbs 28:13

He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.

Concealment does not work and admission is the way out. The verse is describing what hiding does to a person, not setting terms for God's forgiveness.

Proverbs 28:14

Happy is the man who is always reverent, But he who hardens his heart will fall into calamity.

A permanently soft heart is called happy. The contrast is not reverence against irreverence but softness against hardening.

Proverbs 28:15

Like a roaring lion and a charging bear Is a wicked ruler over poor people.

Two predators, one victim, and the victim is named: poor people. The verse is about power aimed downward at those least able to move.

Proverbs 28:16

A ruler who lacks understanding is a great oppressor, But he who hates covetousness will prolong his days.

Oppression is often stupidity rather than malice, and the verse says so. The cure it names is not competence but hating gain.

Proverbs 28:17

A man burdened with bloodshed will flee into a pit; Let no one help him.

A murderer running for his life is described, and the verse says not to stop his fall. It is one of the hardest sentences in the book.

Proverbs 28:18

Whoever walks blamelessly will be saved, But he who is perverse in his ways will suddenly fall.

Straight walking tends to come through; crookedness collapses without warning. The verse contrasts two gaits and two endings.

Proverbs 28:19

He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, But he who follows frivolity will have poverty enough!

Work the ground in front of you and you eat. Chase emptiness and you get a full measure of nothing.

Proverbs 28:20

A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.

Reliability accumulates and haste costs. The verse contrasts a quality of character with a speed, not two levels of ambition.

Proverbs 28:21

To show partiality is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.

Favoritism in judgment is wrong, and the second line explains how cheaply it happens. The price is a piece of bread.

Proverbs 28:22

A man with an evil eye hastens after riches, And does not consider that poverty will come upon him.

Greed is in a hurry and cannot see ahead. The verse pairs an appetite with a blind spot.

Proverbs 28:23

He who rebukes a man will find more favor afterward Than he who flatters with the tongue.

Correction is repaid later, flattery is repaid now, and the verse says which balance ends up larger.

Proverbs 28:24

Whoever robs his father or his mother, And says, "It is no transgression," The same is companion to a destroyer.

Taking from your parents and calling it nothing puts you in the same category as a wrecker. The verse targets the excuse as much as the theft.

Proverbs 28:25

He who is of a proud heart stirs up strife, But he who trusts in the LORD will be prospered.

Grasping produces conflict; trust produces sufficiency. The verse contrasts two ways of trying to get enough.

Proverbs 28:26

He who trusts in his own heart is a fool, But whoever walks wisely will be delivered.

Self-trust is named as folly outright. The verse is the counterpart to the verse before it, which named what to trust instead.

Proverbs 28:27

He who gives to the poor will not lack, But he who hides his eyes will have many curses.

Generosity does not empty a person, and looking away costs more than giving would have. The second line names the actual sin as the looking away.

Proverbs 28:28

When the wicked arise, men hide themselves; But when they perish, the righteous increase.

The same observation as verse 12, finished differently. There people were hunted; here they hide, and here the ending is recovery.

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