Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version An unfriendly person pursues selfish ends and against all sound judgment starts quarrels. New Living Translation Unfriendly people care only about themselves; they lash out at common sense. English Standard Version Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment. Berean Standard Bible He who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment. King James Bible Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom. New King James Version A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment. New American Standard Bible One who separates himself seeks his own desire; He quarrels against all sound wisdom. NASB 1995 He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom. NASB 1977 He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom. Legacy Standard Bible He who separates himself seeks his own desire, He breaks out in dispute against all sound wisdom. Amplified Bible He who [willfully] separates himself [from God and man] seeks his own desire, He quarrels against all sound wisdom. Christian Standard Bible One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound wisdom. Holman Christian Standard Bible One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment. American Standard Version He that separateth himself seeketh his own desire, And rageth against all sound wisdom. Contemporary English Version It's selfish and stupid to think only of yourself and to sneer at people who have sense. English Revised Version He that separateth himself seeketh his own desire, and rageth against all sound wisdom. GOD'S WORD® Translation A loner is out to get what he wants for himself. He opposes all sound reasoning. Good News Translation People who do not get along with others are interested only in themselves; they will disagree with what everyone else knows is right. International Standard Version Whoever isolates himself pursues selfish ends; he resists all sound advice. Majority Standard Bible He who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment. NET Bible One who has isolated himself seeks his own desires; he rejects all sound judgment. New Heart English Bible An unfriendly man pursues selfishness, and defies all sound judgment. Webster's Bible Translation Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom. World English Bible A man who isolates himself pursues selfishness, and defies all sound judgment. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionHe who is separated seeks [his own] desire, "" He interferes with all wisdom. Young's Literal Translation For an object of desire he who is separated doth seek, With all wisdom he intermeddleth. Smith's Literal Translation He separating himself will seek according to desire; he will be irritated with every purpose. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleHe that hath a mind to depart from a friend seeketh occasions: he shall ever be subject to reproach. Catholic Public Domain Version Whoever has a will to withdraw from a friend, seeks occasions; he shall be reproached at all times. New American Bible One who is alienated seeks a pretext, with all persistence picks a quarrel. New Revised Standard Version The one who lives alone is self-indulgent, showing contempt for all who have sound judgment. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleWHEN a man is inactive he imagines lust and mocks at good instruction. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated In his idleness one meditates on lust and mocks at good instruction. OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917He that separateth himself seeketh his own desire, And snarlest against all sound wisdom. Brenton Septuagint Translation A man who wishes to separate from friends seeks excuses; but at all times he will be liable to reproach. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Selfishness of the Unfriendly1He who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment. 2A fool does not delight in understanding, but only in airing his opinions.… Cross References James 3:16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every evil practice. Philippians 2:3-4 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves. / Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. 1 Corinthians 10:24 No one should seek his own good, but the good of others. Galatians 5:20 idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, Romans 12:10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another. 1 Corinthians 13:5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs. 2 Timothy 3:2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, James 4:1-2 What causes conflicts and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the passions at war within you? / You crave what you do not have; you kill and covet, but are unable to obtain it. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask. 1 Peter 5:5 Young men, in the same way, submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Romans 15:1-2 We who are strong ought to bear with the shortcomings of the weak and not to please ourselves. / Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. 1 Corinthians 8:9 Be careful, however, that your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. 1 John 3:17 If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him? Matthew 20:25-28 But Jesus called them aside and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their superiors exercise authority over them. / It shall not be this way among you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, / and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave— ... Luke 9:23 Then Jesus said to all of them, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. Ephesians 4:2-3 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, / and with diligence to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Treasury of Scripture Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeks and intermeddles with all wisdom. seeketh Proverbs 2:1-6 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; … Matthew 13:11,44 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given… Mark 4:11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: intermeddleth Proverbs 14:10 The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy. Proverbs 17:14 The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with. Proverbs 20:3,19 It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling… Jump to Previous Break Desire Estranged Goes Good Intermeddleth Judgment Keeps Pleasure Pretexts Private Purpose Pursues Quarrels Rageth Seeketh Seeks Selfish Selfishness Sense Separate Separated Separates Separateth Sound Vehement WisdomJump to Next Break Desire Estranged Goes Good Intermeddleth Judgment Keeps Pleasure Pretexts Private Purpose Pursues Quarrels Rageth Seeketh Seeks Selfish Selfishness Sense Separate Separated Separates Separateth Sound Vehement WisdomProverbs 18 1. A fool delights not in understandingHe who isolates himself The Hebrew root for "isolates" is "פָּרַד" (parad), which means to separate or divide. In the ancient context, community was vital for survival, spiritual growth, and accountability. Isolation here is not merely physical but also emotional and spiritual, suggesting a withdrawal from the wisdom and counsel of others. This phrase warns against the dangers of self-imposed solitude, which can lead to a narrow perspective and vulnerability to one's own flawed reasoning. pursues selfish desires he rebels against all sound judgment (1) Through desire a man, having separated himself . . .--This should probably be rendered, The separatist seeketh after his own desire, against all improvement he shows his teeth. The man of small mind is here described, who will only follow his own narrow aims, who holds himself aloof from men of wider views than his own, and will not join with them in the furtherance of philanthropic or religious plans, but rather opposes them with all his power, as he can see nothing but mischief in them. (For his temper of mind, comp. John 7:47-49.) Intermeddleth.--See above on Proverbs 17:14. Wisdom.--See above on Proverbs 2:7. Verse 1. - This is a difficult verse, and has obtained various interpretations. The Authorized Version gives, Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom; i.e. a man who has an earnest desire for self-improvement will hold himself aloof from worldly entanglements, and, occupying himself wholly in this pursuit, will become conversant with all wisdom. This gives good sense, and offers a contrast to the fool in ver. 2, who "hath no delight in understanding." But the Hebrew does not rightly bear this interpretation. Its conciseness occasions ambiguity. Literally, For his desire a man who separates himself seeks; in (or against) all wisdom he mingles himself. There is a doubt whether the life of isolation is praised or censured in this verse. Aben Ezra and others of Pharisaic tendencies adopt the former alternative, and explain pretty much as the Authorized Version, thus: "He who out of love of wisdom divorces himself from home, country, or secular pursuits, such a man will mix with the wise and prudent, and be conversant with such." But the maxim seems rather to blame this separation, though here, again, there is a variety of interpretation. Delitzsch, Ewald, and others translate, "He that dwelleth apart seeketh pleasure, against all sound wisdom he showeth his teeth" (comp. Proverbs 17:14). Nowack, after Bertheau, renders, "He who separates himself goes after his own desire; with all that is useful he falls into a rage." Thus the maxim is directed against the conceited, self-willed man, who sets himself against public opinion, delights in differing from received customs, takes no counsel from others, thinks nothing of public interests, but in his mean isolation attends only to his own private ends and fancies (comp. Hebrews 10:25). The Septuagint and Vulgate (followed by Hitzig) read in the first clause, for taavah, "desire," taanah, "occasion;" thus: "He who wishes to separate from a friend seeks occasions; but at all time he will be worthy of censure." The word translated "wisdom" (tushiyah) also means "substance," "existence;" hence the rendering, "at all time," omni existentia, equivalent to omni tempore.Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew He who isolates himselfנִפְרָ֑ד (nip̄·rāḏ) Verb - Nifal - Participle - masculine singular Strong's 6504: To break through, spread, separate pursues יְבַקֵּ֣שׁ (yə·ḇaq·qêš) Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 1245: To search out, to strive after selfish desires; לְֽ֭תַאֲוָה (lə·ṯa·’ă·wāh) Preposition-l | Noun - feminine singular Strong's 8378: A longing, a delight he rebels יִתְגַּלָּֽע׃ (yiṯ·gal·lā‘) Verb - Hitpael - Imperfect - third person masculine singular Strong's 1566: To expose, lay bare against all בְּכָל־ (bə·ḵāl) Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every sound judgment. תּ֝וּשִׁיָּ֗ה (tū·šî·yāh) Noun - feminine singular Strong's 8454: Support, ability, help, an undertaking, understanding Links Proverbs 18:1 NIVProverbs 18:1 NLT Proverbs 18:1 ESV Proverbs 18:1 NASB Proverbs 18:1 KJV Proverbs 18:1 BibleApps.com Proverbs 18:1 Biblia Paralela Proverbs 18:1 Chinese Bible Proverbs 18:1 French Bible Proverbs 18:1 Catholic Bible OT Poetry: Proverbs 18:1 An unfriendly man pursues selfishness and defies (Prov. Pro Pr) |
    |