◄ Proverbs 21:27 ►
The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable--how much more so when brought with ill intent!
Study Bible
The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable—
In ancient Israel, sacrifices were central to worship and were meant to be expressions of devotion and repentance. However, when offered by the wicked, these sacrifices were considered detestable. This reflects the biblical principle that God values the heart's condition over ritualistic practices (1 Samuel 15:22). The wicked, in this context, are those who live in rebellion against God's commandments, and their sacrifices are hypocritical, lacking genuine repentance or faith. This aligns with Isaiah 1:11-15, where God expresses disdain for empty rituals performed by those who do not live righteously.

how much more so when brought with ill intent!
The phrase "ill intent" suggests ulterior motives behind the sacrifice, such as attempting to bribe God or gain favor while continuing in sin. This highlights the importance of sincerity in worship and the futility of trying to manipulate God. In the New Testament, Jesus condemns similar hypocrisy in the Pharisees, who outwardly performed religious duties but harbored corrupt hearts (Matthew 23:27-28). The emphasis is on the integrity of the worshiper, as seen in Psalm 51:17, which states that God desires a broken and contrite heart. This phrase serves as a warning that God cannot be deceived and that true worship requires both right action and right intention.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The Wicked
In the context of Proverbs, the wicked are those who live in opposition to God's commandments and moral order. They are characterized by their sinful actions and intentions.

2. Sacrifice
In ancient Israel, sacrifices were offerings made to God as acts of worship, atonement, or thanksgiving. They were central to the religious life of the Israelites.

3. Ill Intent
This refers to the motivations behind actions. In this verse, it highlights the insincerity or malicious intent behind the sacrifices offered by the wicked.
Teaching Points
The Heart of Worship
True worship is not about external rituals but the condition of the heart. God values sincerity and righteousness over mere religious acts.

The Danger of Hypocrisy
Offering sacrifices with ill intent is not only ineffective but detestable to God. We must examine our motives in worship and service.

God's Desire for Righteousness
God desires a life of obedience and righteousness. Our actions should reflect a heart aligned with His will.

Self-Examination
Regularly assess your motivations in worship and service. Are they driven by a genuine love for God or by selfish desires?

The Importance of Repentance
When we recognize insincerity in our worship, we should repent and seek to align our hearts with God's desires.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does understanding the original context of sacrifices in ancient Israel help us interpret Proverbs 21:27?

2. In what ways can we ensure that our worship and service to God are sincere and not driven by ill intent?

3. How does the message of Proverbs 21:27 challenge the way we approach religious rituals today?

4. What are some practical steps we can take to align our hearts with God's desires, as emphasized in this verse?

5. How do the additional scriptures connected to Proverbs 21:27 deepen our understanding of God's view on worship and sacrifice?
Connections to Other Scriptures
1 Samuel 15:22
This verse emphasizes that obedience to God is more important than sacrifice, highlighting the importance of the heart's intent over ritualistic offerings.

Isaiah 1:11-17
God expresses disdain for sacrifices made by those who live unrighteously, underscoring the theme that God desires righteousness and justice over mere ritual.

Matthew 15:8-9
Jesus criticizes those who honor God with their lips while their hearts are far from Him, paralleling the idea of insincere worship.
Sermons
The Just Judgments of the EternalE. Johnson Proverbs 21:27-31
People
Solomon
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Abomination, Bring, Bringeth, Brings, Detestable, Disgusting, Evil, Evil-doers, Intent, Mind, Offering, Proceeds, Purpose, Sacrifice, Wicked, Wickedness
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Proverbs 21:25-26

     5539   sluggard

Library
Definition of Actual Grace
1. GENERAL NOTION OF GRACE.--The best way to arrive at a correct definition of actual grace is by the synthetic method. We therefore begin with the general notion of grace. Like "nature,"(3) grace (gratia, {GREEK SMALL LETTER CHI}{GREEK SMALL LETTER ALPHA WITH OXIA}{GREEK SMALL LETTER RHO}{GREEK SMALL LETTER IOTA}{GREEK SMALL LETTER FINAL SIGMA}) is a word of wide reach, used in a great variety of senses. Habert(4) enumerates no less than fourteen; which, however, may be reduced to four. a) Subjectively, …
Joseph Pohle—Grace, Actual and Habitual

Epistle xxi. To Constantina Augusta .
To Constantina Augusta [1593] . Gregory to Constantina, &c. Almighty God, who holds in His right hand the heart of your Piety, both protects us through you and prepares for you rewards of eternal remuneration for temporal deeds. For I have learnt from the letters of the deacon Sabinianus my responsalis with what justice your Serenity is interested in the cause of the blessed Prince of the apostles Peter against certain persons who are proudly humble and feignedly kind. And I trust in the bounty …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

Epistle Cvi. To Syagrius, Ætherius, virgilius, and Desiderius, Bishops .
To Syagrius, Ætherius, Virgilius, and Desiderius, Bishops [65] . Gregory to Syagrius of Augustodunum (Autun), Etherius of Lugdunum (Lyons), Virgilius of Aretale (Arles), and Desiderius of Vienna (Vienne), bishops of Gaul. A paribus. Our Head, which is Christ, has to this end willed us to be His members, that through the bond of charity and faith He might make us one body in Himself. And to Him it befits us so to adhere in heart, that, since without Him we can be nothing, through Him we may …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great

How the Slothful and the Hasty are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 16.) Differently to be admonished are the slothful and the hasty. For the former are to be persuaded not to lose, by putting it off, the good they have to do; but the latter are to be admonished lest, while they forestall the time of good deeds by inconsiderate haste, they change their meritorious character. To the slothful therefore it is to be intimated, that often, when we will not do at the right time what we can, before long, when we will, we cannot. For the very indolence of …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

How those are to be Admonished who Desire not the Things of Others, but Keep their Own; and those who Give of their Own, yet Seize
(Admonition 22.) Differently to be admonished are those who neither desire what belongs to others nor bestow what is their own, and those who give of what they have, and yet desist not from seizing on what belongs to others. Those who neither desire what belongs to others nor bestow what is their own are to be admonished to consider carefully that the earth out of which they are taken is common to all men, and therefore brings forth nourishment for all in common. Vainly, then, do those suppose …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

The Heavenly Footman; Or, a Description of the Man that Gets to Heaven:
TOGETHER WITH THE WAY HE RUNS IN, THE MARKS HE GOES BY; ALSO, SOME DIRECTIONS HOW TO RUN SO AS TO OBTAIN. 'And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain: escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.'--Genesis 19:17. London: Printed for John Marshall, at the Bible in Gracechurch Street, 1698. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. About forty years ago a gentleman, in whose company I had commenced my …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

"And the Life. " How Christ is the Life.
This, as the former, being spoken indefinitely, may be universally taken, as relating both to such as are yet in the state of nature, and to such as are in the state of grace, and so may be considered in reference to both, and ground three points of truth, both in reference to the one, and in reference to the other; to wit, 1. That our case is such as we stand in need of his help, as being the Life. 2. That no other way but by him, can we get that supply of life, which we stand in need of, for he …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

How Christ is the Way in General, "I am the Way. "
We come now to speak more particularly to the words; and, first, Of his being a way. Our design being to point at the way of use-making of Christ in all our necessities, straits, and difficulties which are in our way to heaven; and particularly to point out the way how believers should make use of Christ in all their particular exigencies; and so live by faith in him, walk in him, grow up in him, advance and march forward toward glory in him. It will not be amiss to speak of this fulness of Christ …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

An Analysis of Augustin's Writings against the Donatists.
The object of this chapter is to present a rudimentary outline and summary of all that Augustin penned or spoke against those traditional North African Christians whom he was pleased to regard as schismatics. It will be arranged, so far as may be, in chronological order, following the dates suggested by the Benedictine edition. The necessary brevity precludes anything but a very meagre treatment of so considerable a theme. The writer takes no responsibility for the ecclesiological tenets of the …
St. Augustine—writings in connection with the donatist controversy.

Paul's Departure and Crown;
OR, AN EXPOSITION UPON 2 TIM. IV. 6-8 ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR How great and glorious is the Christian's ultimate destiny--a kingdom and a crown! Surely it hath not entered into the heart of man to conceive what ear never heard, nor mortal eye ever saw? the mansions of the blest--the realms of glory--'a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.' For whom can so precious an inheritance be intended? How are those treated in this world who are entitled to so glorious, so exalted, so eternal, …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Proverbs
Many specimens of the so-called Wisdom Literature are preserved for us in the book of Proverbs, for its contents are by no means confined to what we call proverbs. The first nine chapters constitute a continuous discourse, almost in the manner of a sermon; and of the last two chapters, ch. xxx. is largely made up of enigmas, and xxxi. is in part a description of the good housewife. All, however, are rightly subsumed under the idea of wisdom, which to the Hebrew had always moral relations. The Hebrew …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

Links
Proverbs 21:27 NIV
Proverbs 21:27 NLT
Proverbs 21:27 ESV
Proverbs 21:27 NASB
Proverbs 21:27 KJV

Proverbs 21:27 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Proverbs 21:26
Top of Page
Top of Page