The desire of the righteous leads only to good, but the hope of the wicked brings wrath.
Parallel translations
- WEB The desire of the righteous is only good. The expectation of the wicked is wrath.
- KJV The desire of the righteous is only good: but the expectation of the wicked is wrath.
- NKJV The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath.
- NASB The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath.
- NLT The godly can look forward to a reward, while the wicked can expect only judgment.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The righteous desire only good, but the wicked can expect only wrath. Our deepest desires shape the outcomes we receive.
Overview
This proverb contrasts the wholesome longings of the righteous, which end in good, with the expectations of the wicked, which end in wrath. Desire reveals character and points toward destiny. The believer's renewed desires, formed by the Spirit, increasingly aim at the good God intends and promises in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Rom 2:8–9But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow wickedness, there will be wrath and anger.
- Ps 37:4Delight yourself in the LORD, and He will give you the desires of your heart.
- Matt 5:6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
- Ps 10:17You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will incline Your ear,
- Ps 119:10With all my heart I have sought You; do not let me stray from Your commandments.
- Ps 27:4One thing I have asked of the LORD; this is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and seek Him in His temple.
- Isa 26:9My soul longs for You in the night; indeed, my spirit seeks You at dawn. For when Your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness.
- Jer 17:16But I have not run away from being Your shepherd; I have not desired the day of despair. You know that the utterance of my lips was spoken in Your presence.
- Prov 10:28The hope of the righteous is joy, but the expectations of the wicked will perish.
- Ps 39:7–8And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.
- Prov 11:7When the wicked man dies, his hope perishes, and the hope of his strength vanishes.
- Ps 119:5Oh, that my ways were committed to keeping Your statutes!
- Heb 10:27but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume all adversaries.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 11:23 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.