There is life in the path of righteousness, but another path leads to death.
Parallel translations
- WEB In the way of righteousness is life; in its path there is no death.
- KJV In the way of righteousness is life: and in the pathway thereof there is no death.
- NKJV In the way of righteousness is life, And in its pathway there is no death.
- NASB In the way of righteousness there is life, And in its pathway there is no death.
- NLT The way of the godly leads to life; that path does not lead to death.
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
In the way of righteousness there is life, and along its path there is no death. Walking in righteousness leads to life itself.
Overview
This proverb gathers up the chapter's two-ways theme, declaring that the path of righteousness leads to life and not death. It holds out the deepest promise of wisdom literature. Its fullest meaning is found in Christ, the way that leads to eternal life, who has conquered death for all who walk in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- 3 Jn 1:11Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.
- Rom 5:21so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
- Ezek 18:20–24The soul who sins is the one who will die. A son will not bear the iniquity of his father, and a father will not bear the iniquity of his son. The righteousness of the righteous man will fall upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked man will fall upon him.
- Titus 2:11–12For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone.
- Prov 11:19Genuine righteousness leads to life, but the pursuit of evil brings death.
- Ezek 18:9He follows My statutes and faithfully keeps My ordinances. That man is righteous; surely he will live, declares the Lord GOD.
- 1 Jn 2:29If you know that He is righteous, you also know that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of Him.
- Prov 8:35For whoever finds me finds life and obtains the favor of the LORD.
- Prov 10:16The labor of the righteous leads to life, but the gain of the wicked brings punishment.
- 1 Jn 3:7Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.
- Deut 30:15See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster.
- Rom 6:22–23But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life.
- Prov 9:11For through wisdom your days will be multiplied, and years will be added to your life.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 12:28 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.