A righteous man eats to his heart’s content, but the stomach of the wicked is empty.
Parallel translations
- WEB The righteous one eats to the satisfying of his soul, but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.
- KJV The righteous eateth to the satisfying of his soul: but the belly of the wicked shall want.
- NKJV The righteous eats to the satisfying of his soul, But the stomach of the wicked shall be in want.
- NASB The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite, But the stomach of the wicked is in need.
- NLT The godly eat to their hearts’ content, but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.
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 are satisfied, while the wicked go hungry. God provides for those who walk with Him.
Overview
The proverb contrasts the contentment and provision of the righteous with the want of the wicked, picturing God's care for His own. It speaks generally of God's gracious provision, not promising that the righteous never lack. Jesus deepens the truth: those who hunger and thirst for righteousness shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6), filled at last in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Ps 34:10Young lions go lacking and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
- Prov 10:3The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry, but He denies the craving of the wicked.
- Heb 13:5Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for God has said: “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.”
- 1 Tim 4:8For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.
- Prov 6:11and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.
- Deut 32:24They will be wasted from hunger and ravaged by pestilence and bitter plague; I will send the fangs of wild beasts against them, with the venom of vipers that slither in the dust.
- Ps 37:16Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.
- Ps 37:18–19The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.
- Prov 24:34and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and need like a bandit.
- Deut 28:48you will serve your enemies the LORD will send against you in famine, thirst, nakedness, and destitution. He will place an iron yoke on your neck until He has destroyed you.
- Isa 65:13–14Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: “My servants will eat, but you will go hungry; My servants will drink, but you will go thirsty; My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame.
- Ps 37:3Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
- 2 Th 3:10For even while we were with you, we gave you this command: “If anyone is unwilling to work, he shall not eat.”
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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 13:25 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.