One pretends to be rich, but has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.
Parallel translations
- WEB There are some who pretend to be rich, yet have nothing. There are some who pretend to be poor, yet have great wealth.
- KJV There is that maketh himself rich, yet hath nothing: there is that maketh himself poor, yet hath great riches.
- NKJV There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
- NASB There is one who pretends to be rich but has nothing; Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth.
- NLT Some who are poor pretend to be rich; others who are rich pretend to be poor.
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
Appearances often deceive: some feign wealth while having nothing, others feign poverty while truly rich. True worth is not measured by outward show.
Overview
This observational proverb exposes the gap between appearance and reality in the matter of wealth, warning against both pretension and hasty judgment. It cautions the wise not to be impressed by display, since outward status can mask spiritual or material emptiness. Scripture elsewhere teaches that lasting riches are spiritual, and that in Christ one may be 'poor, yet making many rich' (2 Corinthians 6:10).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Luke 18:11–14The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like the other men—swindlers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector.
- Rev 3:17You say, ‘I am rich; I have grown wealthy and need nothing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.
- Prov 11:24One gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor.
- Prov 12:9Better to be lightly esteemed yet have a servant, than to be self-important but lack food.
- Prov 13:11Dishonest wealth will dwindle, but what is earned through hard work will be multiplied.
- 2 Cor 6:10sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
- Jas 2:5Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him?
- 2 Cor 4:7Now we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this surpassingly great power is from God and not from us.
- Luke 12:21This is how it will be for anyone who stores up treasure for himself but is not rich toward God.”
- 2 Pet 2:19They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves to depravity. For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.
- Eccl 11:1–2Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.
- 1 Cor 4:10–11We are fools for Christ, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are honored, but we are dishonored.
- Luke 12:33Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
- Rev 2:9I know your affliction and your poverty—though you are rich! And I am aware of the slander of those who falsely claim to be Jews, but are in fact a synagogue of Satan.
- 1 Cor 4:8Already you have all you want. Already you have become rich. Without us, you have become kings. How I wish you really were kings, so that we might be kings with you!
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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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 13:7 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.