The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares in its joy.
Parallel translations
- WEB The heart knows its own bitterness and joy; he will not share these with a stranger.
- KJV The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.
- NKJV The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy.
- NASB The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy.
- NLT Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can fully share its joy.
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
Each heart knows its own grief and joy that no outsider can fully share. There is a personal depth to human experience.
Overview
This insightful proverb acknowledges the irreducible privacy of the inner life: our deepest sorrows and joys cannot be wholly entered into by another. It fosters humility in offering comfort and counsel, and gentleness toward others' hidden burdens. Yet there is One who fully knows every heart, and in Christ we have a sympathizing High Priest who understands our griefs (Hebrews 4:15).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- Prov 18:14The spirit of a man can endure his sickness, but who can survive a broken spirit?
- Phil 4:7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
- Prov 15:13A joyful heart makes a cheerful countenance, but sorrow of the heart crushes the spirit.
- Job 10:1“I loathe my own life; I will express my complaint and speak in the bitterness of my soul.
- Rev 2:17He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes, I will give the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone inscribed with a new name, known only to the one who receives it.
- John 14:18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
- Job 7:11Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
- John 12:27Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? No, it is for this purpose that I have come to this hour.
- Mark 14:33–34He took with Him Peter, James, and John, and began to be deeply troubled and distressed.
- 1 Sam 1:10In her bitter distress, Hannah prayed to the LORD and wept with many tears.
- Ps 25:14The LORD confides in those who fear Him, and reveals His covenant to them.
- 1 Pet 1:8Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
- Ezek 3:14So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me.
- 2 Kgs 4:27When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she clung to his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for her soul is in deep distress, and the LORD has hidden it from me and has not told me.”
- Job 6:2–4“If only my grief could be weighed and placed with my calamity on the scales.
- Job 9:18He does not let me catch my breath, but overwhelms me with bitterness.
- Gen 42:21Then they said to one another, “Surely we are being punished because of our brother. We saw his anguish when he pleaded with us, but we would not listen. That is why this distress has come upon us.”
- John 14:23Jesus replied, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
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 14:10 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.