The house of the wicked shall be overthrown: but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.
Parallel translations
- WEB The house of the wicked will be overthrown, but the tent of the upright will flourish.
- BSB The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the upright will flourish.
- NKJV The house of the wicked will be overthrown, But the tent of the upright will flourish.
- NASB The house of the wicked will be destroyed, But the tent of the upright will flourish.
- NLT The house of the wicked will be destroyed, but the tent of the godly will flourish.
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 wicked's house will be overthrown, but the upright's tent will flourish. Even modest righteousness outlasts impressive wickedness.
Overview
The proverb contrasts the seemingly solid 'house' of the wicked, destined to fall, with the humble 'tent' of the upright, which will thrive. The reversal of expectations underscores that moral foundations, not outward grandeur, determine endurance. This anticipates Jesus' teaching that the house built on His words stands when storms come (Matthew 7:24-27).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- Prov 3:33The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just.
- Prov 12:7The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand.
- Matt 7:26–27And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
- Prov 21:12The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthroweth the wicked for their wickedness.
- Zech 5:4I will bring it forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by my name: and it shall remain in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.
- Job 21:28For ye say, Where is the house of the prince? and where are the dwelling places of the wicked?
- Job 18:14–15His confidence shall be rooted out of his tabernacle, and it shall bring him to the king of terrors.
- Isa 58:11–12And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.
- Job 8:15He shall lean upon his house, but it shall not stand: he shall hold it fast, but it shall not endure.
- Prov 11:28He that trusteth in his riches shall fall; but the righteous shall flourish as a branch.
- Prov 21:20There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up.
- Ps 128:3Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
- Job 8:6If thou wert pure and upright; surely now he would awake for thee, and make the habitation of thy righteousness prosperous.
- Job 15:34For the congregation of hypocrites shall be desolate, and fire shall consume the tabernacles of bribery.
- Job 18:21Surely such are the dwellings of the wicked, and this is the place of him that knoweth not God.
- Job 20:26–28All darkness shall be hid in his secret places: a fire not blown shall consume him; it shall go ill with him that is left in his tabernacle.
- Ps 112:2–3His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
- Job 27:13–23This is the portion of a wicked man with God, and the heritage of oppressors, which they shall receive of the Almighty.
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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 14:11 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.