There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.
Parallel translations
- WEB There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
- KJV There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
- BSB There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.
- NKJV There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
- NASB There is a way which seems right to a person, But its end is the way of 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
A path can seem right yet end in death. Human judgment, apart from God's truth, can be fatally mistaken.
Overview
This solemn proverb warns that our own sense of what is right is not a reliable guide, for a way may appear correct and still lead to destruction. It calls for humble dependence on God's wisdom rather than self-confidence. The verse points to humanity's need for the One who is the true way to life, Jesus Christ (John 14:6).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 16:25There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
- Matt 7:13–14“Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter in by it.
- Prov 12:15The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but he who is wise listens to counsel.
- Gal 6:3For if a man thinks himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
- Luke 13:24“Strive to enter in by the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will seek to enter in, and will not be able.
- Rom 6:21What fruit then did you have at that time in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death.
- Prov 30:12There is a generation that is pure in their own eyes, yet are not washed from their filthiness.
- Jas 1:22But be doers of the word, and not only hearers, deluding your own selves.
- Eph 5:6Let no one deceive you with empty words. For because of these things, the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 14:12 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.