Fools mock at sin, But among the upright there is goodwill.
Parallel translations
- WEB Fools mock at making atonement for sins, but among the upright there is good will.
- KJV Fools make a mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour.
- BSB Fools mock the making of amends, but goodwill is found among the upright.
- NKJV Fools mock at sin, But among the upright there is favor.
- NLT Fools make fun of guilt, but the godly acknowledge it and seek reconciliation.
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
Fools make light of guilt and atonement, but the upright enjoy goodwill. Treating sin lightly is itself foolish.
Overview
This proverb (whose Hebrew is difficult) contrasts fools who scoff at the seriousness of sin and the need for atonement with the upright who find favor and goodwill. It exposes the folly of dismissing guilt rather than dealing with it rightly. The gospel takes sin with utmost seriousness, providing atonement in Christ for those who will not mock but trust (Romans 3:25).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Prov 26:18–19Like a madman who shoots torches, arrows, and death,
- Rom 14:17–18for God’s Kingdom is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
- Prov 10:23It is a fool’s pleasure to do wickedness, but wisdom is a man of understanding’s pleasure.
- Prov 13:15Good understanding wins favor; but the way of the unfaithful is hard.
- Prov 8:35For whoever finds me, finds life, and will obtain favor from Yahweh.
- Prov 30:20“So is the way of an adulterous woman: she eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done nothing wrong.’
- Jude 1:18They said to you that “In the last time there will be mockers, walking after their own ungodly lusts.”
- Prov 1:22“How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? How long will mockers delight themselves in mockery, and fools hate knowledge?
- Prov 12:2A good man shall obtain favor from Yahweh, but he will condemn a man of wicked devices.
- Prov 3:4So you will find favor, and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
- Job 34:7–9What man is like Job, who drinks scorn like water,
- Job 15:16how much less one who is abominable and corrupt, a man who drinks iniquity like water!
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 14:9 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.