The LORD detests the way of the wicked, but He loves those who pursue righteousness.
Parallel translations
- WEB The way of the wicked is an abomination to Yahweh, but he loves him who follows after righteousness.
- KJV The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the LORD: but he loveth him that followeth after righteousness.
- NKJV The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But He loves him who follows righteousness.
- NASB The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, But He loves the one who pursues righteousness.
- NLT The Lord detests the way of the wicked, but he loves those who pursue godliness.
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 LORD detests the way of the wicked but loves those who pursue righteousness. God's affection rests on the pursuit of holiness.
Overview
This proverb contrasts God's abhorrence of the wicked's lifestyle with His love for those who earnestly follow righteousness. It reveals that God is not indifferent but personally responds to the direction of our lives. The pursuit of righteousness it commends is empowered in the believer by grace, as we follow after Christ (Hebrews 12:14).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- 1 Tim 6:11But you, O man of God, flee from these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness.
- Prov 21:21He who pursues righteousness and loving devotion finds life, righteousness, and honor.
- Hos 6:3So let us know—let us press on to know the LORD. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.
- Jer 44:4Yet I sent you all My servants the prophets again and again, saying: ‘Do not do this detestable thing that I hate.’
- Hab 1:13Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the faithless? Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
- Matt 7:13Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
- Isa 51:7Listen to Me, you who know what is right, you people with My law in your hearts: Do not fear the scorn of men; do not be broken by their insults.
- Prov 21:4Haughty eyes and a proud heart—the guides of the wicked—are sin.
- 2 Tim 2:22Flee from youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, together with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.
- Isa 26:7The path of the righteous is level; You clear a straight path for the upright.
- Prov 4:19But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they do not know what makes them stumble.
- Ps 146:8–9the LORD opens the eyes of the blind, the LORD lifts those who are weighed down, the LORD loves the righteous.
- Ps 1:6For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
- Prov 21:8The way of a guilty man is crooked, but the conduct of the innocent is upright.
- Isa 51:1“Listen to Me, you who pursue righteousness, you who seek the LORD: Look to the rock from which you were cut, and to the quarry from which you were hewn.
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 15:9 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.