It is surely not good to punish the innocent or to flog a noble for his honesty.
Parallel translations
- WEB Also to punish the righteous is not good, nor to flog officials for their integrity.
- KJV Also to punish the just is not good, nor to strike princes for equity.
- NKJV Also, to punish the righteous is not good, Nor to strike princes for their uprightness.
- NASB It is also not good to fine the righteous, Nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
- NLT It is wrong to punish the godly for being good or to flog leaders for being honest.
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
Punishing the innocent or righteous is plainly wrong. It is an injustice to penalize people for their integrity.
Overview
This proverb condemns the perversion of justice that fines or flogs the righteous and upright officials precisely because of their integrity. It exposes how wickedness inverts moral order, punishing good rather than evil. Scripture honors those who suffer for righteousness' sake (1 Pet. 3:14), and ultimately Christ Himself, the wholly innocent One, was unjustly condemned (Isa. 53:9), securing salvation for the guilty.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Prov 17:15Acquitting the guilty and condemning the righteous—both are detestable to the LORD.
- Prov 18:5Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice.
- John 18:22When Jesus had said this, one of the officers standing nearby slapped Him in the face and said, “Is this how You answer the high priest?”
- Job 34:18–19who says to kings, ‘You are worthless!’ and to nobles, ‘You are wicked,’
- 2 Sam 3:39And I am weak this day, though anointed as king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil!”
- Mic 5:1Now, O daughter of troops, mobilize your troops; for a siege is laid against us! With a rod they will strike the cheek of the judge of Israel.
- Gen 18:25Far be it from You to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Will not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”
- 2 Sam 16:7–8And as he yelled curses, Shimei said, “Get out, get out, you worthless man of bloodshed!
- 2 Sam 3:23–25When Joab and all his troops arrived, he was informed, “Abner son of Ner came to see the king, who sent him on his way in peace.”
- 2 Sam 19:7Now therefore get up! Go out and speak comfort to your servants, for I swear by the LORD that if you do not go out, not a man will remain with you tonight. This will be worse for you than all the adversity that has befallen you from your youth until now!”
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 17:26 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.