The slacker buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth.
Parallel translations
- WEB The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.
- KJV A slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.
- NKJV A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, And will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.
- NASB The lazy one buries his hand in the dish, But will not even bring it back to his mouth.
- NLT Lazy people take food in their hand but don’t even lift it to their mouth.
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 sluggard is too lazy even to feed himself. The proverb mocks laziness as absurdly self-defeating.
Overview
This proverb humorously pictures the sluggard burying his hand in the dish yet too lazy to lift the food to his mouth. Its exaggeration drives home how self-defeating and ridiculous idleness is. By satirizing sloth, the verse commends diligence and self-discipline, qualities Scripture honors as fitting for those who serve God faithfully in all their labor.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 15:19The way of the slacker is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a highway.
- Prov 26:13–16The slacker says, “A lion is in the road! A fierce lion roams the public square!”
- Prov 6:9–10How long will you lie there, O slacker? When will you get up from your sleep?
- Prov 24:30–34I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment.
- Prov 19:15Laziness brings on deep sleep, and an idle soul will suffer hunger.
- Prov 12:27A lazy man does not roast his game, but a diligent man prizes his possession.
- Mark 14:20He answered, “It is one of the Twelve—the one who is dipping his hand into the bowl with Me.
- Ps 74:11Why do You withdraw Your strong right hand? Stretch it out to destroy them!
- Matt 26:23Jesus answered, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with Me will betray Me.
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 19:24 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.