Also, that the soul be without knowledge, it is not good; and he that hasteth with his feet sinneth.
Parallel translations
- WEB It isn’t good to have zeal without knowledge; nor being hasty with one’s feet and missing the way.
- BSB Even zeal is no good without knowledge, and he who hurries his footsteps misses the mark.
- NKJV Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, And he sins who hastens with his feet.
- NASB Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge, And one who hurries his footsteps errs.
- NLT Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes.
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
Zeal without knowledge and reckless haste lead one astray. Eagerness must be guided by wisdom.
Overview
This proverb warns that desire or zeal lacking knowledge is not good, and that hasty feet miss the way. Enthusiasm uninformed by wisdom causes error and stumbling. The verse commends thoughtful, well-directed action over impulsive zeal, a balance the New Testament also urges, lest zeal be 'not according to knowledge' (Rom. 10:2) and so go astray from God's truth.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Prov 21:5The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want.
- Phil 1:9And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment;
- Prov 29:20Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him.
- Eccl 7:9Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
- Isa 28:16Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
- Hos 4:6My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
- John 16:3And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
- Rom 10:2For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
- Prov 14:29He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
- Prov 28:22He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.
- Prov 1:16For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.
- Eccl 12:9And moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.
- Prov 28:20A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.
- Prov 25:8Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame.
- Prov 10:21The lips of the righteous feed many: but fools die for want of wisdom.
- Isa 27:11When the boughs thereof are withered, they shall be broken off: the women come, and set them on fire: for it is a people of no understanding: therefore he that made them will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them will shew them no favour.
- Job 31:5If I have walked with vanity, or if my foot hath hasted to deceit;
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 19:2 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.