for they are on their way to poverty, and too much sleep clothes them in rags.
Parallel translations
- WEB for the drunkard and the glutton shall become poor; and drowsiness clothes them in rags.
- KJV For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty: and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.
- BSB For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe them in rags.
- NKJV For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.
- NASB For the heavy drinker and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe one with rags.
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
Drunkenness and gluttony lead to poverty and ruin.
Overview
The verse gives the practical consequence of overindulgence: it impoverishes and clothes a person in rags. A life ruled by appetite ends in want and disgrace. This concrete warning underscores the broader biblical principle that self-indulgence destroys, while self-control, a fruit of the Spirit, leads to life (Gal. 5:22-23).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Prov 21:17He who loves pleasure shall be a poor man. He who loves wine and oil shall not be rich.
- Prov 19:15Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep. The idle soul shall suffer hunger.
- Phil 3:19whose end is destruction, whose god is the belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who think about earthly things.
- Prov 6:9–11How long will you sleep, sluggard? When will you arise out of your sleep?
- Gal 5:21envy, murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these; of which I forewarn you, even as I also forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit God’s Kingdom.
- Deut 21:20They shall tell the elders of his city, “This our son is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey our voice. He is a glutton and a drunkard.”
- 1 Cor 5:11But as it is, I wrote to you not to associate with anyone who is called a brother who is a sexual sinner, or covetous, or an idolater, or a slanderer, or a drunkard, or an extortionist. Don’t even eat with such a person.
- Joel 1:5Wake up, you drunkards, and weep! Wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
- Prov 24:30–34I went by the field of the sluggard, by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
- 1 Cor 6:10nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortionists, will inherit God’s Kingdom.
- Isa 28:1–3Woe to the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fertile valley of those who are overcome with wine!
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 23:21 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.