For there shall be no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out.
Parallel translations
- WEB for there will be no reward to the evil man; and the lamp of the wicked shall be snuffed out.
- BSB For the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be extinguished.
- NKJV For there will be no prospect for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out.
- NASB For there will be no future for the evil person; The lamp of the wicked will be put out.
- NLT For evil people have no future; the light of the wicked will be snuffed out.
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 wicked have no future, and their light will be snuffed out.
Overview
This grounds the previous verse: the evil have no lasting reward, and their "lamp," their life and hope, will be extinguished. Their apparent prosperity is temporary and doomed. In contrast, the righteous have an enduring hope and light, ultimately found in Christ, the light of life that never fails (John 8:12).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Prov 13:9The light of the righteous rejoiceth: but the lamp of the wicked shall be put out.
- Job 18:5–6Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out, and the spark of his fire shall not shine.
- Prov 20:20Whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness.
- Ps 11:6Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup.
- Job 21:17How oft is the candle of the wicked put out! and how oft cometh their destruction upon them! God distributeth sorrows in his anger.
- Matt 25:8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
- Matt 8:12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- Jude 1:13Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
- Prov 23:18For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
- Isa 3:11Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
- Ps 9:17The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 24:20 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.