I was almost in all evil in the midst of the congregation and assembly.
Parallel translations
- WEB I have come to the brink of utter ruin, among the gathered assembly.”
- BSB I am on the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.”
- NKJV I was on the verge of total ruin, In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
- NASB “I was almost in total ruin In the midst of the assembly and congregation.”
- NLT I have come to the brink of utter ruin, and now I must face public disgrace.”
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
He came to the brink of complete ruin before the whole assembly. Sin can bring one to public disgrace and near destruction.
Overview
The lamenter confesses that he reached the edge of utter ruin, and that within the public gathering, exposed to shame before the community. Sin pursued in secret often ends in open disgrace. This climax of the warning urges the wise to flee immorality before such ruin overtakes them.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Prov 13:20He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
- 2 Pet 2:10–18But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
- 1 Cor 10:6–8Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
- Num 25:1–6And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
- Hos 4:11–14Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.
- Jude 1:7–13Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
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 5:14 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.