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Proverbs 6:7

WEBKJVBSBESVNKJVNASBNLT
Which, having no chief, Officer, or ruler,
Proverbs 6:7 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB which having no chief, overseer, or ruler,
  • KJV Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,
  • BSB Without a commander, without an overseer or ruler,
  • NKJV Which, having no captain, Overseer or ruler,
  • NLT Though they have no prince or governor or ruler to make them work,

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 ant works faithfully without any boss to drive her. True diligence comes from within, not from supervision.

Overview

The ant has no commander or ruler yet labors industriously, unlike the sluggard who works only when watched. This commends self-motivated diligence rooted in character rather than external pressure. It points toward the heart-level integrity that should mark God's people whether or not anyone is observing.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • Prov 30:27The locusts have no king, yet they advance in ranks.
  • Job 38:39“Can you hunt the prey for the lioness, or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
  • Job 41:4–34Will he make a covenant with you, that you should take him for a servant forever?
  • Job 39:26–30“Is it by your wisdom that the hawk soars, and stretches her wings toward the south?

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (7)
ANIMALSANTDILIGENCEIDLENESSSLOTHFULNESSSUMMERYOUNG MEN

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Proverbs videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Proverbs 6:7YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ProverbsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 6:7 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.

Which having no guideקָצִיןoverseerשֹׁטֵרor rulerמָשַׁל
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