¶Better is the little of the righteous Than the abundance of many wicked.
Parallel translations
- WEB Better is a little that the righteous has, than the abundance of many wicked.
- KJV A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked.
- BSB Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many who are wicked.
- NKJV A little that a righteous man has Is better than the riches of many wicked.
- NLT It is better to be godly and have little than to be evil and rich.
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
A little belonging to the righteous is better than the abundance of many wicked. Godly contentment outweighs ungodly wealth.
Overview
David teaches that quality of life with God exceeds mere quantity of possessions without Him; the righteous person's 'little' surpasses the wicked's plenty. True riches lie in righteousness and God's favor, not in accumulation. This wisdom anticipates Jesus' teaching that gaining the world while losing one's soul is no profit (Mark 8:36), and Paul's note that godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Timothy 6:6).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 16:8Better is a little with righteousness, than great revenues with injustice.
- Prov 15:16–17Better is little, with the fear of Yahweh, than great treasure with trouble.
- 1 Tim 6:6But godliness with contentment is great gain.
- Prov 13:25The righteous one eats to the satisfying of his soul, but the belly of the wicked goes hungry.
- Eccl 4:6Better is a handful, with quietness, than two handfuls with labor and chasing after wind.
- Prov 3:33Yahweh’s curse is in the house of the wicked, but he blesses the habitation of the righteous.
- Eccl 2:26For to the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge, and joy; but to the sinner he gives travail, to gather and to heap up, that he may give to him who pleases God. This also is vanity and a chasing after wind.
- Prov 30:9lest I be full, deny you, and say, ‘Who is Yahweh?’ or lest I be poor, and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
- Matt 6:11Give us today our daily bread.
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The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 37:16 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
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