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Saturday, May 3rd, 2025
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Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Proverbs 19:28

There is no justice where a witness is determined to hurt someone. Wicked people love the taste of evil.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Falsehood;   False Teachers;   Speaking;   The Topic Concordance - Judges;   Speech/communication;   Ungodliness;   Wickedness;   Witness;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Justice;  

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Justice;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Proverbs, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Belial (Beliar);  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Mock;   Scorn;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Belial;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
A worthless witness mocks justice,and a wicked mouth swallows iniquity.
Hebrew Names Version
A corrupt witness mocks justice, And the mouth of the wicked gulps down iniquity.
King James Version
An ungodly witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.
English Standard Version
A worthless witness mocks at justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
New American Standard Bible
A worthless witness makes a mockery of justice, And the mouth of the wicked swallows wrongdoing.
New Century Version
An evil witness makes fun of fairness, and wicked people love what is evil.
Amplified Bible
A wicked and worthless witness mocks justice, And the mouth of the wicked spreads iniquity.
World English Bible
A corrupt witness mocks justice, And the mouth of the wicked gulps down iniquity.
Geneva Bible (1587)
A wicked witnes mocketh at iudgement, & the mouth of ye wicked swalloweth vp iniquitie.
Legacy Standard Bible
A vile witness scoffs at justice,And the mouth of the wicked swallows up iniquity.
Berean Standard Bible
A corrupt witness mocks justice, and a wicked mouth swallows iniquity.
Contemporary English Version
A lying witness makes fun of the court system, and criminals think crime is really delicious.
Complete Jewish Bible
A worthless witness mocks at justice, and the mouth of the wicked swallows wrongdoing.
Darby Translation
A witness of Belial scorneth judgment, and the mouth of the wicked swalloweth down iniquity.
Easy-to-Read Version
Using a criminal as a witness makes a joke of justice. People like that only want to do wrong.
George Lamsa Translation
An ungodly witness scorns justice; and the mouth of the wicked devours him.
Lexham English Bible
A worthless witness will mock justice, and the mouth of the wicked will devour iniquity.
Literal Translation
A worthless witness scorns justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours evil.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
A false wytnes laugheth iudgmet to scorne, & the mouth of the vngodly eateth vp wickednes.
American Standard Version
A worthless witness mocketh at justice; And the mouth of the wicked swalloweth iniquity.
Bible in Basic English
A good-for-nothing witness makes sport of the judge's decision: and the mouth of evil-doers sends out evil like a stream.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
An ungodly witness mocketh at right; and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.
King James Version (1611)
An vngodly witnesse scorneth iudgement: and the mouth of the wicked deuoureth iniquitie.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
A wicked witnesse mocketh iudgement: and the mouth of the vngodly deuoureth wickednesse.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
He that becomes surety for a foolish child will despise the ordinance: and the mouth of ungodly men shall drink down judgement.
English Revised Version
A worthless witness mocketh at judgment: and the mouth of the wicked swalloweth iniquity.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
A wickid witnesse scorneth doom; and the mouth of vnpitouse men deuourith wickidnesse.
Update Bible Version
A worthless witness mocks at justice; And the mouth of the wicked swallows iniquity.
Webster's Bible Translation
An ungodly witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.
New English Translation
A crooked witness scorns justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
New King James Version
A disreputable witness scorns justice, And the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
New Living Translation
A corrupt witness makes a mockery of justice; the mouth of the wicked gulps down evil.
New Life Bible
A man without worth who tells all he knows laughs at what is right and fair, and the mouth of the sinful spreads wrong-doing.
New Revised Standard
A worthless witness mocks at justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
An abandoned witness, scorneth justice, and, the mouth of lawless men, swalloweth iniquity.
Douay-Rheims Bible
An unjust witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.
Revised Standard Version
A worthless witness mocks at justice, and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
Young's Literal Translation
A worthless witness scorneth judgment, And the mouth of the wicked swalloweth iniquity.
THE MESSAGE
An unprincipled witness desecrates justice; the mouths of the wicked spew malice.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
A rascally witness makes a mockery of justice, And the mouth of the wicked spreads iniquity.

Contextual Overview

28 There is no justice where a witness is determined to hurt someone. Wicked people love the taste of evil.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

An ungodly witness: Heb. a witness of Belial, 1 Kings 21:10, 1 Kings 21:13, Acts 6:11-13

scorneth: Psalms 10:5, Psalms 10:11, Isaiah 28:14-18, Luke 18:2-4

the: Proverbs 15:14, Job 15:16, Job 20:12, Job 20:13, Job 34:7, Hosea 4:8

Reciprocal: Exodus 23:1 - an unrighteous witness Proverbs 12:17 - but

Cross-References

Genesis 19:10
But the two men inside reached out, pulled Lot back into the house, and shut the door.
Genesis 19:11
Then they struck all the men outside with blindness, so that they couldn't find the door.
Psalms 107:34
He made rich soil become a salty wasteland because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
2 Peter 2:7
He rescued Lot, a good man, who was distressed by the immoral conduct of lawless people.
Jude 1:7
Remember Sodom and Gomorrah, and the nearby towns, whose people acted as those angels did and indulged in sexual immorality and perversion: they suffer the punishment of eternal fire as a plain warning to all.
Revelation 9:2
The star opened the abyss, and smoke poured out of it, like the smoke from a large furnace; the sunlight and the air were darkened by the smoke from the abyss.
Revelation 18:9
The kings of the earth who took part in her immorality and lust will cry and weep over the city when they see the smoke from the flames that consume her.
Revelation 18:18
and cried out as they saw the smoke from the flames that consumed her: "There never has been another city like this great city!"
Revelation 19:3
Again they shouted, "Praise God! The smoke from the flames that consume the great city goes up forever and ever!"
Revelation 21:8
But cowards, traitors, perverts, murderers, the immoral, those who practice magic, those who worship idols, and all liars—the place for them is the lake burning with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

An ungodly witness scorneth judgment,.... Or, "a witness of Belial" z. A false witness is not awed by the place of judgment where he is; nor by the judge before whom he is; nor by the law, the rule of judgment, nor by the punishment of perjury; he scorns all these, and scoffs at them, and proceeds in bearing a false testimony: or he covers that which is right and just, and eludes judgment by specious and sophistic arguments and pretences. Or this may be understood of a false teacher, that scorns the rule of judgment, or colours over things, to make them plausible, and seem to be agreeable to it;

and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity; greedily, and with pleasure commits it; as a hungry man takes in his food; or a thirsty man drinks down water: and in like manner are false doctrines imbibed by men of perverse minds.

z עד בליעל "testis Belijahal", Montanus, Tigurine version, Baynus.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Ungodly witness - literally, “Witness of Belial,” “worthless,” “untruthful.”

Devoureth iniquity - Seizes on it eagerly, as a dainty, lives on it.


 
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