Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, July 8th, 2025
the Week of Proper 9 / Ordinary 14
Attention!
StudyLight.org has pledged to help build churches in Uganda. Help us with that pledge and support pastors in the heart of Africa.
Click here to join the effort!

Read the Bible

Myles Coverdale Bible

Proverbs 15:1

A softe aswere putteth downe displeasure, but frowarde wordes prouoke vnto anger.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Anger;   Meekness;   Speaking;   Tact;   Thompson Chain Reference - Evil;   Kind Words;   Silence-Speech;   Social Duties;   Words;   The Topic Concordance - Anger;   Speech/communication;   Wrath;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Anger;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Poetry of the Hebrews;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Tongue;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Gentleness;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Gideon;   Jephthah;   Rehoboam;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Proverbs, Book of;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Agrapha;   Anger;   Meekness;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
A gentle answer turns away anger,
Hebrew Names Version
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
King James Version
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
English Standard Version
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
New American Standard Bible
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
New Century Version
A gentle answer will calm a person's anger, but an unkind answer will cause more anger.
Amplified Bible
A soft and gentle and thoughtful answer turns away wrath, But harsh and painful and careless words stir up anger.
World English Bible
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
Geneva Bible (1587)
A soft answere putteth away wrath: but grieuous wordes stirre vp anger.
Legacy Standard Bible
A gentle answer turns away wrath,But a harsh word stirs up anger.
Berean Standard Bible
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Contemporary English Version
A kind answer soothes angry feelings, but harsh words stir them up.
Complete Jewish Bible
A gentle response deflects fury, but a harsh word makes tempers rise.
Darby Translation
A soft answer turneth away fury; but a grievous word stirreth up anger.
Easy-to-Read Version
A gentle answer makes anger disappear, but a rough answer makes it grow.
George Lamsa Translation
A SOFT word turns away wrath; but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Good News Translation
A gentle answer quiets anger, but a harsh one stirs it up.
Lexham English Bible
A soft answer will turn away wrath, but a word of trouble will stir anger.
Literal Translation
A soft answer turns back wrath, but a hurtful word stirs up anger.
American Standard Version
A soft answer turneth away wrath; But a grievous word stirreth up anger.
Bible in Basic English
By a soft answer wrath is turned away, but a bitter word is a cause of angry feelings.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
A soft answer turneth away wrath; but a grievous word stirreth up anger.
King James Version (1611)
A soft answere turneth away wrath: but grieuous words stirre vp anger.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
A soft aunswere appeaseth wrath: but rough wordes stirre vp anger.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Anger slays even wise men; yet a submissive answer turns away wrath: but a grievous word stirs up anger.
English Revised Version
A SOFT answer turneth away wrath: but a grievous word stirreth up anger.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
A soft answere brekith ire; an hard word reisith woodnesse.
Update Bible Version
A soft answer turns away wrath; But a grievous word stirs up anger.
Webster's Bible Translation
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
New English Translation
A gentle response turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up wrath.
New King James Version
A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
New Living Translation
A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare.
New Life Bible
A gentle answer turns away anger, but a sharp word causes anger.
New Revised Standard
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
A soft answer, turneth away wrath, but a cutting word raiseth anger.
Douay-Rheims Bible
A mild answer breaketh wrath: but a harsh word stirreth up fury.
Revised Standard Version
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Young's Literal Translation
A soft answer turneth back fury, And a grievous word raiseth up anger.
THE MESSAGE
A gentle response defuses anger, but a sharp tongue kindles a temper-fire.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.

Contextual Overview

1 A softe aswere putteth downe displeasure, but frowarde wordes prouoke vnto anger.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

soft: Proverbs 25:15, Judges 8:1-3, 1 Samuel 25:21-33

grievous: Proverbs 15:18, Proverbs 10:12, Proverbs 28:25, Proverbs 29:22, Judges 12:3-6, 1 Samuel 25:10, 1 Samuel 25:11, 1 Samuel 25:21, 1 Samuel 25:22, 2 Samuel 19:43, 1 Kings 12:13-16

Reciprocal: Genesis 13:8 - Let Genesis 16:6 - Abram Genesis 32:4 - my lord Joshua 22:21 - answered Joshua 22:30 - it pleased them Judges 8:3 - Then Judges 12:4 - fugitives 1 Samuel 1:15 - my Lord 1 Samuel 17:29 - General 1 Samuel 24:11 - my father 1 Samuel 24:16 - Is this 2 Samuel 2:27 - unless 1 Kings 12:7 - If thou wilt 2 Chronicles 10:7 - If thou be kind 2 Chronicles 10:13 - answered Job 41:3 - General Proverbs 17:14 - leave Acts 6:5 - the saying Acts 11:4 - General Acts 19:41 - when Hebrews 12:14 - Follow James 3:6 - the tongue

Cross-References

Genesis 15:1
It happened after these actes, yt the worde of ye LORDE came vnto Abra in a vysion, and sayde: Feare not Abram, I am thy shylde and thy exceadinge greate rewarde.
Genesis 15:2
But Abram sayde: LORDE LORDE, what wilt thou geue me? I go childles, and the seruaunt of my house (this Eleasar of Damascos) hath a sonne.
Genesis 15:3
And Abram sayde morouer: Beholde, vnto me hast thou geuen no sede: and lo, the sonne of my housholde shal be myne heyre.
Genesis 15:4
And beholde, the worde of the LORDE spake vnto him, and saide: He shal not be thine heyre, but one that shal come out of thine owne body, he shal be thine heyre.
Genesis 15:5
And he bad him go forth, and sayde: Loke vp vnto heauen, and tell ye starres: Canst thou nombre them? And he sayde vnto him: Euen so shal thy sede be.
Genesis 15:6
Abram beleued the LORDE, and yt was counted vnto him for righteousnes.
Genesis 15:10
And he toke all these, and deuyded them in the myddes, and layde the one parte ouer agaynst the other, but the foules deuyded he not.
Genesis 15:14
But the people who they shal serue, wyl I iudge. Afterwarde shall they go forth with greate substaunce:
Genesis 15:16
And after the fourth generacion they shall come hither agayne, for the wickednes of ye Amorites is not yet full.
Genesis 15:17
So whan the Sonne was downe, and it was waxed darcke: Beholde, there smoked a fornace, and a fyre brande wente betwene ye partes.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

A soft answer turneth away wrath,.... Mild words, gentle expressions, delivered with kindness and tenderness, humility and submission; these will work upon a man's passions, weaken his resentments, and break and scatter the storm of wrath raised in his breast, just breaking forth in a very boisterous and blustering manner; so high winds are sometimes laid by soft showers. Thus the Ephraimites were pacified by Gideon's mild answer; and David by Abigail's very submissive and respectful address, Judges 8:1;

but grievous words stir up anger; such as are rough and menacing, scornful and sneering, reproachful and reviling, proud, haughty, and overbearing; like those of Jephthah to the Ephraimites; and of the Ephraimites to the Gileadites; and of Nabal to David's servants, concerning him; and of Rehoboam, who answered the people roughly: in all which instances anger was stirred up, and either were or like to have been attended with bad consequences, Judges 12:1. Or a "word" causing, or rather expressing, "grief" r; upbraiding others with being the cause of grief to them.

r דבר עצב "verbum vel sermo doloris", Montanus, Vatablus, Michaelis; vid. Gussetius, p. 177.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

CHAPTER XV

The soft answer. Useful correction. Stability of the righteous.

The contented mind. The slothful man. The fool. The covetous.

The impious. The wicked opposed to the righteous; to the

diligent; and to the man who fears the Lord.

NOTES ON CHAP. XV

Verse Proverbs 15:1. A soft answer — Gentleness will often disarm the most furious, where positive derangement has not taken place; one angry word will always beget another, for the disposition of one spirit always begets its own likeness in another: thus kindness produces kindness, and rage produces rage. Universal experience confirms this proverb.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile