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Thursday, July 17th, 2025
the Week of Proper 10 / Ordinary 15
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Young's Literal Translation

Proverbs 19:13

A calamity to his father [is] a foolish son, And the contentions of a wife [are] a continual dropping.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Children;   Family;   Fool;   Strife;   Wife;   Women;   Young Men;   Thompson Chain Reference - Contentious Woman;   Evil;   Family;   Home;   Parental;   Sorrow;   Strife;   Unity-Strife;   Women;   The Topic Concordance - Children;   Contention;   Foolishness;   Marriage;   Parents;   Women;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Children, Wicked;   Fools;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Wife;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Easton Bible Dictionary - House;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Marriage;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Proverbs, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Family;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Calamity;   Drop, Dropping;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
A foolish son is his father’s ruin,and a wife’s nagging is an endless dripping.
Hebrew Names Version
A foolish son is the calamity of his father. A wife's quarrels are a continual dripping.
King James Version
A foolish son is the calamity of his father: and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
English Standard Version
A foolish son is ruin to his father, and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.
New American Standard Bible
A foolish son is destruction to his father, And the quarrels of a wife are a constant dripping.
New Century Version
A foolish child brings disaster to a father, and a quarreling wife is like dripping water.
Amplified Bible
A foolish (ungodly) son is destruction to his father, And the contentions of a [quarrelsome] wife are like a constant dripping [of water].
World English Bible
A foolish son is the calamity of his father. A wife's quarrels are a continual dripping.
Geneva Bible (1587)
A foolish sonne is the calamitie of his father, and the contentions of a wife are like a continuall dropping.
Legacy Standard Bible
A foolish son is destruction to his father,And the contentions of a wife are a constant dripping.
Berean Standard Bible
A foolish son is his father's ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping.
Contemporary English Version
A foolish son brings disgrace to his father. A nagging wife goes on and on like the drip, drip, drip of the rain.
Complete Jewish Bible
A son who is a fool is his father's ruin, and a nagging wife is like a leak that keeps dripping.
Darby Translation
A foolish son is the calamity of his father; and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
Easy-to-Read Version
A foolish son brings a flood of troubles to his father, and a complaining wife is like the constant dripping of water.
George Lamsa Translation
A foolish son is a disgrace to his father; and the contentions of a wife are like drippings.
Good News Translation
Stupid children can bring their parents to ruin. A nagging wife is like water going drip-drip-drip.
Lexham English Bible
A foolish child is a ruin to his father, and the quarreling of a woman is a continuous dripping.
Literal Translation
A foolish son is a ruin to his father, and a wife's quarreling a never ending dripping.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
An vndiscrete sonne is ye heuynes of his father, & a braulynge wife is like the topp of an house, where thorow it is euer droppynge.
American Standard Version
A foolish son is the calamity of his father; And the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
Bible in Basic English
A foolish son is the destruction of his father; and the bitter arguments of a wife are like drops of rain falling without end.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
A foolish son is the calamity of his father; and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
King James Version (1611)
A foolish sonne is the calamity of his father; and the contentions of a wife are a continuall dropping.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
An vndiscrete sonne is the heauinesse of his father, and a brawlyng wyfe is like the toppe of an house wherthrough it is euer dropping.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
A foolish son is a disgrace to his father: vows paid out of the hire of a harlot are not pure.
English Revised Version
A foolish son is the calamity of his father: and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
The sorewe of the fadir is a fonned sone; and roofes droppynge contynueli is a womman ful of chiding.
Update Bible Version
A foolish son is the calamity of his father; And the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping.
Webster's Bible Translation
A foolish son [is] the calamity of his father: and the contentions of a wife [are] a continual dropping.
New English Translation
A foolish child is the ruin of his father, and a contentious wife is like a constant dripping.
New King James Version
A foolish son is the ruin of his father, And the contentions of a wife are a continual dripping.
New Living Translation
A foolish child is a calamity to a father; a quarrelsome wife is as annoying as constant dripping.
New Life Bible
A foolish son destroys his father. The arguing of a wife is like water falling drop by drop all the time.
New Revised Standard
A stupid child is ruin to a father, and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Engulfing ruin to his father, is a son that is a dullard, - and, a continuous dripping, are the contentions of a wife.
Douay-Rheims Bible
A foolish son is the grief of his father: and a wrangling wife is like a roof continually dropping through.
Revised Standard Version
A foolish son is ruin to his father, and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.
THE MESSAGE
A parent is worn to a frazzle by a stupid child; a nagging spouse is a leaky faucet.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
A foolish son is destruction to his father, And the contentions of a wife are a constant dripping.

Contextual Overview

13 A calamity to his father [is] a foolish son, And the contentions of a wife [are] a continual dropping.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

foolish: Proverbs 10:1, Proverbs 15:20, Proverbs 17:21, Proverbs 17:25, 2 Samuel 13:1 - 2 Samuel 18:33, Ecclesiastes 2:18, Ecclesiastes 2:19

the contentions: Proverbs 21:9, Proverbs 21:19, Proverbs 25:24, Proverbs 27:15, Job 14:19

Reciprocal: Proverbs 12:4 - virtuous Proverbs 14:1 - the foolish Proverbs 14:35 - king's Proverbs 30:23 - an odious Matthew 19:10 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 13:13
and the men of Sodom [are] evil, and sinners before Jehovah exceedingly.
Genesis 18:20
And Jehovah saith, `The cry of Sodom and Gomorrah -- because great; and their sin -- because exceeding grievous:
Genesis 19:1
And two of the messengers come towards Sodom at even, and Lot is sitting at the gate of Sodom, and Lot seeth, and riseth to meet them, and boweth himself -- face to the earth,
Genesis 19:5
and they call unto Lot and say to him, `Where [are] the men who have come in unto thee to-night? bring them out unto us, and we know them.'
Genesis 19:6
And Lot goeth out unto them, to the opening, and the door hath shut behind him,
Genesis 19:8
lo, I pray you, I have two daughters, who have not known any one; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do to them as [is] good in your eyes; only to these men do not anything, for therefore have they come in within the shadow of my roof.'
Genesis 19:9
And they say, `Come nigh hither;' they say also, `This one hath come in to sojourn, and he certainly judgeth! now, we do evil to thee more than [to] them;' and they press against the man, against Lot greatly, and come nigh to break the door.
Genesis 19:12
And the men say unto Lot, `Whom hast thou here still? son-in-law, thy sons also, and thy daughters, and all whom thou hast in the city, bring out from this place;
Genesis 19:15
And when the dawn hath ascended, then the messengers press upon Lot, saying, `Rise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters who are found present, lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city.'
Genesis 19:16
And he lingereth, and the men lay hold on his hand, and on the hand of his wife, and on the hand of his two daughters, through the mercy of Jehovah unto him, and they bring him out, and cause him to rest without the city.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

A foolish son [is] the calamity of his father,.... Or, "the calamities of his father" q; he brings them to him. A very great affliction he is, and which has many distresses and sorrows in it; as loss of reputation and credit in his family, which is sunk by his behaviour, instead of being supported and increased; loss of substance, through extravagance and riotous living, and the ruin of his soul and body by his wicked practices; see Proverbs 10:1;

and the contentions of a wife [are] a continual dropping; or like the dropping of rain, in a rainy day, into a house out of repair, and which is very uncomfortable to, the inhabitants of it; see Proverbs 27:15. Such are the contentions of a peevish, ill natured, and brawling wife, who is always scolding; and which is a continual vexation to a man, and renders him very uneasy in life: such a continual dropping was Xantippe to Socrates, who teased him night and day with her brawls and contentions r. A great unhappiness each of these must be!

q הוות "calamitates", Vatablus; "aerumnae", Piscator, Michaelis; "causa aerumnarum", Junius & Tremellius. r A. Gell. Noct. Attic. l. 1. c. 17.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Calamity - The Hebrew word is plural (as in Psalms 57:1; Psalms 91:3), and seems to express the multiplied and manifold sorrow caused by the foolish son.

Continual dropping - The irritating, unceasing, sound of the fall, drop after drop, of water through the chinks in the roof.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Proverbs 19:13. The contentions of a wife are a continual dropping. — The man who has got such a wife is like a tenant who has got a cottage with a bad roof, through every part of which the rain either drops or pours. He can neither sit, stand, work, nor sleep, without being exposed to these droppings. God help the man who is in such a case, with house or wife!


 
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