Proverbs 29:16 Explained in Context

Read It With

• Proverbs 29:15–17

Read Proverbs 29:16 with 29:15–17. Read alone, “When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increaseth: but…” could turn a compressed observation, warning, comparison, or command into a guarantee or complete policy. The full unit establishes: uses contrastive parallelism to place “The rod and reproof give wisdom” against “a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame”; by 29:17, it uses two-part parallelism to place “Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest” beside “yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul”. Together the unit concentrates on instruction, correction, and formation, justice, truthful judgment, and protection from exploitation, family teaching, responsibility, and mutual care within “Solomonic sayings copied by Hezekiah's men.”

Why This Verse Appears Here

Proverbs 29:15–17 forms a reviewed local cluster inside “Solomonic sayings copied by Hezekiah's men.” Its lines concentrate on instruction, correction, and formation, justice, truthful judgment, and protection from exploitation, family teaching, responsibility, and mutual care, while each sentence proverb retains its own force and the neighboring database unit does not supply its meaning. Within that relationship, this verse uses contrastive parallelism to place “When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increaseth” against “the righteous shall see their fall”.