Proverbs 21:31

The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
horse	ס֗וּס Sus	H5483	a horse (as leaping) · noun, common masculine singular absolute
prepared	מ֭וּכָן Mu.khon	H3559	properly · verb, hophal passive participle, masculine singular absolute
day	לְי֣וֹם le.Yom	H3117	a day (as the warm hours) · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
battle	מִלְחָמָ֑ה mil.cha.Mah	H4421	a battle (i.e. the engagement) · noun, common feminine singular absolute
safety	הַתְּשׁוּעָֽה ha.te.shu.'Ah	H8668	rescue (literal or figurative · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
LORD	וְ֝לַֽיהוָ֗ה ve.la.Yah.weh	H3068	Jehovah · conjunction + preposition + proper noun, a title

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Psalms 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
Isaiah 31:1 Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they…
Psalms 33:17-18 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.
Psalms 147:10 He delighteth not in the strength of the horse: he taketh not pleasure in the legs of a man.
Psalms 3:3 But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.
Psalms 68:20 He that is our God is the God of salvation; and unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death.
Psalms 3:8 Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah.
Ecclesiastes 9:11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet r…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 21:30–end

The designing busy part of mankind are directed, in all their counsels and undertakings, to have their eye to God, and to believe, 1. That there can be no success against God, and therefore they must never act in opposition to him, in contempt of his commands, or in contradiction to his counsels. Though they think they have wisdom, and understanding, and counsel, the best politics and politicians, on their side, yet, if it be against the Lord, it cannot prosper long; it shall not prevail at last. He that sits in heaven laughs at men's projects against him and his anointed, and will carry his point in spite of them, Psa 2:1-6. Those that fight against God are preparing shame and ruin for them…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 21:30

Men's best devices and reliances are vain compared with God's, or without His aid (Pro 19:21; Psa 20:7; Psa 33:17). Next: Proverbs Chapter 22

John Gill on Proverbs 21:31

The horse is prepared against the day of battle,.... The horse is a warlike creature, and was much used formerly, as now, in war; these are prepared against the day of battle, to mount the cavalry with; and men are apt to put too great confidence in them: this is mentioned instead of all other military preparations and instruments of war; but safety is of the Lord; a horse is a vain thing for safety, Psalm 33:17; victory is only of the Lord; salvation depends upon him; it is he that covers men's heads in the day of battle, and gives them victory over their enemies: or "salvation is of the Lord" (o); this is true of spiritual and eternal salvation, as well as of temporal salvation; it is of…

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Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 21:30–end

If we further seek for the boundaries, the proverbs regarding the rich and the poor, Pro 22:2, Pro 22:7, Pro 22:16, present themselves as such, and this the more surely as Pro 22:16 is without contradiction the terminus. Thus we take first together 21:30-22:2. Pro 21:30 30 No wisdom and no understanding, And no counsel is there against Jahve. The expression might also be 'לפני ה; but the predominating sense would then be, that no wisdom appears to God as such, that He values none as such. With לנגד the proverb is more objective: there is no wisdom which, compared with His, can be regarded as such (cf. Co1 3:19), none which can boast itself against Him, or can at all avail against Him (לנגד,…

The Church Fathers

The horse is prepared for the day of battle, etc. Indeed, it is man's duty to prepare a soul devoted to God in times of persecution, to offer the body to danger; but it is of divine assistance that to the effort of labor, the victory of the contest, and salvation succeed.
— Bede, Commentary on Proverbs

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Horse · .A vain thing for safety — .A vain thing for safety
Horse, The · Prepared and trained for war — Prepared and trained for war
Protection · Not to be found in: Horses — Not to be found in: Horses
Providence Of God, The · Man’s efforts are vain without — Man’s efforts are vain without
War · God: Gives the victory in — God: Gives the victory in

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Proverbs 21:31

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 21:30–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 21:30

John Gill on Proverbs 21:31

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 21:30–end

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Proverbs 21:31

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 21:30–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 21:30

John Gill on Proverbs 21:31

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 21:30–end

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Proverbs 21:30-31

Rashi on Proverbs 21:30