Parallel Verses

Holman Bible

He who makes a fortune unjustly
is like a partridge that hatches eggs it didn’t lay.
In the middle of his days
his riches will abandon him,
so in the end he will be a fool.

New American Standard Bible

“As a partridge that hatches eggs which it has not laid,
So is he who makes a fortune, but unjustly;
In the midst of his days it will forsake him,
And in the end he will be a fool.”

King James Version

As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.

International Standard Version

As a partridge gathers together eggs that it didn't lay, so is a person who amasses wealth unjustly. In the middle of his life it will leave him, and in the end he will prove to be a fool."

A Conservative Version

As the partridge that sits on [eggs] which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches, and not by right. In the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.

American Standard Version

As the partridge that sitteth on eggs which she hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.

Amplified


“Like the partridge that hatches eggs which she has not laid,
So is he who makes a fortune in ways that are unjust.
It will be lost to him before his days are over,
And in the end he will be [nothing but] a fool.”

Bible in Basic English

Like the partridge, getting eggs together but not producing young, is a man who gets wealth but not by right; before half his days are ended, it will go from him, and at his end he will be foolish.

Darby Translation

As the partridge sitteth on eggs it hath not laid, so is he that getteth riches and not by right: in the midst of his days shall he leave them, and at his end shall be a fool.

Julia Smith Translation

The partridge brooded and she brought not forth; to make riches and not in judgment, he shall leave them in the half of his days, and in his latter part he shall be foolish.

King James 2000

As the partridge sits on eggs, and hatches them not; so he that gets riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.

Lexham Expanded Bible

[Like] a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay [is] one who amasses wealth without justice. In the middle of his days it will leave him, and at his end he will [prove to] be a fool."

Modern King James verseion

The quail sits on eggs and does not hatch them; in the same way he who gets riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the middle of his days, and in his end he shall be a fool.

Modern Spelling Tyndale-Coverdale

The deceitful maketh a nest, but bringeth forth no young: He cometh by riches, but not righteously. In the midst of his life must he leave them behind him, and at the last be found a very fool.

NET Bible

The person who gathers wealth by unjust means is like the partridge that broods over eggs but does not hatch them. Before his life is half over he will lose his ill-gotten gains. At the end of his life it will be clear he was a fool."

New Heart English Bible

As the partridge that sits on eggs which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool."

The Emphasized Bible

As a partridge gathereth eggs she did not lay, So is he that maketh riches but not with justice, - In the midst of his days, shall he leave them, And in his latter end, prove to have been base.

Webster

As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.

World English Bible

As the partridge that sits on [eggs] which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches, and not by right; in the midst of his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.

Youngs Literal Translation

A partridge hatching, and not bringing forth, Is one making wealth, and not by right, In the midst of his days he doth forsake it, And in his latter end -- he is a fool.

Interlinear

English(KJV)
Strong's
Root Form
Definition
Usage
As the partridge
קרא 
Qore' 
Usage: 2

דּגר 
Dagar 
Usage: 2

on eggs, and hatcheth
ילד 
Yalad 
Usage: 497

עשׁר 
`osher 
Usage: 37

and not by right
משׁפּט 
Mishpat 
Usage: 421

them in the midst
חצי 
Chetsiy 
Usage: 125

of his days
יום 
Yowm 
Usage: 2293

and at his end
אחרית 
'achariyth 
Usage: 61

References

American

Easton

Fausets

Hastings

Morish

Watsons

Context Readings

The Deceitful Heart

10 I, Yahweh, examine the mind,
I test the heart
to give to each according to his way,
according to what his actions deserve.
11 He who makes a fortune unjustly
is like a partridge that hatches eggs it didn’t lay.
In the middle of his days
his riches will abandon him,
so in the end he will be a fool.
12 A throne of glory
on high from the beginning
is the place of our sanctuary.



Cross References

Luke 12:20

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?’

Psalm 55:23

God, You will bring them down
to the Pit of destruction;
men of bloodshed and treachery
will not live out half their days.
But I will trust in You.

Jeremiah 22:13

Woe for the one who builds his palace
through unrighteousness,
his upper rooms through injustice,
who makes his fellow man serve without pay
and will not give him his wages,

Jeremiah 22:17

But you have eyes and a heart for nothing
except your own dishonest profit,
shedding innocent blood
and committing extortion and oppression.

Proverbs 1:18-19

but they set an ambush to kill themselves;
they attack their own lives.

Proverbs 13:11

Wealth obtained by fraud will dwindle,
but whoever earns it through labor will multiply it.

Proverbs 15:27

The one who profits dishonestly troubles his household,
but the one who hates bribes will live.

Proverbs 21:6

Making a fortune through a lying tongue
is a vanishing mist, a pursuit of death.

Proverbs 23:5

As soon as your eyes fly to it, it disappears,
for it makes wings for itself
and flies like an eagle to the sky.

Proverbs 28:8

Whoever increases his wealth through excessive interest
collects it for one who is kind to the poor.

Proverbs 28:16

A leader who lacks understanding
is very oppressive,
but one who hates dishonest profit
prolongs his life.

Proverbs 28:20

A faithful man will have many blessings,
but one in a hurry to get rich
will not go unpunished.

Proverbs 28:22

A greedy man is in a hurry for wealth;
he doesn’t know that poverty will come to him.

Ecclesiastes 5:13-16

There is a sickening tragedy I have seen under the sun: wealth kept by its owner to his harm.

Isaiah 1:23-24

Your rulers are rebels,
friends of thieves.
They all love graft
and chase after bribes.
They do not defend the rights of the fatherless,
and the widow’s case never comes before them.

Jeremiah 5:27-28

Like a cage full of birds,
so their houses are full of deceit.
Therefore they have grown powerful and rich.

Ezekiel 22:12-13

People who live in you accept bribes in order to shed blood. You take interest and profit on a loan and brutally extort your neighbors. You have forgotten Me.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.

Hosea 12:7-8

A merchant loves to extort
with dishonest scales in his hands.

Amos 3:10

The people are incapable of doing right
this is the Lord’s declaration—
those who store up violence and destruction
in their citadels.

Amos 8:4-6

Hear this, you who trample on the needy
and do away with the poor of the land,

Micah 2:1-2

Woe to those who dream up wickedness
and prepare evil plans on their beds!
At morning light they accomplish it
because the power is in their hands.

Micah 2:9

You force the women of My people
out of their comfortable homes,
and you take My blessing
from their children forever.

Micah 6:10-12

Are there still the treasures of wickedness
and the accursed short measure
in the house of the wicked?

Micah 7:3

Both hands are good at accomplishing evil:
the official and the judge demand a bribe;
when the powerful man communicates his evil desire,
they plot it together.

Habakkuk 2:6-12

Won’t all of these take up a taunt against him,
with mockery and riddles about him?
They will say:


Woe to him who amasses what is not his—
how much longer?—
and loads himself with goods taken in pledge.

Zephaniah 1:9

On that day I will punish
all who skip over the threshold,
who fill their master’s house
with violence and deceit.

Zechariah 5:4

I will send it out,”—this is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts—“and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by My name. It will stay inside his house and destroy it along with its timbers and stones.”

Zechariah 7:9-13

“The Lord of Hosts says this: Make fair decisions. Show faithful love and compassion to one another.

Malachi 3:5

“I will come to you in judgment, and I will be ready to witness against sorcerers and adulterers; against those who swear falsely; against those who oppress the widow and the fatherless, and cheat the wage earner; and against those who deny justice to the foreigner. They do not fear Me,” says the Lord of Hosts.

Matthew 23:13

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You lock up the kingdom of heaven from people. For you don’t go in, and you don’t allow those entering to go in.

1 Timothy 6:9

But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction.

Titus 1:11

It is necessary to silence them; they overthrow whole households by teaching what they shouldn’t in order to get money dishonestly.

James 5:3-5

Your silver and gold are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You stored up treasure in the last days!

2 Peter 2:3

They will exploit you in their greed with deceptive words. Their condemnation, pronounced long ago, is not idle, and their destruction does not sleep.

2 Peter 2:14

They have eyes full of adultery and are always looking for sin. They seduce unstable people and have hearts trained in greed. Children under a curse!

King James Version Public Domain

Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers.

International Standard Version Copyright © 1996-2008 by the ISV Foundation.

New American Standard Bible Copyright ©1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org

American Standard Version Public Domain

NET Bible copyright © 1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. NetBible

Basic English, produced by Mr C. K. Ogden of the Orthological Institute - public domain