Berean BlueApp preview

C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch on Proverbs 28:15

Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. Browse this work.

Proverbs28:15

Pro 28:15

This general ethical proverb is now followed by one concerning the king: 15 A roaring lion and a ravening bear      Is a foolish ruler over a poor people,i.e., a people without riches and possessions, without lasting sources of help - a people brought low by the events of war and by calamities. To such a people a tyrant is a twofold terror, like a ravenous monster. The lxx translate מושׁל רשׁע by ὃς τυραννεῖ πτωχὸς ὤν, as if רשׁ had been transferred to this place from Pro 28:3. But their translation of רשׁע, Pro 29:7, wavers between ἀσεβής and πτωχός, and of the bear they make a wolf זאב, dialectical דּיב. שׁוקק designates a bear as lingering about, running hither and thither, impelled by extreme hunger (Venet. ἐπιοῦσα), from שׁקק = שׁוּק, to drive, which is said of nimble running, as well as of urging impulses (cf. under Gen 3:16), viz., hunger.

C. F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament, Proverbs 28:15. Public domain.

Permanent link. Source edition.

Read Proverbs 28. Compare commentaries on this chapter.

Source and publication rights

Public domain. Public Domain. Source edition.

Berean Blue opens December 1, 2026. Explore this passage in the app preview.