Proverbs Chapter 25 verse 14 Holy Bible
`As' clouds and wind without rain, `So is' he that boasteth himself of his gifts falsely.
read chapter 25 in ASV
As clouds and wind without rain, so is one who takes credit for an offering he has not given.
read chapter 25 in BBE
Clouds and wind without rain, [so] is a man that boasteth himself of a false gift.
read chapter 25 in DARBY
Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain.
read chapter 25 in KJV
read chapter 25 in WBT
As clouds and wind without rain, So is he who boasts of gifts deceptively.
read chapter 25 in WEB
Clouds and wind, and rain there is none, `Is' a man boasting himself in a false gift.
read chapter 25 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 14. - The Hebrew is, Clouds and wind without rain - he that boasteth himself in a gift of falsehood (see on Ver. 11). The proverb is concerned with promises disappointed. Clouds and wind are generally in the East the precursors of heavy rain, as we read in 1 Kings 18:45, "In a little while the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain." After such phenomena, which, according to current meteorological observation, gave every hope of a refreshing shower in the time of summer drought, to see the clouds pass away without affording a single drop of rain is a grievous disappointment. The metaphor is found in the New Testament. St. Jude (Ver. 12) calls false teachers "clouds without water, carried along by winds." "A gift of falsehood," equivalent to "a false gift," one that deceives, because it is only promised and never given. A man makes a great parade of going to bestow a handsome present, and then sneaks out of it, and gives nothing. Such a one is, as St. Jerome renders, Vir gloriosus, et promissa non complens. The old commentators quote Ovid, 'Heroid.,' 6:509 - "Mobilis AEsonide, vernaque incertior aura,Cur tua pollicito pondere verba carent?" Deeds are fruits, says the proverb, "words are but leaves;" and "Vainglory blossoms, but never bears fruit." Concerning the folly of making stupid boasts, the Bengalee proverb speaks of a pedlar in ginger getting tidings of his ship. The Septuagint is incorrect, "As winds, and clouds, and rains are most evident (ἐπιφανέστατα), so is he who boasts of a false gift."
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(14) Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift--i.e., talks loudly of what he is going to do for another, and then does nothing.Clouds and wind.--Generally followed by heavy rain, (Comp. 1Kings 18:45.)
