Misinterpretations often reduce this proverb to condemning mere self-confidence, ambition, or success rather than the deep-seated arrogance that rebels against God; others assume it promises swift earthly retribution instead of ultimate accountability, or misuse it to presumptuously label others as proud without addressing their own hearts, ignoring the proverb's emphasis on internal disposition within the broader context of Proverbs' wisdom literature.
Proverbs 16:5
King James Version (1769)
5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
Proverbs 16:5 declares that God detests a proud heart, warning that no one arrogant can escape divine judgment regardless of alliances or efforts to evade consequences, highlighting the destructive nature of pride which elevates self above God and invites inevitable punishment as a core principle of biblical wisdom calling believers to humility and dependence on the Lord.