Whoso rewardeth evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house.
Proverbs is a collection of ancient wisdom sayings from Israel, primarily attributed to King Solomon, written to teach people how to live well. This verse warns about a specific kind of moral failure: repaying someone's kindness with harm or cruelty. In ancient culture, a person's 'house' meant their household, legacy, reputation, and family line — not just a building. The verse suggests that betraying goodness creates a self-perpetuating cycle of harm that is very difficult to escape. At its core, it is a warning that ingratitude and treachery corrupt the person who practices them, spreading damage far beyond the original act.
Lord, show me where I have taken for granted the goodness others have shown me — goodness that ultimately came from You. Forgive me for the times I have repaid kindness with indifference or quiet bitterness. Help me to be someone who honors the grace I receive and guards against the slow corrosion of an ungrateful heart. Amen.
Think about the last time someone did something genuinely kind for you — defended your name when you weren't in the room, gave you a second chance you hadn't quite earned, or showed up at 11 PM because you called. Most of us wouldn't consciously repay that with cruelty. But we do it slowly — through taking for granted, through neglect, through small unspoken resentments that quietly turn someone else's grace into an obligation we feel burdened by. The haunting word in this verse is 'never.' Not 'for a while.' Not 'until you apologize.' The evil doesn't clear out — it settles in. Betraying goodness, Solomon warns, warps the home you live in, whether that home is made of walls or relationships or habits of the heart. The question worth sitting with today isn't whether you've ever done something blatantly cruel to someone who helped you. It's whether there's someone whose consistent kindness you've been quietly taking for granted — or worse, resenting. Grace received but not honored has a way of curdling inside us, and the damage tends to spread further than we expect.
What do you think Solomon means by 'evil will never leave his house' — is he describing a spiritual consequence, a psychological pattern, or something else entirely?
Can you think of a time when someone repaid your genuine kindness with indifference or hostility? How did that experience change the relationship — and how did it affect you personally?
This verse focuses on actively returning evil for good — but what about simply failing to return good for good? Is passive ingratitude in the same moral category as active betrayal, or is that a stretch?
How does this verse challenge the way you treat the people who consistently show up for you — a parent, a spouse, a longtime friend, a mentor who invested in you?
Is there someone whose goodness toward you has gone unacknowledged for too long? What is one specific thing you could do this week to honor or return what they have given you?
See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.
1 Thessalonians 5:15
Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.
Matthew 27:25
Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
Romans 12:17
Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.
1 Peter 3:9
Say not thou, I will recompense evil; but wait on the LORD, and he shall save thee.
Proverbs 20:22
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
Matthew 27:5
Whoever returns evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.
AMP
If anyone returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house.
ESV
He who returns evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.
NASB
If a man pays back evil for good, evil will never leave his house.
NIV
Whoever rewards evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.
NKJV
If you repay good with evil, evil will never leave your house.
NLT
Those who return evil for good will meet their own evil returning.
MSG