To have respect of persons is not good: for for a piece of bread that man will transgress.
Proverbs is a collection of ancient wisdom sayings from Israel, many attributed to King Solomon. This verse links two ideas that belong together. The first condemns "partiality" — treating people differently based on who they are, who they know, or what benefit they offer you. In ancient community and legal life, fair judgment was foundational, so favoritism was not just rude; it was a serious moral failure. The second part adds a sharper and more uncomfortable edge: people do not compromise their integrity only for great rewards. The phrase "a piece of bread" means next to nothing — a trivial gain. The wisdom here is sobering and specific: our moral failures are usually cheap, not dramatic.
Lord, I do not want to be someone who trades what is right for what is comfortable. Show me where I have been partial without realizing it, and give me the honesty to see it clearly and the courage to act differently. Amen.
A piece of bread. Not a bribe. Not a fortune. A piece of bread. There is something almost darkly funny about that — except it is not funny, because it is true. Favoritism and moral compromise rarely arrive wearing a sign. They show up small. A white lie to keep someone who might be useful to you from being inconvenienced. A decision that tilts slightly toward the person who has more social currency. A moment of looking away because fairness in this particular case would cost you something minor and awkward. The writer of Proverbs had no illusions. We do not sell our integrity for gold. We hand it over for a snack. The harder question this verse asks is not whether you are susceptible to grand corruption — most of us can say no to that honestly enough. The real question is: what is your piece of bread? What is the small thing — approval, ease, a comfortable social standing — that quietly makes you treat people unequally? The verse does not bury you in condemnation. It just holds up a mirror. And the work it invites is learning to recognize the moment before the trade happens, that small pause where you actually get to choose. That pause is where integrity lives.
What does showing partiality look like in everyday, ordinary life — can you name a specific and concrete example from your own experience?
What is your personal "piece of bread" — the small reward that most easily tempts you to bend what you know is right?
Is it possible that our culture has normalized certain forms of favoritism so thoroughly that we no longer notice them? What might those forms be?
How does showing partiality affect the person on the losing end of that favoritism — what does it cost them, and do you typically think about that?
Name one specific situation coming up in your life where you can choose fairness over favoritism, even if it costs you something small. What will you do?
Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment:
Exodus 23:2
That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek: and a man and his father will go in unto the same maid, to profane my holy name:
Amos 2:7
My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.
James 2:1
It is not good to accept the person of the wicked, to overthrow the righteous in judgment.
Proverbs 18:5
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
2 Peter 2:3
To have regard for one person over another and to show favoritism is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.
AMP
To show partiality is not good, but for a piece of bread a man will do wrong.
ESV
To show partiality is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.
NASB
To show partiality is not good— yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.
NIV
To show partiality is not good, Because for a piece of bread a man will transgress.
NKJV
Showing partiality is never good, yet some will do wrong for a mere piece of bread.
NLT
Playing favorites is always a bad thing; you can do great harm in seemingly harmless ways.
MSG