Proverbs 2:15
BeginnerProverbs 2:15 · World English Bible (WEB)
“who are crooked in their ways, and wayward in their paths:”
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Overview
The distorted character and direction of the wicked
Proverbs 2:15 describes the kind of people wisdom will deliver God’s child from: those whose whole manner of life is bent away from what is right. Their problem is not merely a bad choice here or there, but a crooked direction of heart and conduct.
What Makes This Verse Confusing?
The verse uses two closely related images, but they are not empty repetition. “Ways” points to a person’s overall course of life, while “paths” suggests the tracks or ruts they habitually walk in. The wicked are both inwardly twisted in their manner and outwardly evasive in their chosen direction.
The English words “ways” and “paths” sound nearly identical in meaning, and the verse does not explain why both are used side by side.
This shows that Proverbs is describing settled character, not a momentary stumble. Wisdom protects not only from isolated sins, but from people whose life-pattern itself is bent away from the straight way of God.
Original Language
twisted — twisted, distorted, crooked, perverse, perverted
This word carries the idea of being twisted or perverse, not merely mistaken. The verse is exposing moral distortion: the “crooked” person does not simply take a difficult road, but one bent out of alignment with righteousness.
be devious — 1) to depart, turn aside 1a) (Qal) to depart 1b) (Niphal) 1b1) to go wrong, go crooked 1b2) devious, perverse (participle) 1c) (Hiphil) 1c1) to be lost from view 1c2) to become devious
This verb adds the sense of turning aside or acting deviously. Together with “crooked,” it shows both condition and motion: the person is bent within and therefore wanders in practice.
track — 1) entrenchment, track 1a) circumvallation, entrenchment 1b) track
This term can suggest a track or course, like a worn route. That deepens the warning: wickedness becomes a repeated path, a groove of life, not just a single step.
Lexicon & word tagging: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, STEPBible.org, CC BY 4.0)
Related Passages
Psalms 125:5
BackgroundProverbs 21:8
parallelProverbs 21:8 contrasts the crooked way of the guilty with the pure conduct of the upright.
Philippians 2:15
BackgroundDeuteronomy 32:5
BackgroundIsaiah 59:8
parallelIsaiah speaks of those who do not know the way of peace and who make crooked paths for themselves.
Isaiah 30:8-13
BackgroundCross-references from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · openbible.info (CC-BY)
Key Takeaway
Proverbs 2:15 warns that wickedness is not only doing wrong, but becoming crooked in one’s whole direction of life.
A crooked heart makes crooked tracks.“
Analysis generated on September 30, 2026 · version 2.0
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