Proverbs 22:8 (ASV)

Passage

He that soweth iniquity shall reap calamity; And the rod of his wrath shall fail.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, And even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Proverbs 22:7 The rich ruleth over the poor; And the borrower is servant to the lender.

Proverbs 22:8 He that soweth iniquity shall reap calamity; And the rod of his wrath shall fail.

Proverbs 22:9 He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; For he giveth of his bread to the poor.

Proverbs 22:10 Cast out the scoffer, and contention will go out; Yea, strife and ignominy will cease.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "soweth", "iniquity", "shall", "reap", "calamity", "wrath", and "fail". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "soweth" and "iniquity", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "The rich ruleth over the poor And..." into verse 9's "He that hath a bountiful eye shall...", so "soweth" and "iniquity" belong inside that flow. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "soweth" and "iniquity" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.