Proverbs 27:15 (DBY)

Passage

A continual dropping on a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike:

Nearby Context

Proverbs 27:13 Take his garment that is become surety [for] another, and hold him in pledge for a strange woman.

Proverbs 27:14 He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be reckoned a curse to him.

Proverbs 27:15 A continual dropping on a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike:

Proverbs 27:16 whosoever will restrain her restraineth the wind, and his right hand encountereth oil.

Proverbs 27:17 Iron is sharpened by iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "continual", "dropping", "very", "rainy", "contentious", "woman", and "alike". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "continual" and "dropping", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "He that blesseth his friend with a..." into verse 16's "whosoever will restrain her restraineth the wind...", so "continual" and "dropping" 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 "continual" and "dropping" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.