Proverbs 15:17 (LSB)

Passage

Better is a dish of vegetables where there is love Than a fattened ox and hatred in it.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 15:15 All the days of the afflicted are evil, But a good heart has a continual feast.

Proverbs 15:16 Better is a little with the fear of Yahweh Than great treasure and turmoil with it.

Proverbs 15:17 Better is a dish of vegetables where there is love Than a fattened ox and hatred in it.

Proverbs 15:18 A hot‑tempered man stirs up strife, But the slow to anger quiets a dispute.

Proverbs 15:19 The way of the sluggard is as a hedge of thorns, But the path of the upright is a highway.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "better", "dish", "vegetables", "where", "love", "than", "fattened", and "hatred". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "better" and "dish", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "Better is a little with the fear..." into verse 18's "A hot tempered man stirs up strife...", so "better" and "dish" 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 "better" and "dish" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.