Proverbs 4:19 (WEB)

Passage

The way of the wicked is like darkness. They don’t know what they stumble over.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 4:17 For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

Proverbs 4:18 But the path of the righteous is like the dawning light, that shines more and more until the perfect day.

Proverbs 4:19 The way of the wicked is like darkness. They don’t know what they stumble over.

Proverbs 4:20 My son, attend to my words. Turn your ear to my sayings.

Proverbs 4:21 Let them not depart from your eyes. Keep them in the center of your heart.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "darkness", "wicked", "like", "stumble", and "over". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "darkness" and "wicked", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "But the path of the righteous is..." into verse 20's "My son attend to my words Turn...", so "darkness" and "wicked" 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 "darkness" and "wicked" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.