Pro 14:23 | NETfull | STEP | In all hard work there is profit, but merely talking about it only brings poverty.

Proverbs 14:23

23 In all hard work ^{▼▼ The Hebrew term עֶצֶב (’etsev, “painful toil; labor”) is first used in scripture in Gen 3:19 to describe the effects of the Fall. The point here is that people should be more afraid of idle talk than of hard labor.} there is profit,
but merely talking about it ^{▼▼ Heb “word of lips.” This construct phrase features a genitive of source (“a word from the lips”) or a subjective genitive (“speaking a word”). Talk without work (which produces nothing) is contrasted with labor that produces something.} only brings ^{▼▼ The term “brings” does not appear in the Hebrew, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness.} poverty. ^{▼▼ The noun מַחְסוֹר (makhsor, “need; thing needed; poverty”) comes from the verb “to lack; to be lacking; to decrease; to need.” A person given to idle talk rather than industrious work will have needs that go unmet.}