Solomon advises to start your child down the right path because, in the end, the way of transgression will end in destruction. Now, we come to the verse in question.
18 When there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint,but the one who keeps the law, blessed is he!
You are viewing: Where There Is No Vision The People Perish Meaning
In the first part of the passage, Solomon describes what the early church taught as “The Way of Life” and “The Way of Death.[2]” Then, he gives instructions for developing a “bent” towards integrity. At approximately midway through the chapter, we have the verse that many people seem to misunderstand.
There is quite a bit of variation in the translation of this verse. The translation most often quoted by those who misunderstand it is, like Proverbs 23:7 (“as a man thinks in his heart, so is he”), from the King James Version which translates the verse as “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” If a person plucks the verse out of the context of the rest of the passage as so many people seem to do, you can make that verse say something that the writer of the verse did not seem to intend.
The ESV translates it as “when there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint.” This is less easily misunderstood than other translations, but understanding what that “prophetic vision” is can be easy to understand. The NLT translates the verse as “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.” The “lack of vision” is referring to not knowing God, to not having that guidance of the Holy Spirit. The destruction and misery caused by the wicked in the first half of the chapter.
In the last half of the chapter, Solomon gives explicit examples of what he warns against in the first verse against “stiffening your neck.” This is what a stiff neck looks like:
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19 A servant cannot be corrected by words,for although he understands, there is no answer.
20 You have seen someone who is hasty in his words—there is more hope for a fool than for him.
21 If someone pampers his servant from youth,he will be a weakling in the end.
22 An angry person stirs up dissension,and a wrathful person is abounding in transgression.
23 A person’s pride will bring him low,but one who has a lowly spirit will gain honor.
In the last section, Solomon warns about trusting in man more than God.
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24 Whoever shares with a thief is his own enemy;he hears the oath to testify, but does not talk.
25 The fear of people becomes a snare,but whoever trusts in the Lord will be set on high.
26 Many people seek the face of a ruler,but it is from the Lord that one receives justice.
27 An unjust person is an abomination to the righteous,and the one who lives an upright life is an abomination to the wicked.
What does the Bible say about not having vision?
This is commentary on Proverbs 29:18 from the NET study Bible
Heb “no vision.” The Hebrew word “vision” (from the verb חָזָה [khazah, “to see”]) refers to divine communication to prophets (as in 1 Sam 3:1) and not to individual goals or plans. C. H. Toy sees a problem here: The most calamitous period of Israel’s history was when prophetic vision was at its height, whereas people were often more obedient when God was silent. He also notes that in the book of Proverbs there is no mention of prophetic teaching with wisdom as a guide. So he emends the word to “guidance” following the LXX (Proverbs [ICC], 512). The TEV has “guidance”; the NIV retains “revelation.” It must be stated that the prophetic ministry was usually in response to the calamitous periods, calling the people back to God. Without them the downward rush to anarchy and destruction would have been faster than with these prophetic calls from God.[3]
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