The Meaning of Proverbs 2:18 Explained

Proverbs 2:18

KJV: For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead.

YLT: For her house hath inclined unto death, And unto Rephaim her paths.

Darby: for her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead;

ASV: For her house inclineth unto death, And her paths unto the dead;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For her house  inclineth  unto death,  and her paths  unto the dead. 

What does Proverbs 2:18 Mean?

Context Summary

Proverbs 2:1-22 - Wisdom Guards From Evil
Several words are reiterated in this chapter, which will unlock its treasures. Understanding, Proverbs 2:2-3; Proverbs 2:5; Proverbs 2:9; Proverbs 2:11. If wisdom is a moral quality, leading to intuitive knowledge, understanding may be taken to include something of a prophetic strain. Understanding gathers up and makes use of the results of observation and experience, whether of oneself or of others.
Notice also the word walk, Proverbs 2:7; Proverbs 2:13; way, Proverbs 2:8; Proverbs 2:12-13; Proverbs 2:15; Proverbs 2:20; paths, Proverbs 2:8; Proverbs 2:13; Proverbs 2:15; Proverbs 2:18-20. See how eager the Divine Teacher is (l) to deliver the unwary from the way of the evil man, Proverbs 2:12, and from the way of the evil woman, Proverbs 2:16; and (2) to direct the feet of the young into the ways of the good and into the paths of the righteous, Proverbs 2:20. The path of safety and permanence is that in which we are perpetually conscious of the presence of the Master, Christ. He is the unseen companion of the soul in its difficult and perilous pilgrimage; and we may, in that companionship, appropriate the buckler of Proverbs 2:7, the integrity of Proverbs 2:8, and the stability of Proverbs 2:21. [source]

Chapter Summary: Proverbs 2

1  wisdom promises godliness to her children
10  and safety from evil company
20  and direction in good ways

What do the individual words in Proverbs 2:18 mean?

For leads down to death her house and to the dead her paths
כִּ֤י שָׁ֣חָה אֶל־ מָ֣וֶת בֵּיתָ֑הּ וְאֶל־ רְ֝פָאִ֗ים מַעְגְּלֹתֶֽיהָ

שָׁ֣חָה  leads  down 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: שׁוּחַ  
Sense: to sink down, be bowed down, be humble.
מָ֣וֶת  death 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: מָוֶת  
Sense: death, dying, Death (personified), realm of the dead.
בֵּיתָ֑הּ  her  house 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
וְאֶל־  and  to 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
רְ֝פָאִ֗ים  the  dead 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: רְפָאִים  
Sense: ghosts of the dead, shades, spirits.
מַעְגְּלֹתֶֽיהָ  her  paths 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct, third person feminine singular
Root: מַעְגָּל 
Sense: entrenchment, track.