Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Proverbs 26:27
What does Proverbs 26:27 mean?
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Proverbs 26:27
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This verse highlights not just the consequence of evil, but the method of its return. The pit is covered, implying deception, and the rolling stone implies a deliberate, laboriously set trap, showing how malicious plans, by their very nature, have a way of backfiring on the one who set them in motion.
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This proverb follows a series of verses (26:10-16, 18-26) warning against foolishness, deception, and stirring up trouble, all of which highlight the futility and negative consequences of wicked actions. It concludes the chapter with a stark image of inevitable retribution: those who plot harm against others will ultimately ensnare themselves in their own schemes.
Ever felt like your own plans to get back at someone ended up hurting you instead? This verse paints a vivid picture of just that.
The first part of this verse uses a powerful image from the ancient world: digging a pit. Think of hunters digging a hole and covering it lightly, hoping to trap unsuspecting prey.
The Inevitable Fall
But what happens when the hunter isn't careful? They can stumble and fall right into their own trap! This is a picture of how the schemes and malicious plans of wicked people often backfire. Instead of harming others, they end up suffering the consequences themselves.
It’s a divine justice, a natural law of sowing and reaping, where the harm intended for another is ultimately experienced by the perpetrator.
The second half of the verse speaks of a different kind of dangerous work. What does it mean to roll a stone, and why does it come back?
The second image is of someone rolling a heavy stone uphill, perhaps to hurl it down upon enemies or to build a destructive weapon.
The Force of Retribution
This action requires effort and intent, much like a wicked person laboring over a plan to cause harm. However, if the stone isn't controlled, its immense weight and momentum will cause it to roll back.
This illustrates how the force and malice a wicked person exerts against others can gain a life of its own and crush them. It's a stark warning that the energy invested in evil often leads to destruction for the one who initiated it.
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This passage directly parallels the imagery of digging a pit, showing how the wicked ensnare themselves in their own wicked plans, just as Proverbs 26:27 warns.
Esther 7:9-10Haman prepared a gallows to hang Mordecai, but ended up being hanged on the very gallows he had constructed, illustrating the principle that evil plots often rebound on the plotter.
Judges 9:53Abimelech was killed by a millstone thrown from a tower, a stark example of how destructive actions, like rolling a stone of violence, can tragically return upon the perpetrator.
Galatians 6:7This New Testament verse articulates the same fundamental truth: 'A man reaps what he sows.' Whether good or bad, the actions we initiate have consequences that inevitably come back to us.
Ecclesiastes 10:8This verse speaks of a serpent biting when it is a charmer, connecting the idea that those who engage in hidden dangers or schemes (like a pit or rolling stone) can themselves fall victim to the very troubles they create.
gillProverbs 26:27: "Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein: and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him."
Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein,.... That devises mischief against others, it shall come upon himself. The allusion is to the digging of pits for catching wild beasts, which are slightly covered with earth; and which sometimes the pursuers, through inadvertency, fall into themselves; the passage seems to be taken from Psalm 7:15 ; and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upo…
clarkeProverbs 26:27: "Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein: and he that rolleth a stone, it will return upon him."
Whoso diggeth a pit - See note on Psalm 7:15 . There is a Latin proverb like this: Malum consilium consultori pessimum, "A bad counsel, but worst to the giver." Harm watch; harm catch.
This verse highlights not just the consequence of evil, but the method of its return. The pit is covered, implying deception, and the rolling stone implies a deliberate, laboriously set trap, showing how malicious plans, by their very nature, have a way of backfiring on the one who set them in motion.
This proverb follows a series of verses (26:10-16, 18-26) warning against foolishness, deception, and stirring up trouble, all of which highlight the futility and negative consequences of wicked actions. It concludes the chapter with a stark image of inevitable retribution: those who plot harm against others will ultimately ensnare themselves in their own schemes.
This proverb follows a series of verses (26:10-16, 18-26) warning against foolishness, deception, and stirring up trouble, all of which highlight the futility and negative consequences of wicked actions. It concludes the chapter with a stark image of inevitable retribution: those who plot harm against others will ultimately ensnare themselves in their own schemes.
"Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling." — This verse highlights not just the consequence of evil, but the method of its return. The pit is covered, implying deception, and the rolling stone implies a deliberate, laboriously set trap, showi…
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Last reviewed October 2026