Wisdom & Poetry · Old Testament

Proverbs 25

Proverbs 25: proverbs copied out by the men of Hezekiah, the honour of kings, and apples of gold

General context

The chapter opens with a heading: "These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out." It is the glory of God to conceal a thing and the honour of kings to search out a matter; the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the dross from the silver and a vessel comes forth; take away the wicked from before the king and his throne is established. The hearer is told not to put himself forward in the king's presence, for it is better to be told "Come up hither" than to be put lower. A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver; a wise reprover on an obedient ear is like an earring of gold; a faithful messenger is like the cold of snow in harvest; a boaster of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain. Eat only enough honey. A false witness is a maul, a sword and a sharp arrow; confidence in an unfaithful man is a broken tooth; singing songs to a heavy heart is like taking away a garment in cold weather. If your enemy is hungry give him bread and if thirsty water, for you will heap coals of fire on his head and the Lord will reward you. It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop than with a brawling woman in a wide house. It is not good to eat much honey, and for men to search their own glory is not glory. He that has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down and without walls.

Cited passages: Proverbs 25:1, Proverbs 25:2, Proverbs 25:3, Proverbs 25:4, Proverbs 25:5, Proverbs 25:6, Proverbs 25:7, Proverbs 25:8, Proverbs 25:9, Proverbs 25:11, Proverbs 25:12, Proverbs 25:13, Proverbs 25:14, Proverbs 25:15, Proverbs 25:16, Proverbs 25:17, Proverbs 25:18, Proverbs 25:19, Proverbs 25:20, Proverbs 25:21, Proverbs 25:22, Proverbs 25:23, Proverbs 25:24, Proverbs 25:25, Proverbs 25:26, Proverbs 25:27, Proverbs 25:28

Proverbs 25 (KJV)

¹These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.

²It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.

³The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable.

⁴Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer.

⁵Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.

⁶Put not forth thyself in the presence of the king, and stand not in the place of great men:

⁷For better it is that it be said unto thee, Come up hither; than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the prince whom thine eyes have seen.

⁸Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame.

⁹Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; and discover not a secret to another:

¹⁰Lest he that heareth it put thee to shame, and thine infamy turn not away.

¹¹A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.

¹²As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.

¹³As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him: for he refresheth the soul of his masters.

¹⁴Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain.

¹⁵By long forbearing is a prince persuaded, and a soft tongue breaketh the bone.

¹⁶Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it.

¹⁷Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbour’s house; lest he be weary of thee, and so hate thee.

¹⁸A man that beareth false witness against his neighbour is a maul, and a sword, and a sharp arrow.

¹⁹Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint.

²⁰As he that taketh away a garment in cold weather, and as vinegar upon nitre, so is he that singeth songs to an heavy heart.

²¹If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:

²²For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee.

²³The north wind driveth away rain: so doth an angry countenance a backbiting tongue.

²⁴It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman and in a wide house.

²⁵As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.

²⁶A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.

²⁷It is not good to eat much honey: so for men to search their own glory is not glory.

²⁸He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.

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Historical context

The heading is one of several in the book (1:1, 10:1, 22:17, 24:23, 30:1, 31:1) and the third to name Solomon. It adds that "the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out" these proverbs; the verb is "copied out", not composed, and the text says nothing about who these men were, what they copied from, or when. Hezekiah is identified only as "king of Judah", and he is not mentioned again in the book. Besides Solomon and David in 1:1, he and Lemuel (31:1) are the only kings named in the book's headings. God is named in verse 2 and the Lord in verse 22. The kings and prince of verses 2 to 7 are general figures; the courtier's rule in verses 6 and 7 assumes a court with places of rank but names none. Verse 24 repeats 21:9 with the small change "and in a wide house". Honey appears in verses 16 and 27, both times as a thing to limit. Verses 21 and 22 command feeding a hungry enemy and give as the reason "coals of fire upon his head" and the Lord's reward; the chapter does not explain the image of coals. No event, place or person beyond the heading appears in the chapter.

Cited passages: Proverbs 25:1, Proverbs 1:1, Proverbs 10:1, Proverbs 22:17, Proverbs 31:1, Proverbs 25:2, Proverbs 25:22, Proverbs 25:6, Proverbs 25:24, Proverbs 21:9, Proverbs 25:16, Proverbs 25:27

Literary context

Comparison is the chapter's main form. Many verses run "As ... so" or "is like": apples of gold, an earring of gold, the cold of snow, clouds and wind without rain, a broken tooth, a garment taken in cold weather, cold waters, a troubled fountain, a city without walls. The opening block on kings (verses 2 to 7) descends from God who conceals, to kings who search, to the two parallel "Take away" sayings on dross and the wicked, to the courtier told to wait for "Come up hither". Neighbours and strife occupy verses 8 to 10 and 17 and 18, with the secret not to be told and the foot to be withdrawn. Weather runs through the images: snow in harvest, clouds without rain, cold weather, the north wind, cold waters. Honey frames the second half, sufficient honey in verse 16 and too much honey in verse 27, where the taste is turned into a saying about glory. The enemy fed with bread and water in verses 21 and 22 is one of the few commands that is not a warning. The chapter ends on the self, a spirit without rule as a city without walls, after verse 15 has said that a soft tongue breaks the bone.

Cited passages: Proverbs 25:11, Proverbs 25:12, Proverbs 25:13, Proverbs 25:19, Proverbs 25:20, Proverbs 25:25, Proverbs 25:28, Proverbs 25:2, Proverbs 25:4, Proverbs 25:5, Proverbs 25:7, Proverbs 25:9, Proverbs 25:17, Proverbs 25:23, Proverbs 25:16, Proverbs 25:27, Proverbs 25:21, Proverbs 25:15

Key moments

Copied out by Hezekiah's men (Proverbs 25:1). A heading says these are also Solomon's proverbs, copied out by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah.
Glory to conceal, honour to search (Proverbs 25:2). God's glory is to conceal a thing; a king's honour is to search a matter out.
Come up hither (Proverbs 25:7). It is better to be called up than to be put lower before the prince.
Apples of gold (Proverbs 25:11). A word fitly spoken is compared to apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Honey enough (Proverbs 25:16). The finder of honey is told to eat only enough, lest he vomit it.
Bread for an enemy (Proverbs 25:21). A hungry enemy is to be given bread and a thirsty one water.
A city without walls (Proverbs 25:28). A man without rule over his spirit is compared to a broken city with no walls.

For reflection

Verse 2 says it is the glory of God to conceal a thing and the honour of kings to search out a matter, and verse 27 says that for men to search their own glory is not glory. Which kinds of searching does the chapter approve, and which does it warn against?