Posted by Jeff Short on July 22, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.
– Proverbs 25:5
The word for
take away means to remove, and it begins both verse 4 and verse 5. Removing the dross from silver in the previous verse results in a pure and valuable vessel. Likewise, removing wicked counselors from before the king results in an established throne (Proverbs 16:12; 20:28; 29:14). The implication of the verse is that wicked counselors will ruin the righteousness of a rule by perverting justice in one way or another. Wisdom teaches the necessity of wise counselors (Proverbs 15:22; 20:18), but also warns against wicked counsel (Proverbs 12:3, 19).
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Posted by Jeff Short on July 19, 2018 · Leave a Comment
The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, and the heart of kings is unsearchable.
– Proverbs 25:3
This verse uses a triplet that likens three things as being unsearchable. The point of the comparison is to focus on the
heart of kings. The word for
unsearchable is related to the word for
search out in the previous verse, which ties the verses together thematically. The
heaven for height and the
earth for depth are essentially unfathomable and are put for something not fully knowable. The wisdom here is teaching servants and courtiers to be cautious in presuming to know the full mind of a king, or in being overconfident of his favor (Proverbs 16:14; 20:2; 24:21-22).
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Posted by Jeff Short on August 8, 2017 · Leave a Comment
In the light of the king’s countenance is life; and his favor is as a cloud of the latter rain.
– Proverbs 16:15
This proverb gives the opposite perspective from the previous one. The king has great power to do much damage in his wrath, but that power can also be used for much good (Proverbs 19:12). The king is crucial to the prospering and flourishing of his nation. A wise, righteous king will lead to a productive and rejoicing people (Proverbs 11:10; 28:12, 28; 29:2, 4).
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Posted by Jeff Short on August 3, 2017 · Leave a Comment
A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment.
– Proverbs 16:10
Verses 10-15 touch on kings and bearing authority. The word for
divine sentence can mean divination, such as is forbidden in Leviticus 19:26. It can also mean the speaking of an oracle in a good sense, and so here refers to the authority of the king’s words. The second phrase is a warning to kings to speak in righteousness in light of the authority of their words. The king is not to speak contrary to wisdom and justice (Deuteronomy 17:18-20).
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Proverbs 25:5
Posted by Jeff Short on July 22, 2018 · Leave a Comment
Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness.
The word for take away means to remove, and it begins both verse 4 and verse 5. Removing the dross from silver in the previous verse results in a pure and valuable vessel. Likewise, removing wicked counselors from before the king results in an established throne (Proverbs 16:12; 20:28; 29:14). The implication of the verse is that wicked counselors will ruin the righteousness of a rule by perverting justice in one way or another. Wisdom teaches the necessity of wise counselors (Proverbs 15:22; 20:18), but also warns against wicked counsel (Proverbs 12:3, 19).– Proverbs 25:5
Listen to the Proverbs sermon series
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