CHAPTER 25

A Word Fitly Spoken — Hezekiah's Collection Begins

A new collection opens here, explicitly credited to scribes working under King Hezekiah generations after Solomon, preserving proverbs that had circulated but not yet been compiled. The chapter is unusually rich in comparison-based sayings — 'as X, so Y' — covering royal courts, self-restraint, and the surprising command to feed a hungry enemy.

1 ‘These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out’ — Solomon wrote three thousand proverbs in his lifetime (1 Kings 4:32), far more than fit in this book; Hezekiah's men, working roughly two and a half centuries later during his revival of true worship, curated and copied out this second collection. Wisdom worth keeping, this heading insists, is wisdom somebody eventually takes the trouble to write down.

2 ‘It is the glory of God to conceal a thing; but the glory of kings is to search out a matter’ — divine mystery and royal investigation are named as parallel forms of glory, each fitting to its proper role — God need not explain everything, while a king's honor lies precisely in diligent inquiry.

3 ‘As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the heart of kings is unsearchable’ — the vastness of sky and earth becomes a picture for how difficult it is to fully know the true mind of someone in power.

4 ‘Take away the dross from the silver, and there cometh forth a vessel for the refiner’ — removing impurity is the necessary first step before anything useful can be shaped; the image sets up verse 5's direct application.

5 ‘Take away the wicked from before the king, and his throne shall be established in righteousness’ — political stability, as in chapter 16 and 20, is tied directly to removing corrupt influence from positions of counsel and power.

6 ‘Put not thyself forward in the presence of the king, and stand not in the place of great men’ — practical court etiquette warns against self-promotion in the presence of superior authority.

7 ‘For better is it that it be said unto thee, Come up hither, than that thou shouldest be put lower in the presence of the prince’ — the wisdom of humility here is almost identical in spirit to Jesus' parable of choosing the lowest seat at a banquet (Luke 14:7–11) — let recognition come as invitation, not self-assertion.

8 ‘Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbor hath put thee to shame’ — a warning against rushing into conflict or accusation before knowing the full situation, since an overconfident start can end in embarrassing reversal.

9 ‘Debate thy cause with thy neighbor himself, and disclose not the secret of another’ — direct, private confrontation of a grievance is commended over spreading it to third parties, protecting both the relationship and any confidences involved.

10 ‘Lest he that heareth it revile thee, and thine infamy turn not away’ — the cost of violating verse 9's counsel is named specifically: a damaged reputation that, once spread, is very hard to undo.

11 ‘A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in network of silver’ — one of the most beautiful images in the book: the right word at the right moment is compared to a crafted work of art, valuable specifically because of its fitness to the moment, not just its content.

12 ‘As an ear-ring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear’ — correction well-given and well-received is compared to fine jewelry — a striking reframe of criticism as something that can actually adorn, not merely wound.

13 ‘As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to them that send him’ — reliability in carrying out a task is compared to unexpected, refreshing relief during hard labor — trustworthiness experienced as genuine comfort.

14 ‘As clouds and wind without rain, so is he that boasteth himself of his gifts falsely’ — the promise of a gift that never materializes is compared to a storm that gathers dramatically but produces nothing — all appearance, no substance.

15 ‘By long forbearing is a ruler persuaded, and a soft tongue breaketh the bone’ — patience and gentleness are credited with a power that force lacks, capable of overcoming even something as seemingly immovable as bone.

16 ‘Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it’ — even a genuinely good thing, taken to excess, turns harmful — a caution against overindulgence in things that are not themselves wrong.

17 ‘Let thy foot be seldom in thy neighbor's house, lest he be weary of thee, and hate thee’ — practical wisdom about hospitality and boundaries: even welcome company can wear out its welcome through overfamiliarity.

18 ‘A man that beareth false witness against his neighbor is a maul, and a sword, and a sharp arrow’ — three different weapons pile up to emphasize just how violent and damaging dishonest testimony really is, whatever its outwardly civil appearance.

19 ‘Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint’ — relying on someone unreliable is compared to relying on an already-injured body part — useless at the exact moment it's needed most.

20 ‘As one that taketh off a garment in cold weather, and as vinegar upon soda, so is he that singeth songs to a heavy heart’ — forced cheerfulness aimed at genuine grief is shown as not just unhelpful but actively jarring and wrong, like removing a coat in winter.

21 ‘If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink’ — quoted directly in Romans 12:20; the command overturns the instinct toward retaliation, extending basic kindness even, and especially, to someone who has wronged you.

22 ‘For thou wilt heap coals of fire upon his head, and Jehovah will reward thee’ — the image likely pictures shame or conviction produced in the enemy by unexpected kindness, not literal harm, with the added promise that God himself notices and rewards such restraint.

23 ‘The north wind bringeth forth rain; so doth a backbiting tongue an angry countenance’ — gossip and its consequence, anger, are linked as naturally and predictably as a weather pattern.

24 ‘It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop, than with a contentious woman in a wide house’ — repeated almost word for word from 21:9, reinforcing how seriously the compilers of this later collection still regarded the earlier warning about domestic strife.

25 ‘As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country’ — the relief of welcome news after a long wait is compared to the most basic, urgent physical need — water to someone genuinely thirsty.

26 ‘As a troubled fountain, and a corrupted spring, so is a righteous man that giveth way before the wicked’ — a righteous person compromising under pressure is compared to a community's clean water source becoming polluted — the damage reaches everyone who depended on their integrity.

27 ‘It is not good to eat much honey; so for men to search out their own glory is grievous’ — the honey image from verse 16 returns, now applied specifically to self-promotion: seeking one's own honor in excess turns sour, just like overindulgence in something sweet.

28 ‘He whose spirit is without restraint is like a city that is broken down and without walls’ — the chapter's closing image pictures self-control as a city's essential defense — without it, a person is left exposed to whatever comes, with nothing left to hold the line.