Proverbs 25:1-10 - Compare All Versions

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These are more proverbs of Solomon, compiled by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah: It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings. As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable. Remove the dross from the silver, and a silversmith can produce a vessel; remove wicked officials from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established through righteousness. Do not exalt yourself in the king’s presence, and do not claim a place among his great men; it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,” than for him to humiliate you before his nobles. What you have seen with your eyes do not bring hastily to court, for what will you do in the end if your neighbor puts you to shame? If you take your neighbor to court, do not betray another’s confidence, or the one who hears it may shame you and the charge against you will stand.

These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied. It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out. As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel; take away the wicked from the presence of the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great, for it is better to be told, “Come up here,” than to be put lower in the presence of a noble. What your eyes have seen do not hastily bring into court, for what will you do in the end, when your neighbor puts you to shame? Argue your case with your neighbor himself, and do not reveal another’s secret, lest he who hears you bring shame upon you, and your ill repute have no end.

These are more proverbs of Solomon, collected by the advisers of King Hezekiah of Judah. It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them. No one can comprehend the height of heaven, the depth of the earth, or all that goes on in the king’s mind! Remove the impurities from silver, and the sterling will be ready for the silversmith. Remove the wicked from the king’s court, and his reign will be made secure by justice. Don’t demand an audience with the king or push for a place among the great. It’s better to wait for an invitation to the head table than to be sent away in public disgrace. Just because you’ve seen something, don’t be in a hurry to go to court. For what will you do in the end if your neighbor deals you a shameful defeat? When arguing with your neighbor, don’t betray another person’s secret. Others may accuse you of gossip, and you will never regain your good reputation.

These too are proverbs of Solomon,  which the men of King Hezekiah  of Judah copied. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter  and the glory of kings to investigate a matter. As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings cannot be investigated. Remove impurities from silver,  and material will be produced  for a silversmith.  , Remove the wicked from the king’s presence,  and his throne will be established in righteousness.  Don’t boast about yourself before the king, and don’t stand in the place of the great; for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here! ” than to demote you in plain view of a noble.  , Don’t take a matter to court hastily.  Otherwise, what will you do afterward if your opponent  humiliates you? Make your case with your opponent without revealing another’s secret;  otherwise, the one who hears will disgrace you, and you’ll never live it down.

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: But the honour of kings is to search out a matter. The heaven for height, and the earth for depth, And the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the dross from the silver, And there shall come forth a vessel for the finer. Take away the wicked from before the king, And his throne shall be established in righteousness. Put not forth thyself in the presence of the king, And stand not in the place of great men: For 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. Go not forth hastily to strive, Lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, When thy neighbour hath put thee to shame. Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; And discover not a secret to another: Lest he that heareth it put thee to shame, And thine infamy turn not away.

These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied: It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, So the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the dross from silver, And it will go to the silversmith for jewelry. Take away the wicked from before the king, And his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of the great; For it is better that he say to you, “Come up here,” Than that you should be put lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen. Do not go hastily to court; For what will you do in the end, When your neighbor has put you to shame? Debate your case with your neighbor, And do not disclose the secret to another; Lest he who hears it expose your shame, And your reputation be ruined.

There are also these proverbs of Solomon, collected by scribes of Hezekiah, king of Judah. God delights in concealing things; scientists delight in discovering things. Like the horizons for breadth and the ocean for depth, the understanding of a good leader is broad and deep. Remove impurities from the silver and the silversmith can craft a fine chalice; Remove the wicked from leadership and authority will be credible and God-honoring. Don’t work yourself into the spotlight; don’t push your way into the place of prominence. It’s better to be promoted to a place of honor than face humiliation by being demoted. Don’t jump to conclusions—there may be a perfectly good explanation for what you just saw. In the heat of an argument, don’t betray confidences; Word is sure to get around, and no one will trust you.

These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, transcribed. ¶It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, So the heart of kings is unsearchable. Take away the impurities from the silver, And there comes out a vessel for the smith; Take away the wicked before the king, And his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not boast in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the same place as great people; For it is better that it be said to you, “Come up here,” Than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen. ¶Do not go out hastily to argue your case; Otherwise, what will you do in the end, When your neighbor humiliates you? Argue your case with your neighbor, And do not reveal the secret of another, Or one who hears it will put you to shame, And the evil report about you will not pass away.

These are also the proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied: [1 Kin 4:32] ¶It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. [Deut 29:29; Rom 11:33] As the heavens for height and the earth for depth, So the hearts and minds of kings are unsearchable. Take away the dross from the silver, And there comes out [the pure metal for] a vessel for the silversmith [to shape]. [2 Tim 2:21] Take away the wicked from before the king, And his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not be boastfully ambitious and claim honor in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of great men; For it is better that it be said to you, “Come up here,” Than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen. [Luke 14:8-10] ¶Do not rush out to argue your case [before magistrates or judges]; Otherwise what will you do in the end [when your case is lost and] When your neighbor (opponent) humiliates you? [Prov 17:14; Matt 5:25] Argue your case with your neighbor himself [before you go to court]; And do not reveal another’s secret, [Matt 18:15] Or he who hears it will shame you And the rumor about you [and your action in court] will have no end.

These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of King Hezekiah of Judah copied: It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, and it is the glory of a king to search out a matter. As the heaven is high and the earth is deep so the hearts of kings are unsearchable. Remove the dross from the silver, and material for the silversmith will emerge; remove the wicked from before the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness. Do not honor yourself before the king, and do not stand in the place of great men; for it is better for him to say to you, “Come up here,” than to put you lower before a prince, whom your eyes have seen. Do not go out hastily to litigation, or what will you do afterward when your neighbor puts you to shame? When you argue a case with your neighbor, do not reveal the secret of another person, lest the one who hears it put you to shame and your infamy will never go away.