Chapter Twenty-Five
1. Title of a new group of proverbs. 2–5. On kings, their necessary qualities and duties. 6–7. Warning against arrogance in dealings with kings and nobles. 8–10. Against quarrelsomeness and talkativeness. 11–15. On wisdom in speech, faithfulness, and patience. 16–20. Against intemperance, importunity, false witness, credulity, and thoughtlessness. 21–22. On beneficence toward enemies. 23–28. Against a passion for discord, lack of self-control, and so forth.
Proverbs 25:1. These too are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah, king of Judah, collected. The group of proverbs embraced in chapters XXV–XXIX is identified (v. 1) as a collection made through the efforts of certain “men of king Hezekiah” (v. 1); these, clearly, refer to wise men and scholars of this king of Judah’s time: in these men of Hezekiah, the rabbis saw members of the so-called “great synagogue.”
Proverbs 25:2. The glory of God is to cover a matter in mystery; the glory of kings is to investigate a matter. Proverbs 25:3. As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable. Proverbs 25:4. Remove impurity from silver, and the silversmith will produce a vessel; Proverbs 25:5. remove the wicked from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established by righteousness. Concerning royal power, the Wise One here, as in many other places, spoke from an ideal viewpoint and at the same time gives practical counsel for strengthening the king’s authority.
Proverbs 25:6. Do not boast before the king, nor stand in the place of the great; Proverbs 25:7. for it is better when he says to you, “Come up here,” than when he puts you down before a noble, whom your eyes have seen. In connection with this, there is discourse here about propriety before kings and nobles, the required modesty at banquets being motivated here (v. 17) by the same consideration given similarly in the Gospel (Luke 14:8-10).
Proverbs 25:8. Do not hastily enter into a dispute; for what will you do at its end when your opponent puts you to shame? Proverbs 25:9. Contend with your adversary, but do not reveal another’s secret, Proverbs 25:10. so that he who hears it may not reproach you, and your shame will never depart.– “Proverbs 25. Prov. 25:10a. [Love and friendship set free: keep them for yourself, so as not to make yourself worthy of reproach; keep your paths well-ordered.]” Given the harmful consequences of quarrelsomeness and talkativeness, warning is issued against both.
Proverbs 25:11. Golden apples in silver transparent vessels – a word spoken at the right time. Proverbs 25:12. A golden earring and ornament of pure gold – a wise reprover for an attentive ear. Proverbs 25:13. What coolness from snow in time of harvest is, a faithful messenger is to the one who sends him: he brings refreshment to his master’s soul. Proverbs 25:14. What clouds and wind without rain are, such is a man who boasts of false gifts. Proverbs 25:15. By meekness a noble is inclined to mercy, and a soft tongue breaks a bone. In vv. 11–12, the same thought is developed in figurative and positive form. Then in images drawn from Palestinian nature – the custom of preparing a cool drink by means of snow or ice in summer and the usual waterless clouds in Palestinian summer (vv. 13–14) – a faithful messenger and a deceitful man are portrayed. V. 15 on the force of meekness echoes Prov 15:1.
Proverbs 25:18. What a hammer, sword, and sharp arrow are, such is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor. Proverbs 25:19. What a broken tooth and a lame leg are, such is reliance on an unreliable [man] in time of distress. Proverbs 25:20. What removing one’s cloak on a cold day, what vinegar on a wound, is, so is singing songs to a sad heart.– “Proverbs 25. Prov. 25:20a. –[As a moth to a garment and a worm to wood, so sorrow harms the heart of a man.]” Three kinds of men are characterized figuratively: false witnesses, false friends who abandon friends in misfortune, and people indifferent to the distress of their neighbors.
Proverbs 25:21. If your enemy is hungry, feed him with bread; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink: Proverbs 25:22. for by doing this you are heaping burning coals on his head, and the Lord will repay you. The exhortation to benefit a needy enemy is a development of the thought of the lawgiver Exod 23:4-5; in a somewhat condensed form it is also given by the Apostle (Rom 12:20; cf. Matt 25:35).
Proverbs 25:23. The north wind produces rain, and a secret tongue produces angry faces. Proverbs 25:24. Better to dwell in a corner of a roof than with a quarrelsome woman in a spacious house. Proverbs 25:25. What cold water to a thirsty soul is, such is a good message from a distant country. Proverbs 25:26. What a troubled spring and a poisoned well are, such is a righteous man who falls before a wicked man. Proverbs 25:27. Just as it is not good to eat much honey, so seeking glory is not glory. Proverbs 25:28. What a ruined city without walls is, such is a man who does not control his own spirit. In v. 23, the unpleasant consequences of secret conversations and gossip – suspicions and the like – are compared with the action of the north, or more precisely northwest (in Palestine), wind bringing clouds. V. 24, cf. Prov 21:9; v. 25, cf. Prov 15:30; v. speaks of the moral weakness of a righteous man before a wicked one, for instance in the form of the former’s yielding in relation to the latter’s judgments, or of the physical suffering of the righteous man from the sinner: both, as a sorrowful phenomenon, the Wise One compares with a murky spring that merely deceives the wayfarer. V. 27 is difficult to understand and has prompted many interpretations. Apparently, we should see here an indication that even in such an honorable matter as the search for truth, the investigation of exalted subjects, measure should be observed. A similar sense is given by the Vulgate translation: qui scrutator est majestatis, opprimetur a gloria. V. 28, summarizing what has been said in the preceding verses, expresses in negative form the thought of the necessity and benefit of self-control for a man: one who does not control himself, who cannot restrain his passions, is open to all external influences and temptations against his freedom and morality, and in this regard is like a city with broken walls (cf. 2 Chr 32:5; Nehem 2:13).