New International Version
Proverbs 25:2
2It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.
Proverbs 25:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter.
- English Standard Version (ESV)It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.
- New King James Version (NKJV)It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.
- New Living Translation (NLT)It is God’s privilege to conceal things and the king’s privilege to discover them.
Context of Proverbs 25:2
1These 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. 3As the heavens are high and the earth is deep, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable. 4Remove the dross from the silver, and a silversmith can produce a vessel;
Read all of Proverbs 25Proverbs 25:2 word by word
כְּבֹ֣ד אֱ֭לֹהִים הַסְתֵּ֣ר דָּבָ֑ר וּכְבֹ֥ד מְ֝לָכִ֗ים חֲקֹ֣ר דָּבָֽר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 25:2
- Deuteronomy 29:29The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.
- Job 11:7“Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?
- Job 38:4“Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand.
- Job 40:2“Will the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses God answer him!”
- Job 42:3You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.
- Romans 11:33Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out!
- 1 Kings 3:9So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”
- 1 Kings 4:29God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight, and a breadth of understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore.
- Ezra 4:15so that a search may be made in the archives of your predecessors. In these records you will find that this city is a rebellious city, troublesome to kings and provinces, a place with a long history of sedition. That is why this city was destroyed.
- Ezra 5:17Now if it pleases the king, let a search be made in the royal archives of Babylon to see if King Cyrus did in fact issue a decree to rebuild this house of God in Jerusalem. Then let the king send us his decision in this matter.
- Ezra 6:1King Darius then issued an order, and they searched in the archives stored in the treasury at Babylon.
- Job 29:16I was a father to the needy; I took up the case of the stranger.
Commentaries on Proverbs 25:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2It is the glory of God to conceal a thing - This has been understood as referring to the revelation of God's will in his word, where there are many things concealed in parables, allegories, metaphors, similitudes, etc. And it is becoming the majesty of God so to publish his will, that it must be seriously studied to be understood, in order that the truth may be more prized when it is discovered. And if it be God's glory thus partially to conceal his…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2The earthly monarch might be, in some respects, the type of the heavenly, but here there is a marked contrast. The king presses further and further into all knowledge; God surrounds Himself as in “thick darkness,” and there are secrets unrevealed even after the fullest revelation.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2-3This warning advises young men entering royal service that some things are beyond understanding, like the king's mysterious reasoning (for example, 2 Samuel 11:14–25; 24:3).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. God's unsearchableness impresses us with awe (compare Is 45:15; Ro 11:33). But kings, being finite, should confer with wise counsellors;Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 25:2
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 25
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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