New Living Translation
Proverbs 16:10
10The king speaks with divine wisdom; he must never judge unfairly.
Proverbs 16:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)A divine sentence is in the lips of the king: his mouth transgresseth not in judgment.
- New International Version (NIV)The lips of a king speak as an oracle, and his mouth does not betray justice.
- English Standard Version (ESV)An oracle is on the lips of a king; his mouth does not sin in judgment.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Divination is on the lips of the king; His mouth must not transgress in judgment.
Context of Proverbs 16:10
8Better to have little, with godliness, than to be rich and dishonest. 9We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. The king speaks with divine wisdom; he must never judge unfairly. 11The Lord demands accurate scales and balances; he sets the standards for fairness. 12A king detests wrongdoing, for his rule is built on justice.
Read all of Proverbs 16Proverbs 16:10 word by word
קֶ֤סֶם׀ עַֽל־שִׂפְתֵי־מֶ֑לֶךְ בְּ֝מִשְׁפָּ֗ט לֹ֣א יִמְעַל־פִּֽיו׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Proverbs 16:10
- Proverbs 16:12A king detests wrongdoing, for his rule is built on justice.
- Genesis 44:5Why have you stolen my master’s silver cup, which he uses to predict the future? What a wicked thing you have done!’”
- Deuteronomy 17:18“When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy for himself this body of instruction on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests.
- 2 Samuel 23:3The God of Israel spoke. The Rock of Israel said to me: ‘The one who rules righteously, who rules in the fear of God,
- Psalms 45:6Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever. You rule with a scepter of justice.
- Psalms 72:1Give your love of justice to the king, O God, and righteousness to the king’s son.
- Psalms 99:4Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established fairness. You have acted with justice and righteousness throughout Israel.
- Isaiah 32:1Look, a righteous king is coming! And honest princes will rule under him.
- Jeremiah 23:5“For the time is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
- Hosea 10:4They spout empty words and make covenants they don’t intend to keep. So injustice springs up among them like poisonous weeds in a farmer’s field.
- Amos 5:7You twist justice, making it a bitter pill for the oppressed. You treat the righteous like dirt.
- Amos 6:12Can horses gallop over boulders? Can oxen be used to plow them? But that’s how foolish you are when you turn justice into poison and the sweet fruit of righteousness into bitterness.
Commentaries on Proverbs 16:10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10A divine sentence - קסם kesem, "divination," as the margin has it. Is the meaning as follows? Though divination were applied to a righteous king's lips, to induce him to punish the innocent and spare the guilty, yet would not his lips transgress in judgment; so firmly attached is he to God, and so much is he under the Divine care and influence. Whatever judgment such a one pronounces, it may be considered as a decision from God.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10A divine sentence - See the margin, i. e., “soothsaying” in its darker aspect as contrasted with prophecy. The true oracle is to be sought, not from soothsayers and diviners, but “at the lips of the king,” who is ideally the representative, the ́ prophētēs of Yahweh, in His government of mankind.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10Divine wisdom is guidance from a divine source that helps the king make decisions (for example, 1 Kings 3:28; see also Psalm 72:2).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. The last clause depends on the first, expressing the importance of equity in decisions, so authoritative.Read the comment
Topics related to Proverbs 16:10
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Proverbs 16
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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