Pro 25:6 | KingComments | STEP | The men of Hezekiah, under the guidance of God’s Spirit, begin with a number of proverbs about kings. Above all, they begin by presenting the exaltedness of God above all earthly kings. emphasizes a contrast between God and kings. It is the magnificent nature of God “to conceal a matter”. If God does not explain His government of the universe and His purposes and actions to man, it is His glory, His majesty, His sovereignty. He does not have to account to man for any plan or any action. The most powerful people on earth, kings, are a great contrast to Him. God does not have to find out anything, He knows everything, but it is the glory of kings to search out, to discover, expose things (cf. ; ). As much as possible, kings should search out everything. They should also make things open and understandable to their subjects, especially when it is about judicial matters. Kings rule as God’s representatives. They must try to make His will visible in human affairs. Therefore, they must ask God to reveal His will, that He make known the mystery of His will in the situation at hand. The subjects of a king are in awe of him and honor him when he diligently searches out a matter and does not make his decisions based on a superficial knowledge of a matter. We can apply this to us as believers. We too are kings ( ). It is a work of royal dignity, an honor and a challenge, to fathom what God has hidden in Scripture. He wants to reveal mysteries. However, they can only be discovered and understood by spiritually minded believers, that is, believers who are led by God’s Spirit, for to them the Spirit can reveal hidden things ( ). While a king must make judicial matters especially clear to the people ( ), there are many things he keeps hidden in his heart ( ). He occupies a position where he does not have to account for everything he does or does not do. The comparison with the heavens being high and the earth being deep shows the nature of the king. He must be wise, inventive and unsearchable, always staying one step ahead of everyone to maintain a firm grip on power. Man must recognize that “the heavens for height and the earth for depth” are unsearchable (cf. ). What they contain is far beyond the comprehension of all researchers. So it is with “the heart of kings”: it is unsearchable to another. And certainly the heart of the believer is unsearchable to the unbeliever ( ). Only God knows the heart of every person fully ( ). is an illustration to clarify . means that after the dross is removed, the blacksmith can produce a pure silver work of art. This is applied in to the removal of a wicked person from the presence of a king, establishing his throne in righteousness. A king may have great ideals for his government and his conduct may be blameless, but it is of no avail if he is surrounded by unscrupulous courtiers who deceive him. When these are got rid of, the government consists only of righteous counselors and the government will be established in righteousness. It is about getting rid of what would make the firmness of the throne impossible. As dross is separated from silver, so bad people must be removed for a king’s government to be righteous ( ; ). It is not enough for a ruler to be righteous; his associates must also be upright people for his government to be good. King Solomon had to judge several evildoers before he could sit on the throne in safety and peace ( ). It can be applied to the heart of man. Who sits there on the throne? If sin and iniquity are present in it, they must be judged. Then it is possible to live a life subject to the authority of the Lord Jesus. The same principle is true regarding the coming kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. When He returns to earth in triumph, in power and majesty, the wicked will be exterminated and all transgressors eradicated from the land. This judgment heralds the great day of the Lord ( ; ). also belong together. It is wiser to wait to be promoted than to risk being demoted because of self-promotion. It is an overestimation of one’s own importance. “Claim” ( ) means ‘to behave presumptuously’. indicates the motive for the warning given in the previous verse: someone reckons himself to the “great men”. The lesson is simple. Commending oneself in court, “in the presence of the prince”, carries the risk of public humiliation. In contrast, it will be an honor for someone if everyone in the courtroom hears his promotion from the mouth of the prince himself. This lesson is also taught in Luke 14 ( ). Here it may concern a recommendation of oneself, putting oneself forward as the most suitable candidate for a post near the king, for example as one of his counselors (cf. ). A person may feel of himself that he belongs “in the place of great men”. This self-aggrandizement can end in public humiliation. “the prince, whom your eyes have seen” may be a distinguished person who comes later than the one addressed, entitled to the place that the latter had already taken of his own accord.

‏ Proverbs 25:6

Kings and Those Who Are With Them

The men of Hezekiah, under the guidance of God’s Spirit, begin with a number of proverbs about kings. Above all, they begin by presenting the exaltedness of God above all earthly kings. Pro 25:2 emphasizes a contrast between God and kings. It is the magnificent nature of God “to conceal a matter”. If God does not explain His government of the universe and His purposes and actions to man, it is His glory, His majesty, His sovereignty. He does not have to account to man for any plan or any action.

The most powerful people on earth, kings, are a great contrast to Him. God does not have to find out anything, He knows everything, but it is the glory of kings to search out, to discover, expose things (cf. Deu 29:29; Rom 11:33-34). As much as possible, kings should search out everything. They should also make things open and understandable to their subjects, especially when it is about judicial matters.

Kings rule as God’s representatives. They must try to make His will visible in human affairs. Therefore, they must ask God to reveal His will, that He make known the mystery of His will in the situation at hand. The subjects of a king are in awe of him and honor him when he diligently searches out a matter and does not make his decisions based on a superficial knowledge of a matter.

We can apply this to us as believers. We too are kings (Rev 1:6 ; Rev 5:10). It is a work of royal dignity, an honor and a challenge, to fathom what God has hidden in Scripture. He wants to reveal mysteries. However, they can only be discovered and understood by spiritually minded believers, that is, believers who are led by God’s Spirit, for to them the Spirit can reveal hidden things (1Cor 2:10-12).

While a king must make judicial matters especially clear to the people (Pro 25:2b), there are many things he keeps hidden in his heart (Pro 25:3). He occupies a position where he does not have to account for everything he does or does not do. The comparison with the heavens being high and the earth being deep shows the nature of the king. He must be wise, inventive and unsearchable, always staying one step ahead of everyone to maintain a firm grip on power.

Man must recognize that “the heavens for height and the earth for depth” are unsearchable (cf. Jer 31:37). What they contain is far beyond the comprehension of all researchers. So it is with “the heart of kings”: it is unsearchable to another. And certainly the heart of the believer is unsearchable to the unbeliever (1Cor 2:15). Only God knows the heart of every person fully (Jer 17:9-10).

Pro 25:4 is an illustration to clarify Pro 25:5. Pro 25:4 means that after the dross is removed, the blacksmith can produce a pure silver work of art. This is applied in Pro 25:5 to the removal of a wicked person from the presence of a king, establishing his throne in righteousness. A king may have great ideals for his government and his conduct may be blameless, but it is of no avail if he is surrounded by unscrupulous courtiers who deceive him. When these are got rid of, the government consists only of righteous counselors and the government will be established in righteousness.

It is about getting rid of what would make the firmness of the throne impossible. As dross is separated from silver, so bad people must be removed for a king’s government to be righteous (Pro 17:3 ; Pro 20:8; Mal 3:3). It is not enough for a ruler to be righteous; his associates must also be upright people for his government to be good. King Solomon had to judge several evildoers before he could sit on the throne in safety and peace (1Kgs 2:23-25 ; 29-34 ; 41-46).

It can be applied to the heart of man. Who sits there on the throne? If sin and iniquity are present in it, they must be judged. Then it is possible to live a life subject to the authority of the Lord Jesus.

The same principle is true regarding the coming kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. When He returns to earth in triumph, in power and majesty, the wicked will be exterminated and all transgressors eradicated from the land. This judgment heralds the great day of the Lord (2Thes 1:3-12 ; 2Thes 2:1-12; Rev 19:11-21).

Pro 25:6-7 also belong together. It is wiser to wait to be promoted than to risk being demoted because of self-promotion. It is an overestimation of one’s own importance. “Claim” (Pro 25:6) means ‘to behave presumptuously’. Pro 25:7 indicates the motive for the warning given in the previous verse: someone reckons himself to the “great men”.

The lesson is simple. Commending oneself in court, “in the presence of the prince”, carries the risk of public humiliation. In contrast, it will be an honor for someone if everyone in the courtroom hears his promotion from the mouth of the prince himself. This lesson is also taught in Luke 14 (Lk 14:8-11).

Here it may concern a recommendation of oneself, putting oneself forward as the most suitable candidate for a post near the king, for example as one of his counselors (cf. Mt 20:20-29). A person may feel of himself that he belongs “in the place of great men”. This self-aggrandizement can end in public humiliation. “the prince, whom your eyes have seen” may be a distinguished person who comes later than the one addressed, entitled to the place that the latter had already taken of his own accord.