Proverbs 16:10 - Meaning and Application

We would like this to be true in every case, and we should pray for kings and all in authority, that their lips would speak a right judgment. We should ask that they act wisely when they give orders, and fairly when they pass sentence. Both of these belong to good judgment, and in neither case should their words go wrong (1 Timothy 2:1).

But often things are not so. So this verse can be read in three ways. First, it is a command to kings and judges to be wise and well taught. Let them be just and rule in the fear of God. Let them act with such wisdom and conscience that there is, as it were, a holy guidance in all they say and do, showing that they are led by more than human principles. Let their mouths not go wrong in judgment, because judgment belongs to God.

Second, it can be taken as a promise to all good rulers. If they truly aim at God’s glory and seek his direction, he will give them wisdom and grace beyond others. He will do this in proportion to the greatness of their office and the trust placed in their hands. When Saul was made king, God gave him another spirit.

Third, it was true of Solomon, who wrote these words. He had special wisdom, just as God had promised him (1 Kings 3:28).