Key Verse Spotlight
Proverbs 25:15 - Meaning and Application
Understand how this verse speaks to what you're facing and how to apply it today
Translation: World English Bible — Catholic Edition
" By patience a ruler is persuaded. A soft tongue breaks the bone. "
Proverbs 25:15
Verse in Context
Understanding the surrounding verses prevents misinterpretation:
13 As the cold of snow in the time of harvest, so is a faithful messenger to those who send him; for he refreshes the soul of his masters.
14 As clouds and wind without rain, so is he who boasts of gifts deceptively.
15 By patience a ruler is persuaded. A soft tongue breaks the bone.
16 Have you found honey? Eat as much as is sufficient for you, lest you eat too much, and vomit it.
17 Let your foot be seldom in your neighbor’s house, lest he be weary of you, and hate you.
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Two things are recommended here for dealing with others if we want to win them over. The first is patience, so we can bear a present burst of anger without getting angry ourselves. It is wise to wait for the right time to give our reasons and let people think them over. Even a prince, a ruler, may be persuaded to do something he strongly resisted at first, and this is even more true with ordinary people.
What is just and reasonable now will still be just and reasonable later. So we do not need to press people with forceful words in the moment. It is often better to wait for a more fitting time.
The second is gentleness, speaking without anger or harshness. A soft tongue can break a bone. Gentle words can soften the hardest spirit and win over the most stubborn person. The saying is like lightning, which people say can break a bone without even piercing the flesh.
Gideon, an Israelite leader, used gentle words to calm the men of Ephraim. Abigail also turned David away from his anger. We often say that hard words break no bones, so we should endure them patiently. But this proverb teaches that soft words can do powerful work, so we should use them wisely whenever we can.
From This Chapter
Proverbs 25:1
"These also are proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out."
Proverbs 25:2
"It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter."
Proverbs 25:3
"As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable."
Proverbs 25:4
"Take away the dross from the silver, and material comes out for the refiner."
Proverbs 25:5
"Take away the wicked from the king’s presence, and his throne will be established in righteousness."
Proverbs 25:6
"Don’t exalt yourself in the presence of the king, or claim a place among great men;"
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