Proverbs 16:3-13

3 Ask the Lord to bless your plans, and you will be successful in carrying them out.

4 Everything the Lord has made has its destiny; and the destiny of the wicked is destruction.

5 The Lord hates everyone who is arrogant; he will never let them escape punishment.

6 Be loyal and faithful, and God will forgive your sin. Obey the Lord and nothing evil will happen to you. ¹

7 When you please the Lord, you can make your enemies into friends.

8 It is better to have a little, honestly earned, than to have a large income, dishonestly gained. ²

9 You may make your plans, but God directs your actions.

10 The king speaks with divine authority; his decisions are always right.

11 The Lord wants weights and measures to be honest and every sale to be fair.

12 Kings cannot tolerate evil, because justice is what makes a government strong.

13 A king wants to hear the truth and will favor those who speak it.

Proverbs 16:3-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO FIRST KINGS 6

This chapter gives an account of the building of the temple, for which preparations were before made and begins with the time of its building, 1Ki 6:1; gives the dimensions of it and the porch before it, 1Ki 6:2,3; observes the windows in it and chambers about it, 1Ki 6:4-10; and while it was building, Solomon had a word from the Lord relative to it, 1Ki 6:11-14; and then the account goes on concerning the walls of the house, and the flooring of it, 1Ki 6:15-18; and the oracle in it, and the cherubim in that, 1Ki 6:19-30; and the doors into it, and the carved work of them, 1Ki 6:31-36; and the chapter is concluded with observing the time when it was begun and finished 1Ki 6:37,38.

Cross References

• 1. +216.6Tobit 12.9.
• 2. +216.8Tobit 12.8.

Footnotes

• [a]. you can make; [or] he will make.
• [b]. Kings . . . evil; [or] It is intolerable for kings to do evil.