What Does Proverbs 26:25 Mean in the King James?
When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The Hebrew word for “believe” asks where you can safely set your weight, and this verse warns that a gracious voice may not bear it.
THE MEANING
The verse holds two things together: a person gives their voice a gracious quality while their heart contains seven detestable things. Trust means leaning your weight on what is firm, and a pleasant tone alone does not establish that firmness.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
A gracious tone proves that a person’s inner life is equally gracious.
THE ROOT
תַּאֲמֶן
ta’amen
GROWS FROM
אמן
To be firm or steady; from this comes the sense of trusting or relying on something as dependable.
The verse’s warning reaches beyond whether the words sound kind: it asks whether they are firm enough to bear trust. English “believe” can sound like a thought in the mind, while this root carries the weight of relying on what proves steady.
ALSO GROWS
amen: Firm; truly.
אָמֵן
The shared root links trust with what can be affirmed as steady.
emunah: Trust; steadiness.
אֱמוּנָה
This branch makes trust something a person can lean their weight on, bringing the verse’s warning into focus.
יְחַנֵּן
yeḥannēn
GROWS FROM
חנן
To show favor or act graciously.
“speaketh fair” in this verse is yeḥannēn. The Hebrew describes the speaker as making his voice gracious, so the voice itself becomes a means of winning favor. That gracious sound can be present while the heart holds something very different.
ALSO GROWS
chen: Favor.
חֵן
This branch shows the favor-laden quality of the speech described in the verse.
ḥannun: Gracious; showing favor.
חַנּוּן
The shared root sharpens the contrast between a gracious presentation and the heart’s contents.
תּוֹעֵבוֹת
toʿevot
GROWS FROM
תעב
To abhor or regard as detestable.
“abominations” in this verse is toʿevot. The verse names detestable things within the heart, not merely a vague hidden flaw. Its plural and the number seven present a whole array of what lies beneath the gracious voice.
ALSO GROWS
toʿevah: A detestable thing; an abomination.
תּוֹעֵבָה
This noun names what the verse says is held in the heart.
metoʿav: Detested; abhorrent.
מְתוֹעָב
This related form carries the same root sense of what is held as deeply repugnant.
THE PATTERN
Persuasive words do not establish what is in the heart; a person’s pattern and fruit disclose whether their speech bears weight.
The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords.Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.THE THREAD
The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.The Hebrew word translated “believeth” comes from אמן (aman), the same root behind “believe” here: trust means treating something as firm. This proverb pairs that trust with careful discernment, opening the warning that a gracious voice alone cannot establish what is reliable.
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