Proverbs 15:23

A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
man	לָ֭אִישׁ La.'ish	H376	a man as an individual or a male person · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
joy	שִׂמְחָ֣ה sim.Chah	H8057	blithesomeness or glee · noun, common feminine singular absolute
answer	בְּמַעֲנֵה be.ma.'a.neh-	H4617	a reply (favorable or contradictory) · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct
mouth	פִ֑יו Fiv	H6310	the mouth (as the means of blowing) · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
word	וְדָבָ֖ר ve.da.Var	H1697	a word · conjunction + noun, common masculine singular absolute
season	בְּעִתּ֣וֹ be.'i.To	H6256	time · preposition + noun, common both genders singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
good	טּֽוֹב Tov	H2896	good (as an adjective) in the widest sense · adjective, masculine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Isaiah 50:4 The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth mor…
Proverbs 25:11-12 A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.
Ephesians 4:29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the h…
Proverbs 12:14 A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: and the recompence of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.
Proverbs 16:13 Righteous lips are the delight of kings; and they love him that speaketh right.
Proverbs 24:26 Every man shall kiss his lips that giveth a right answer.
1 Samuel 25:32-33 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:
Ecclesiastes 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 15:23

Note, 1. We speak wisely when we speak seasonably: The answer of the mouth will be our credit and joy when it is pertinent and to the purpose, and is spoken in due season, when it is needed and will be regarded, and, as we say, hits the joint. Many a good word comes short of doing the good it might have done, for want of being well-timed. Nor is any thing more the beauty of discourse than to have a proper answer ready off-hand, just when there is occasion for it, and it comes in well. 2. If we speak wisely and well, it will redound to our own comfort and to the advantage of others: A man has joy by the answer of his mouth; he may take a pleasure, but may by no means take a pride, in having s…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 15:23

Good advice blesses the giver and receiver.

John Gill on Proverbs 15:23

A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth,.... When his advice is asked, and he gives good and wholesome counsel, and that being taken succeeds; it is a pleasure to a man that he is capable of assisting his friend, and doing him service, or a common good, whether it be in things natural, civil, or religious; when his speech is with salt, seasoned with grace, and he knows how he ought to answer every man; when that which is good proceeds from him, and is to the use of edifying, and ministers grace to the hearers, and is acceptable to them; when with readiness he gives an answer to every man that asks him a reason of the hope that is in him, with meekness and fear, Colossians 3:6, Ephesians 4:…

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Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 15:20-23

This collection of Solomonic proverbs began, Pro 10:1, with a proverb having reference to the observance of the fourth commandment, (Note: The fifth commandment of the Westminster Shorter Catechism is named as the fourth in Luther's catechism.) and a second chief section, Pro 13:1, began in the same way. Here a proverb of the same kind designates the beginning of a third chief section. That the editor was aware of this is shown by the homogeneity of the proverbs, Pro 15:19; Pro 12:28, which form the conclusion of the first and second sections. We place together first in this new section, Pro 15:20-23, in which (with the exception of Pro 15:25) the ישׂמח [maketh glad] of the first (Pro 10:1)…

The Church Fathers

A man rejoices in his mouth's sentence, etc. It is indeed human for each to rejoice in his sentence as though prudently uttered; but a true wise man carefully investigates not only the matters he speaks, but also the opportunity of place or time or person, to whom he speaks.
— Bede, Commentary on Proverbs

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Joy · Experienced by: The wise, and discreet — Experienced by: The wise, and discreet
Speaking · WISDOM IN — WISDOM IN
Words · Spoken at the proper moment — Spoken at the proper moment

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Proverbs 15:23

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 15:23

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 15:23

John Gill on Proverbs 15:23

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 15:20-23

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Proverbs 15:23

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 15:23

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 15:23

John Gill on Proverbs 15:23

Keil & Delitzsch on Proverbs 15:20-23

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Proverbs 15:22

Rashi on Proverbs 15:23