Proverbs 29:5
A man who says smooth things to his neighbour is stretching out a net for his steps.
Bible in Basic English
In The King James Version
A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet.
In Context
4A king, by right rule, makes the land safe; but one full of desires makes it a waste.
Cross References
2 Samuel 14:17Then your servant said, May the word of my lord the king give me peace! for my lord the king is as the angel of God in his hearing of good and bad: and may the Lord your God be with you!
Psalms 5:9\5:8\Be my guide, O Lord, in the ways of your righteousness, because of those who are against me; make your way straight before my face.
Proverbs 1:17Truly, to no purpose is the net stretched out before the eyes of the bird:
Proverbs 7:21With her fair words she overcame him, forcing him with her smooth lips.
Proverbs 26:24With his lips the hater makes things seem what they are not, but deceit is stored up inside him;
Lamentations 1:13From on high he has sent fire into my bones, and it has overcome them: his net is stretched out for my feet, I am turned back by him; he has made me waste and feeble all the day.
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 29:5
4 The king by judgment establisheth the land: but he that receiveth gifts overthroweth it. Here is, 1. The happiness of a people under a good government. The care and business of a prince should be to establish the land, to maintain its fundamental laws, to settle the minds of his subjects and make them easy, to secure their liberties and properties from hostilities and for posterity, and to set in order the things that are wanting; this he must do by judgment, by wise counsels, and by the steady administration of… Read the whole commentary →