Proverbs 20:28
Kindness and truth will watch over a king, and he will prop up through kindness his throne.
Leeser Tanakh
In The King James Version
Mercy and truth preserve the king: and his throne is upholden by mercy.
In Context
27A lamp of the Lord is the soul of man, searching all the inner chambers of the body.
29The ornament of young men is their strength; and the glory of old men is a hoary head.
Cross References
Psalms 21:7(21:8) For the king trusteth in the Lord; and through the kindness of the Most High shall he not be moved.
Psalms 61:7(61:8) May he abide for ever before God: ordain that kindness and truth may guard him.
Proverbs 3:3Let kindness and truth not forsake thee; bind them about thy throat; write them upon the table of thy heart:
Proverbs 16:12It should be an abomination to kings to commit wickedness; for through righteousness [alone] can a throne be established.
Isaiah 16:5And there shall be founded through kindness a throne; and there shall sit upon it in truthfulness in the tent of David a judge who seeketh justice, and is quick in righteousness.
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 20:28
27 The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord , searching all the inward parts of the belly. We have here the dignity of the soul, the great soul of man, that light which lighteth every man. 1. It is a divine light; it is the candle of the Lord, a candle of his lighting, for it is the inspiration of the Almighty that gives us understanding. He forms the spirit of man within him. It is after the image of God that man is created in knowledge. Conscience, that noble faculty, is God's deputy in the soul; it is a… Read the whole commentary →