Bible Strands
Proverbs 15:1
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The author addresses a general audience within a wisdom collection, positioning this saying immediately before a contrast between the wise tongue and the fool’s mouth.
The words — The verse hinges on מַֽעֲנֶה־ (ma.'a.neh-), "answer," and רַ֭ךְ (rakh), "soft," which together describe a gentle reply.
The thread — The dynamic between speech and emotional reaction appears in Proverbs 10:12, Proverbs 25:15, and Proverbs 15:18.
Why it lands — The text states that a gentle reply deflects rage while a harsh word provokes anger. It requires the reader to recognize that speech directly controls emotional escalation and to deliberately choose restraint.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 10:12 Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers all transgressions.
- Proverbs 25:15 Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone.
- Proverbs 15:18 A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger calms dispute.
- Proverbs 29:22 An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression.
- Proverbs 28:25 A greedy man stirs up strife, but he who trusts in the LORD will prosper.
- Judges 8:1 Then the men of Ephraim said to Gideon, “Why have you done this to us? Why did you fail to call us when you went to fight against Midian?” And they contended with him violently.
- 1 Samuel 25:10 But Nabal asked them, “Who is David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants these days are breaking away from their masters.
- 1 Kings 12:13 And the king answered the people harshly. He rejected the advice of the elders
- Judges 12:3 When I saw that you would not save me, I risked my life and crossed over to the Ammonites, and the LORD delivered them into my hand. Why then have you come today to fight against me?”
- 1 Samuel 25:21 Now David had just said, “In vain I have protected all that belonged to this man in the wilderness. Nothing that belongs to him has gone missing, yet he has paid me back evil for good.