Bible Strands
Proverbs 16:1
The plans of the heart belong to man, but the reply of the tongue is from the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Solomonic wisdom instruction within the collection of Proverbs 10:1–29:27, addressed to those seeking practical wisdom. There is no narrative scene; it is a standing principle.
The words — מַֽעַרְכֵי (ma.'ar.khei-, "arrangements, plans") and מַעֲנֵה (ma.'a.Neh, "the fitting answer") form the contrast: human ordering versus the right response. The division is one of ownership, not of action — both sides still act, but the final word is claimed by a different agent.
The thread — The same pattern recurs in Proverbs 16:9 (human course vs. LORD's steps) and 19:21 (many plans vs. LORD's purpose prevailing). Luke 21:14 applies it directly to speech: do not pre-rehearse your defense, for the answer will be given at the moment.
Why it lands — It does not remove planning; it relocates where the final authority sits. The reader is asked to hold their own agency at the level of preparation and release the actual outcome to God's ownership.
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
The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the Lord.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 19:21 Many plans are in a man’s heart, but the purpose of the LORD will prevail.
- Proverbs 16:9 A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.
- Luke 21:14 So make up your mind not to worry beforehand how to defend yourselves.
- Philippians 2:13 For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.
- Proverbs 20:24 A man’s steps are from the LORD, so how can anyone understand his own way?
- Matthew 10:19 But when they hand you over, do not worry about how to respond or what to say. In that hour you will be given what to say.
- Luke 12:11 When you are brought before synagogues, rulers, and authorities, do not worry about how to defend yourselves or what to say.
- Jeremiah 10:23 I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not his own; no one who walks directs his own steps.
- Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
- Proverbs 21:1 The king’s heart is a waterway in the hand of the LORD; He directs it where He pleases.