Bible Strands
Proverbs 22:11
He who loves a pure heart and gracious lips will have the king for a friend.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The wisdom writer addresses a student in a collection of moral instructions, placing this saying between a command to remove mockers and a warning about divine oversight of knowledge.
The words — חֵן (chen) translates literally as grace or favor, while טְהָר (te.hor) means pure or clean. These terms anchor the verse’s focus on moral integrity and refined speech.
The thread — The motif of royal favor for upright speech appears in Proverbs 16:13, which notes that righteous lips delight a king. The emphasis on heart purity resurfaces in Matthew 5:8 and Psalm 101:6, where integrity and moral cleanliness draw divine attention.
Why it lands — The text states that valuing a clean heart and gracious speech results in friendship with a king. This demands the reader cultivate inner honesty and careful communication rather than relying on status or manipulation.
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
He that loveth pureness of heart, for the grace of his lips the king shall be his friend.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 16:13 Righteous lips are a king’s delight, and he who speaks honestly is beloved.
- Matthew 5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
- Psalms 101:6 My eyes favor the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in the way of integrity shall minister to me.
- Proverbs 14:35 A king delights in a wise servant, but his anger falls on the shameful.
- Psalms 45:2 You are the most handsome of men; grace has anointed your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever.
- Ezra 7:6 this Ezra came up from Babylon. He was a scribe skilled in the Law of Moses, which the LORD, the God of Israel, had given. The king had granted Ezra all his requests, for the hand of the LORD his God was upon him.
- Daniel 6:20 When he reached the den, he cried out in a voice of anguish, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?”
- Genesis 41:39 Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one as discerning and wise as you.
- Nehemiah 2:4 “What is your request?” replied the king. So I prayed to the God of heaven
- Esther 10:3 For Mordecai the Jew was second only to King Xerxes, preeminent among the Jews and highly favored by his many kinsmen, seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his countrymen.