Proverbs 23:25

Study note

Setting — The wisdom speaker addresses a young man, urging him toward conduct that honors his parents. The instruction follows a warning about foolishness and precedes a direct call to surrender one’s heart to wisdom.

The words — The Hebrew יִֽשְׂמַח (yis.mach) and תָגֵל (ta.Gel) both denote intense gladness, literally rendered here as “may he rejoice” and “may she rejoice.” The text uses these verbs to command the son’s behavior to produce parental joy.

The thread — Proverbs 17:25 presents the inverse, noting that a foolish son brings grief to his father and mother who bore him. The motif of rejoicing over a child’s bearing appears in Luke 1:58 and Luke 11:27.

Why it lands — It requires the reader to evaluate daily choices by their impact on parental honor and sorrow. The passage demands conduct that actively produces gladness rather than indifference or grief.

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.