Bible Strands
Proverbs 24:25
but it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and rich blessing will come upon them.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The wisdom writer addresses the community and its leaders, contrasting the preceding warning against excusing the guilty with the proper judicial response. The passage occurs within a sequence of instructions on maintaining justice and speaking truth in a society prone to corruption.
The words — The Hebrew מּוֹכִיחִים (mo.khi.Chim) denotes those who rebuke or convict the guilty, paired with בִרְכַּת טוֹב (vir.kat tov), literally a blessing of good things. The text states that this specific action triggers a promised outcome rather than offering a general moral platitude.
The thread — This theme of rebuking sinners appears in Proverbs 28:23, which notes that a corrector finds more favor than a flatterer. It aligns with 1 Timothy 5:20, which commands public rebuke for persistent sin, and 1 Samuel 3:13, where God’s judgment follows the failure to confront known iniquity.
Why it lands — The verse demands that readers prioritize truth over social comfort when confronting wrongdoing. It requires accepting that righteous correction carries tangible consequences, both for the guilty and for those who enforce accountability.
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
But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them.
Cross-references
- 1 Timothy 5:20 But those who persist in sin should be rebuked in front of everyone, so that the others will stand in fear of sin.
- 1 Samuel 3:13 I told him that I would judge his house forever for the iniquity of which he knows, because his sons blasphemed God and he did not restrain them.
- Proverbs 28:23 He who rebukes a man will later find more favor than one who flatters with his tongue.
- Leviticus 19:17 You must not harbor hatred against your brother in your heart. Directly rebuke your neighbor, so that you will not incur guilt on account of him.
- 1 Kings 21:19 Tell him that this is what the LORD says: ‘Have you not murdered a man and seized his land?’ Then tell him that this is also what the LORD says: ‘In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, there also the dogs will lick up your blood—yes, yours!’”
- Nehemiah 5:7 and after serious thought I rebuked the nobles and officials, saying, “You are exacting usury from your own brothers!” So I called a large assembly against them
- Nehemiah 13:8 And I was greatly displeased and threw all of Tobiah’s household goods out of the room.
- Nehemiah 13:17 Then I rebuked the nobles of Judah and asked, “What is this evil you are doing—profaning the Sabbath day?
- Nehemiah 13:25 I rebuked them and called down curses on them. I beat some of these men and pulled out their hair. Then I made them take an oath before God and said, “You must not give your daughters in marriage to their sons or take their daughters as wives for your sons or for yourselves!
- Nehemiah 13:28 Even one of the sons of Jehoiada son of Eliashib the high priest had become a son-in-law to Sanballat the Horonite. Therefore I drove him away from me.