The Meaning of Proverbs 31:9 Explained

Proverbs 31:9

KJV: Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the cause of the poor and needy.

YLT: Open thy mouth, judge righteously, Both the cause of the poor and needy!'

Darby: Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and minister justice to the afflicted and needy.

ASV: Open thy mouth, judge righteously, And minister justice to the poor and needy.

Discover Proverbs 31:9

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Proverbs 31:9?

MEANING: What does Proverbs 31:9 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Proverbs 31:9 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Proverbs 31:9?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Open  thy mouth,  judge  righteously,  and plead  the cause of the poor  and needy. 

What does Proverbs 31:9 Mean?

Context Summary

Proverbs 31:1-9 - The Worthy Woman
In these words of King Lemuel, we notice a mother's influence in the education of her son. A woman is never more nobly occupied than in warning her son against the seductions of pleasure and in giving him a high sense of that which is right. The sins of the flesh have been the peculiar snare of royal personages, preventing them from pleading the cause of the desolate and ministering judgment to the poor and needy. What a contrast to the glory of the sovereignty of Jesus! When Savonarola preached with his burning eloquence in Florence, the people cried, "Jesus is our King, only Jesus!" That is what we all need. He is the King of whom His subjects need never be ashamed.
We cannot interpret Proverbs 31:6 and Proverbs 31:7 as a divine injunction, but rather as an admission that alcohol imparts a temporary stimulus to the despairing and the dying. We must remember Proverbs 20:1. Still speaking of the king, Lemuel shows how best his influence can be employed, Proverbs 31:8 and Proverbs 31:9. But the same obligation and privilege rests on us all. [source]

Chapter Summary: Proverbs 31

1  Lemuel's lesson of chastity and temperance
6  The afflicted are to be comforted and defended
10  The praise and properties of a good wife

What do the individual words in Proverbs 31:9 mean?

Open your mouth judge righteously and plead the cause of the poor and needy -
פְּתַח־ פִּ֥יךָ שְׁפָט־ צֶ֑דֶק וְ֝דִ֗ין עָנִ֥י וְאֶבְיֽוֹן פ

פְּתַח־  Open 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: פָּתַח 
Sense: to open.
פִּ֥יךָ  your  mouth 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
שְׁפָט־  judge 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: שָׁפַט  
Sense: to judge, govern, vindicate, punish.
צֶ֑דֶק  righteously 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: צֶדֶק  
Sense: justice, rightness, righteousness.
וְ֝דִ֗ין  and  plead  the  cause 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: דֹּון 
Sense: to judge, contend, plead.
עָנִ֥י  of  the  poor 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: עָנִי  
Sense: poor, afflicted, humble, wretched.
וְאֶבְיֽוֹן  and  needy 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: אֶבְיׄון  
Sense: in want, needy, chiefly poor, needy person.
פ  - 
Parse: Punctuation

What are the major concepts related to Proverbs 31:9?

Loading Information...

Similar Scriptures for Proverbs 31:9

Isaiah 1:17 [8]
Deuteronomy 1:16 [7]
Leviticus 19:15 [7]
Daniel 4:27 [5]
Amos 5:11-12 [5]
Jeremiah 22:3 [4]
Job 29:15-16 [4]
Zechariah 7:9 [3]
Jeremiah 22:15-16 [3]
Proverbs 20:8 [2]
Isaiah 11:4 [2]
read more (14)
Proverbs 16:12 [2]
Psalms 72:1-2 [2]
Hebrews 1:9 [2]
John 7:24 [2]
Revelation 19:11 [2]
Psalms 58:1-2 [2]
Isaiah 32:1-2 [2]
Jeremiah 23:5 [2]
2 Samuel 8:15 [2]
Jeremiah 5:28 [2]
Job 29:12 [2]
Isaiah 1:23 [2]
Deuteronomy 16:18-20 [2]
Zechariah 9:9 [1]
read less