The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD: but the words of the pure are pleasant words.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh detests the thoughts of the wicked, but the thoughts of the pure are pleasing.
- BSB The LORD detests the thoughts of the wicked, but the words of the pure are pleasant to Him.
- NKJV The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, But the words of the pure are pleasant.
- NASB Evil plans are an abomination to the Lord, But pleasant words are pure.
- NLT The Lord detests evil plans, but he delights in pure words.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God loathes the schemes of the wicked but delights in pure thoughts. It matters because the Lord judges the heart and its intentions, not just outward acts.
Overview
This proverb teaches that Yahweh evaluates inner thoughts, detesting evil plans and finding pleasure in purity. It underscores that righteousness is a matter of the heart before God. Jesus deepens this in the Sermon on the Mount, where He locates sin and obedience in the inner life (Matthew 5:8, 21-28).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Prov 6:16–19These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
- Matt 12:34–37O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.
- Jer 4:14O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?
- Prov 15:23A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
- Ps 19:14Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
- Ps 37:30–31The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.
- Ps 45:1My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.
- Matt 15:19For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
- Prov 24:9The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is an abomination to men.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 15:26 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.