Many seek the favor of the prince, and everyone is a friend of the gift giver.
Parallel translations
- WEB Many will entreat the favor of a ruler, and everyone is a friend to a man who gives gifts.
- KJV Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts.
- NKJV Many entreat the favor of the nobility, And every man is a friend to one who gives gifts.
- NASB Many will seek the favor of a generous person, And every person is a friend to him who gives gifts.
- NLT Many seek favors from a ruler; everyone is the friend of a person who gives gifts!
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
People court the favor of the powerful and the generous. The proverb observes how gifts and rank draw a crowd of would-be friends.
Overview
This proverb notes that many seek the favor of a ruler, and everyone befriends the man who gives gifts. It describes the self-interested way people gravitate toward power and generosity, often without true loyalty. Read alongside the surrounding verses, it gently critiques such fair-weather friendship and reminds believers to value genuine, godly relationships over those built on advantage.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Prov 29:26Many seek the ruler’s favor, but a man receives justice from the LORD.
- Prov 18:16A man’s gift opens doors for him, and brings him before great men.
- Prov 17:8A bribe is a charm to its giver; wherever he turns, he succeeds.
- Gen 42:6Now Joseph was the ruler of the land; he was the one who sold grain to all its people. So when his brothers arrived, they bowed down before him with their faces to the ground.
- Rom 6:23For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
- Prov 19:12A king’s rage is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass.
- Prov 21:14A gift in secret soothes anger, and a covert bribe pacifies great wrath.
- 2 Sam 19:19–39and said, “My lord, do not hold me guilty, and do not remember your servant’s wrongdoing on the day my lord the king left Jerusalem. May the king not take it to heart.
- Job 29:24–25If I smiled at them, they did not believe it; the light of my countenance was precious.
- Ps 45:12The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.
- Gen 43:15So the men took these gifts, along with double the amount of silver, and Benjamin as well. Then they hurried down to Egypt and stood before Joseph.
- Gen 32:20You are also to say, ‘Look, your servant Jacob is right behind us.’” For he thought, “I will appease Esau with the gift that is going before me. After that I can face him, and perhaps he will accept me.”
- Prov 16:15When a king’s face brightens, there is life; his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.
- Matt 2:11On coming to the house, they saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 19:6 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.