The strutting rooster or the male goat, And a king when his army is with him.
Parallel translations
- WEB the greyhound, the male goat also; and the king against whom there is no rising up.
- KJV A greyhound; an he goat also; and a king, against whom there is no rising up.
- BSB a strutting rooster; a he-goat; and a king with his army around him.
- NKJV A greyhound, A male goat also, And a king whose troops are with him.
- NLT the strutting rooster, the male goat, a king as he leads his army.
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
A strutting rooster (or greyhound), a male goat, and a king with his army complete the picture of dignified bearing.
Overview
The precise identity of the first creature is debated in translation, but the point is clear: each example carries itself with confident command. The list climaxes in a king securely leading his people, an image of rightful authority and dignity. It points beyond earthly rulers to Christ, the King whose reign is unshakable and whose majesty is supreme.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Prov 20:2The terror of a king is like the roaring of a lion. He who provokes him to anger forfeits his own life.
- Dan 3:15–18Now if you are ready whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and all kinds of music to fall down and worship the image which I have made, good: but if you don’t worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the middle of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that god that shall deliver you out of my hands?
- Prov 16:14The king’s wrath is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it.
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 30:31 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.