Proverbs 26:26 - Printer Friendly

ESV: though his hatred be covered with deception, his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

NIV: Their malice may be concealed by deception, but their wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

NASB: Though his hatred covers itself with deception, His wickedness will be revealed in the assembly.

CSB: Though his hatred is concealed by deception, his evil will be revealed in the assembly.

NLT: While their hatred may be concealed by trickery, their wrongdoing will be exposed in public.

KJV: Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness shall be shewed before the whole congregation.

NKJV: Though his hatred is covered by deceit, His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.

This passage deals with deceptive people, who disguise their malice using attractive words and appearances (Proverbs 26:23–25). Here, Solomon (Proverbs 25:1) again ties this to the idea of hatred: the person who lies to give a false impression to others is showing hatred for others. Their words only cover that sin, and the cover will not last. Eventually, the liar will be found out (Proverbs 5:22).

The "assembly" in this verse refers to any group brought together for some purpose. In this case, it might mean a courtroom setting, where the guilty person is being judged. Accountability certainly applies to our relationship with God. Galatians 6:7–8 assures us that "God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh [the sin nature] will from the flesh reap corruption." Psalm 7 refers to the retribution God will execute on the wicked as a righteous judge (Psalm 7:11) The same psalm promises, "If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword; he has bent and readied his bow" (Psalm 7:12). This ends in assurance that the wicked man's "mischief returns upon his own head and on his own skull his violence descends" (Psalm 7:16).

Proverbs 26:17–28 turns from a focus on laziness to discussion about conflict. Solomon (Proverbs 25:1) warns against prying into other people's arguments, gossip, and dishonest speech. He also cautions about the danger of casual lies. How and when a person chooses to speak greatly influences their involvement in conflict.

This chapter includes three main sections. The first repeatedly refers to a "fool," meaning someone lacking godly wisdom (Proverbs 1:7). The second warns against being lazy. The third condemns careless conflict, lying, and warns about those who disguise their hate with words. Several statements in this passage repeat or echo others made in the book of Proverbs.

Chapter 25 introduced another section of Solomon's proverbs (Proverbs 25:1). These were collected by later scribes; the list runs through the end of chapter 29. This chapter covers topics such as foolishness, laziness, and conflict. This echoes principles given in other proverbs.

Proverbs is best understood in context with the books of Ecclesiastes and Job. In Proverbs, “wisdom” is given in short, simple, general terms. Ecclesiastes represents wisdom based on observation and experience. This often shows how the general principles of the book of Proverbs don’t apply in absolutely every circumstance. Job represents wisdom based on the experience of suffering and injustice. All three come to the conclusion that God does indeed know best, and the most sensible course of action is to follow His will.