A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.

PROVERBS 25:26KJV
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Proverbs 25:26 (KJV)

What does Proverbs 25:26 mean?

Proverbs 25:26 compares a righteous person who gives way or collapses in front of wicked people to a polluted spring or a muddy fountain. The verse warns that when someone known for doing right fails in the presence of evil, it is as disappointing and damaging as a source of water that has become undrinkable.

King Solomon is speaking in the book of Proverbs, offering wisdom to his readers about how important it is for those who live rightly to stand firm, especially when facing wrongdoers. The image of a troubled fountain or corrupt spring would have been vivid in ancient times, since clean water was essential and a ruined source was a serious loss. The proverb uses this picture to show how much harm is done when a good person falters under pressure from the wicked.

The Hebrew behind Proverbs 25:26

  • "righteous" (צַדִּיק, tsaddiq): This word refers to someone who is upright or just, not just in legal terms but in character and actions. The proverb is not about someone perfect, but about a person known for doing what is right.
  • "falling down" (מוֹט, mot): This word often means to totter, slip, or be shaken. It suggests a loss of stability or firmness, not just a physical fall but a moral or spiritual one.
  • "troubled" (מָשָׁח, mashach): This word can mean to be muddied or disturbed. The image is of water that is no longer clear or pure, making it unfit for use.
  • "corrupt" (שָׁחַת, shachath): This word means to be spoiled, ruined, or destroyed. A spring that is corrupt is no longer a source of life or refreshment.

Why Proverbs 25:26 matters

  • Proverbs 25:26 clarifies that the failure of a good person in the face of evil is not a small matter, but something that can have a wide and negative impact, just like a polluted water source affects everyone who depends on it.
  • The verse emphasizes the responsibility that comes with being known as righteous; others look to such people for guidance and stability, so their actions matter beyond themselves.
  • This proverb fits into the larger context of Proverbs, which often uses vivid imagery from daily life to teach about the consequences of moral choices and the importance of integrity.

Where else these words appear

“troubled” Hebrew H7515 · used in 3 verses

  • Ezekiel 32:2 Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whale in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers.
  • Ezekiel 34:18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet?

“spring” Hebrew H4726 · used in 17 verses

  • Leviticus 12:7 Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.
  • Proverbs 10:11 The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
  • Jeremiah 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

“fountain” Hebrew H4599 · used in 23 verses

  • Genesis 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
  • 2 Kings 3:25 And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees: only in Kirharaseth left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it, and smote it.
  • Proverbs 5:16 Let thy fountains be dispersed abroad, and rivers of waters in the streets.

“down” Hebrew H4131 · used in 36 verses

  • Leviticus 25:35 And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee; then thou shalt relieve him: yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner; that he may live with thee.
  • Psalms 38:16 For I said, Hear me, lest otherwise they should rejoice over me: when my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me.
  • Psalms 96:10 Say among the heathen that the LORD reigneth: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.