Proverbs 20:6 Meaning and Explanation
“Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Everyone claims their own virtue, yet truly faithful people are rare and hard to find.
The Context of Proverbs 20:6
Proverbs warns against trusting appearances and public claims of virtue.
What Does Proverbs 20:6 Mean?
Most people speak highly of their own goodness—they advertise their virtues, highlight their strengths, and emphasize their positive qualities. Self-promotion comes naturally and costs nothing. The proverb treats such proclamation as nearly universal, a characteristic of ordinary human nature rather than evidence of actual virtue.
Faithful people, by contrast, are difficult to discover. Faithfulness—reliability, trustworthiness, consistency—proves rarer than the talk of goodness. The gap between the many voices claiming virtue and the few displaying genuine loyalty creates a fundamental challenge: the availability of true faithfulness makes it precious.
Proverbs 20:6 in the Original Language
'Faithful' (אָמוּן, amun) — trustworthy, reliable, and marked by steadfast commitment rather than convenient profession.
Frequently Asked Questions About Proverbs 20:6
What does Proverbs 20:6 mean?
Everyone claims their own virtue, yet truly faithful people are rare and hard to find.
What is the context of Proverbs 20:6?
Proverbs warns against trusting appearances and public claims of virtue.