The Joy of a Well-Placed Word Text: Proverbs 15:23
Introduction: The War of the Dictionaries
We live in an age drowning in words. We are bombarded by them, from the twenty-four-hour news cycle, to the endless scroll of social media, to the babble of our own distracted minds. And yet, for all this Niagara of verbiage, we are starving for meaning. Our culture has more words at its disposal than any in history, and less to say. This is because we have forgotten what words are for. We have forgotten that words are not our playthings; they are not lumps of semantic clay for us to shape into whatever idol we please. Words are gifts from God, designed by Him to correspond to the reality He created.
The modern world, in its rebellion, is attempting to conduct a great treason against this reality. It is a war of the dictionaries. Our secularists want to redefine everything, marriage, man, woman, justice, freedom, because they know that if you can control the definitions, you can control the world. They believe that if they say something is so, it becomes so. This is the ancient lie of the serpent, "You will be like God." But this is a fool's errand, a Tower of Babel built with syllables, and it is doomed to collapse into confusion and despair. When you detach words from God's created order, they become meaningless noise, weapons of manipulation, or tools of self-deception.
Into this chaos, the book of Proverbs speaks with the sharp clarity of a craftsman's tool. It does not offer us abstract theories about communication. It gives us practical, street-level wisdom for how to live as creatures made in the image of a speaking God. And in our text today, we find a profound truth about the power and the pleasure of Spirit-governed speech. It reminds us that words are not just tools for conveying data; they are instruments for building, healing, and delighting. The right word, at the right time, is a foretaste of the New Creation.
The Text
A man has gladness in an apt answer,
And how good is a timely word!
(Proverbs 15:23 LSB)
The Gladness of an Apt Answer
The first clause sets before us a particular kind of joy:
"A man has gladness in an apt answer..." (Proverbs 15:23a)
The word for "apt" here carries the sense of being fitting, of being appropriate to the situation. It is the right key for the right lock. This is not about being clever, or witty, or having a devastating comeback for every argument, though there is a time for polemical sharpness. This is about speaking a word that fits the contours of reality, a word that lands squarely on the truth of the matter. This is the joy of clarity in a world of fog.
There is a deep, masculine satisfaction in this. It is the gladness of a carpenter who makes a perfect joint, or a mechanic who finds the source of the engine's trouble. It is the joy of bringing order out of confusion. When a father gives his son a clear, wise, and fitting answer to a difficult question, there is a gladness in it for both of them. The son receives guidance, and the father has the joy of having faithfully discharged his duty. When a pastor provides a scriptural answer to a troubled soul, an answer that cuts through the emotional turmoil and shines the light of God's truth, there is a profound gladness in that exchange.
This gladness is a gift from God. We are told elsewhere that "The preparations of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD" (Proverbs 16:1). We do the work, we study, we think, we pray. But the ability to bring forth that "apt answer" in the moment is a work of grace. It is the Spirit giving us the right word at the right time. This is why the joy is not the pride of the arrogant know-it-all, but the humble gladness of a steward who has been given something good to share. It is the joy of being a conduit for God's wisdom, not the source of it.
This stands in stark contrast to the world's approach. The world finds gladness in a clever lie, a manipulative soundbite, or a word that justifies sin. The fool's gladness comes from hearing his own voice, regardless of what it says (Proverbs 18:2). But the wise man's gladness comes from speaking what is true and fitting. It is the joy of aligning his speech with the grain of God's universe.
The Goodness of a Timely Word
The second clause builds on the first, adding the crucial element of timing.
"And how good is a timely word!" (Proverbs 15:23b)
The proverb uses a rhetorical question to emphasize the point. How good is it? It is incalculably good. It is like "apples of gold in settings of silver" (Proverbs 25:11). The value is not just in the content of the word (apples of gold), but in its perfect timing and placement (in settings of silver). A word can be true, but if it is spoken at the wrong time, its goodness can be entirely lost. A rebuke may be accurate, but if it is delivered in a moment of raw grief, it is not a timely word; it is cruelty. A word of encouragement may be needed, but if it comes a week after the crisis has passed, it loses its power.
Wisdom is not just knowing what to say; it is knowing when to say it. And just as importantly, it is knowing when to remain silent. "For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven... a time to keep silence, and a time to speak" (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7). The fool is the one who "gives an answer before he hears," and to him "it is folly and shame" (Proverbs 18:13). He is always talking because he is not listening, either to the person in front of him or to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
This goodness is a tangible thing. A timely word can be a word of comfort to the grieving, a word of warning to the straying, a word of encouragement to the weary, or a word of gospel truth to the lost. It is a good that accomplishes something. It is like rain on a dry field. It brings life. Think of the times in your own life when someone spoke a word that was exactly what you needed to hear, at the exact moment you needed to hear it. That is a taste of divine goodness, mediated through the mouth of a faithful saint.
This requires discernment. It requires us to be students of people and situations. It requires us to be filled with the Spirit, who gives us the sensitivity to know the right moment. This is not a skill that can be mastered from a textbook. It is a fruit of a life lived in close communion with God, a life steeped in His Word and prayer. It is the wisdom that comes from above.
The Logos Behind the Words
As with all wisdom in Proverbs, this points us ultimately to Christ. Jesus is the perfect embodiment of this proverb. He is the one in whom the apt answer and the timely word find their ultimate expression. When the Pharisees and Sadducees tried to trap Him with their clever questions, He always had an apt answer, a word that was so fitting and true that it silenced His opponents and astonished the crowds (Matthew 22:46).
But more than that, Jesus Himself is the Timely Word. "But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son" (Galatians 4:4). The incarnation was the ultimate "timely word." God spoke His Son into the world at the perfect moment in history, the hinge upon which all of human history turns. The Gospel is the ultimate "apt answer" to the deepest problem of the human heart, the problem of sin and death.
When we are called to speak an apt answer or a timely word, we are participating in the ministry of the Logos. We are reflecting, in our small, creaturely way, the perfect wisdom of our Creator and Redeemer. Our words have power to bring gladness and goodness only because they are grounded in the ultimate Word, Jesus Christ. He is the one who gives our words weight and meaning. Without Him, our speech is just so much vibrating air.
Conclusion: Stewards of Syllables
So what does this mean for us? It means we must take our words seriously. We are stewards of the syllables God has given us. We will give an account for every careless word (Matthew 12:36). This should not make us terrified to speak, but it should make us intentional. We must cultivate the kind of heart from which apt and timely words flow.
First, this means filling our minds with the Word of God. The Bible is our dictionary. It gives us the true definitions. The more we steep ourselves in Scripture, the more our speech will naturally align with God's reality. We will have the raw materials for an apt answer.
Second, it means we must be people of prayer. We must pray for wisdom, for discernment, for the grace to know when to speak and when to be silent. We should pray with the psalmist, "Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!" (Psalm 141:3).
Third, it means we must be engaged listeners. We cannot speak a timely word if we are not paying attention to the time. We must listen to those around us, to understand their needs, their hurts, and their questions. Only then can we apply the balm of a good word.
There is a real joy to be had here. In a world that cheapens language, Christians have the opportunity to demonstrate its true power and beauty. When we speak a fitting word, a word that is both true and timely, we bring a little bit of God's good order into the chaos. We bring a moment of gladness into a world of sorrow. We are not just talking; we are building. We are fighting the confusion of Babel with the clarity of Pentecost. And in doing so, we give a weary world a glimpse of the goodness of the God who spoke, and by His speaking, brought all good things into being.