What makes a good president? Semantic cluster from the Proverbs of Solomon

What does the Bible say about leadership?

If you want to study what the Bible has to say about the qualities we need in a president, take a look at the Book of Proverbs. I have assembled a semantic cluster of verses, based on the occurrences of the following words:

• king
• ruler
• judge
• nation
• adviser
• guidance
• victory
• integrity
• honesty
• officials
• justice
• fair

By studying these verses, you will gain a good idea of what an ideal president would be like. This can then become the basis for evaluating the current presidential candidates.

I have entitled this list “Proverbs for a Leader.” Feel free to download and share with your friends.

Your turn

Now it’s your turn. What qualities do you think would make a good presidential candidate or president? What passages of Scripture do you find relevant to the issue? Please leave your comments.

Want to go deeper?

The following is highly recommended for further reading:

Samuel Rutherford – Lex Rex: The Law and the Prince (originally published in 1644)

Discusses the obligations a nation’s ruler has to his or her people and to God. This book was highly influential in the passing of constitutional reforms in England, and also was widely read in America, influencing the principles that the Founding Fathers embedded in the U.S. Constitution.

Ben Carson – One Vote: Make Your Voice Heard (Tyndale House, 2014).

• The vast majority of Americans feel that our nation is moving in the wrong direction, but we feel powerless to do anything about it. Maybe, that’s why in the presidential election of 2012, more people did not vote than voted for either candidate. We, the people, must realize we hold the power through our one vote. If we do not exercise that power, we have no right to complain! In

One Vote

Dr. Ben Carson makes an urgent, nonpartisan, and unbiased plea for every American citizen to exercise the power of their vote in every election. This convenient and easy-to-use book will give you everything you need to become an informed voter. After reading this book, you will know how to ask the right questions about candidates, parties, and voting records; find the candidates and political parties that coincide with your values; locate your own senator and congressman; request information from your representatives; discover what bills your representatives have sponsored; and uncover how your representatives have voted in the past.