Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Proverbs 11:8-14
Neighbours And Fellow-Citizens (Proverbs 11:8).
Solomon now deals with contrasts between the righteous and the wicked with regard to their neighbours and fellow-citizens. The first two verses in the subsection are connected together by the deliverance of the righteous, and can be seen together. The final two are connected by the damage caused by the despiser of his neighbour, who is a talebearer, and by the wisdom of the man of understanding who seeks to counter such tale-bearing. It will be noted that there is throughout an emphasis on speech. The godless man destroys his neighbour with his mouth (Proverbs 11:9). When it goes well with the righteous the city rejoices, whilst the decline of the wicked is greeted with shouting (Proverbs 11:10). The city is often overthrown by the mouth of the wicked (Proverbs 11:11). He who despises his neighbour (Proverbs 11:12) clearly does so with his mouth, for in the parallel the righteous holds his peace. The tale-bearer spreads his tales by mouth (Proverbs 11:13). Wise guidance and counsel is given by mouth (Proverbs 11:14). So out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
The subsection can be presented chiastically:
A The righteous man is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked takes his place (Proverbs 11:8).
B With his mouth the godless man destroys his neighbour, but through knowledge the righteous will be delivered (Proverbs 11:9).
C When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish, there is shouting (Proverbs 11:10).
C By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked (Proverbs 11:11).
B He who despises his neighbour is void of wisdom, but a man of understanding holds his peace. He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter (Proverbs 11:12).
· Where no wise guidance is, the people fall, but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety (Proverbs 11:14).
Note that in A the righteous man is delivered from trouble by the knowledge given to him by God, whilst the godless man steps right into trouble (takes his place) and destroys his neighbour with words, and in the parallel the guidance of many counsellors (giving true knowledge) provides safety, whilst people without guidance fall. In B the godless man destroys his neighbour with his words, whilst in the parallel the man who despises his neighbour and is a talebearer revealing secrets also clearly seeks to destroy his neighbour with is words. In C the city rejoices when it goes well with the righteous whilst in the parallel the city is exalted when the upright are blessed.
‘The righteous man is delivered out of trouble,
And the wicked takes his place.
With his mouth the godless man (or ‘base deceiver') destroys his neighbour,
But through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.'
We have noted in previous verses how those who were in contrast with the righteous have been described. Apart from the regular ‘the wicked/unrighteous', we have ‘the foolish' (Proverbs 10:21); ‘the sluggard' (Proverbs 10:26); ‘the workers of iniquity' (Proverbs 10:29); ‘the perverse' (Proverbs 10:31); ‘the treacherous' (Proverbs 11:3; Proverbs 11:6). These help to sum up the varieties of ‘unrighteous' persons. Now we have here some who are described as ‘godless men', (or, taking an alternative meaning, as ‘base deceivers'). These godless men and base deceivers are responsible for destroying their neighbours with their words.
It will be noted initially that the first line is explained by the fourth line. The righteous man is delivered out of trouble because of his ‘knowledge', that is, his knowledge of God and His wisdom (Proverbs 1:4; Proverbs 1:7; Proverbs 2:5; Proverbs 1:22; Proverbs 2:10). He thus avoids the traps into which the evildoer plunges headlong (taking his place), and is himself delivered from trouble. (And through his wise guidance along with others, he can guide others into a place of safety (Proverbs 11:14))
The evildoer meanwhile also ‘takes his place' by using his mouth to destroy his neighbour, instead of giving him the good guidance that would help him (Proverbs 11:14). With his deceptive mouth he destroys his neighbour, who is presumably one of the naive, or a fellow-evildoer. For where there is no wise guidance the people ‘fall' (Proverbs 11:14). It is a reminder that we need to beware whom we listen to. The evildoer acts on his own. He does not have the wisdom to restrain himself from malicious gossip and rumour. He thus runs headlong into ‘trouble' (Proverbs 11:8). And he has no wise guidance to offer (Proverbs 11:14). Talebearing (Proverbs 11:13) was specifically forbidden in Leviticus 19:16, something of which Solomon appears to have been aware. Thus by his actions the talebearer was defying God. He truly was a godless man.
The idea that the evildoer ‘takes the place' of the righteous man, by going headlong into trouble (something which is assumed from the fact that the righteous man is delivered from it) may be intended to emphasise that not all can escape the inevitable coming wrath (Proverbs 11:4). If some are to be spared by their ‘knowledge' and wisdom then others must ‘take their place'. For in the end sin has to be paid for, it cannot be ignored. And the sacrificial system has failed because the sacrifices of the unrighteous are an abomination to God. So if the nation is under wrath, then that wrath must at least partially be propitiated by the sufferings of that part of the nation which has not responded to God, whose sacrifice have been unacceptable. This statement is not unique. We can compare Proverbs 21:18 where, ‘the wicked is a ransom for the righteous, and the treacherous in the place of the upright'. The believing remnant of the people escape, but the unresponsive remainder pay for the sins of the nation which have not been covered by acceptable sacrifices (compare Romans 9-11). And this was certainly patterned in the future history of Israel.
Alternately we may see the verses as signifying that the righteous man will be delivered through his wisdom (and therefore manner of life) from the trouble into which the evildoer seeks to drag him by his lying rumours. But that is to ignore the fact that ‘the neighbour' is said to be destroyed. Thus the neighbour is not the righteous man, for the righteous man is delivered. It is rather the evildoer's naive ‘neighbour' who is destroyed. In order, therefore, to interpret it like this we would have to paraphrase as, ‘seeks to destroy'.
What has been said above leaves hanging in the air the question as to how the sins of some could be placed on others who were even more sinful? How could the evildoer take the place of the righteous? One answer is to be seen in the fact that the gap was being made up by the offerings and sacrifices of the righteous. Thus Israel, seen as one nation, had had a partial atonement made for them. But how was the remainder to be paid for Israel as a whole? The answer is given here, by the deaths of those whose sacrifices had been unacceptable. This would be seen in that in the future both righteous and unrighteous would be carried away into exile, with Israel as a whole under the curse. Thus if the righteous were to be delivered the atonement for the whole of Israel would be paid for by the deaths of the unrighteous, making up for what was lacking in the sacrifices. They would take the place of the righteous.
But as the writer to the Hebrews accurately said, ‘how could the blood of bulls and of goats take away sins?' We are therefore left with the problem of ‘partial satisfaction'. The final answer, of course, lies in the New Testament, for the verse is in interesting contrast with 1 Peter 3:18, where ‘the Messiah also suffered for sins once, the Righteous One for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God.' It was in the end because He died as the Righteous One that the unrighteous righteous can be brought to God and delivered from trouble. As both God and representative man He provided full satisfaction. It is the divine paradox that it was finally not evildoers, but the One Who was wholly perfect, Who took our place.
‘When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices,
And when the wicked perish, there is shouting.
We now have two proverbs centring on the relationship of the righteous to city dwellers. The city rejoices when it goes well with the righteous, that is when the righteous prosper, because it means that times are good and pleasant. It means that justice is being maintained, and that wrongdoing is being dealt with. It means that life is pleasant and fruitful (Proverbs 1:33; Proverbs 3:10; Proverbs 3:16; Proverbs 3:35; Proverbs 8:13). The verb ‘rejoices' always indicates rejoicing because YHWH is triumphing.
And when evildoers are dealt with there are shouts of joy. For that too will result in the triumph of YHWH (compare the use in Psalms 118:15, ‘Listen, the sound of the victory shout in the tents of the righteous'). The thought is not of vindictiveness against individuals, but of joy because a general trend of evildoing has been thwarted. True Christians do not gather to watch people being put to death in order to enjoy the spectacle. But they do rejoice when evil is properly judged and dealt with.
‘By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted (built up),
But it is overthrown (torn down) by the mouth of the wicked.'
‘The blessing of the upright' could indicate either their being blessed by YHWH, or their blessing the city as they worship and pray. The parallel with ‘the mouth of the wicked' suggests the latter. The idea of the former has already been upheld in Proverbs 11:10. Thus when God's people pray and worship truly, lifting up the city before God, it is ‘built up'. It is made strong and vibrant. But when the mouth of the wicked prevails it is ‘torn down'. Such people have no wise guidance to give (Proverbs 11:14). Evil words and evildoing destroy the very fibre of the city. When the wicked prevail, injustice also prevails, and wrongdoing triumphs.
‘He who despises his neighbour is void of wisdom,
But a man of understanding holds his peace.
We now have two verses which apply the general thought in Proverbs 11:11 b to personal situations. Men are seen to be responsible for both their cities and their neighbours. These two verses are then followed by a third verse illustrating the fact that the despiser of his neighbour as one who acts on his own, has no wise counsel to give, and contrasting him with the man of understanding who agrees together with his fellows and can therefore give safe counsel.
The basic idea of this verse is that a man who shows that he despises his neighbour by what he says about him (unlike the righteous he does not hold his peace) demonstrates his own lack of wisdom. Whether he does it by lying rumours, false testimony, or inciting dissension (the traits of the worthless man in Proverbs 6:16), he is destroying the very fabric of society and demonstrates that he has no wise counsel to give. Indeed multiplied his attitude will result in Proverbs 11:11 b. In contrast the man of understanding, the righteous man, refuses to stir up trouble with his words. He holds his peace and seeks quietly to give counsel and remedy matters, so that wellbeing will triumph.
‘He who goes about as a talebearer/slanderer reveals secrets,
But he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.'
And Proverbs 11:12 is true because gossipers, talebearers and slanderers reveal secrets which would be better not stirred up. They cause dissension and bitterness (Proverbs 6:14 b, Proverbs 6:19 b). There is no one more devastating than the one who passes on confidences, often in order to stir up trouble. But the one who has a faithful and loyal spirit tries to settle things without raising a fuss. He does not bring things out into the open unless it is necessary. He can be trusted with confidences, and he takes counsel with others (Proverbs 11:14). He settles things quietly thus maintaining harmony. Notice the contrasting attitudes of mind. The talebearer reveals that he ‘despises' his neighbour (Proverbs 11:12 a). His very motives are wrong. He forgets that God is the Maker of them all (Proverbs 14:31; Proverbs 17:5; Proverbs 22:2). But the man of understanding has a loyal spirit. He is concerned for the good of all. He is true and reliable, and therefore trusted by all.
‘Where no wise guidance is, the people fall,
But in the multitude of counsellors there is victory.'
The situations described above are now summed up by indicating why the city and the neighbour can only find help from the righteous and upright, and should certainly not depend on evildoers. It is because it needs the combined help of wise counsellors.
The evildoer destroys his neighbour (Proverbs 11:9) or his city (Proverbs 11:11), because by his words he causes disharmony and injustice. He has no wise guidance to give (Proverbs 11:14), and therefore the people fall. For he despises them and is too busy passing on his tales and slandering people (Proverbs 11:13) to have time for anything else, with the result that the city is divided and weak. He is thus not to be trusted.
In contrast the righteous are delivered though ‘knowledge', that is, the knowledge of God and His ways (Proverbs 11:9); they are a sign, when flourishing, that all is well (Proverbs 11:10); by their true prayer and worship they make the city strong (Proverbs 11:11); they are wise concerning what they bring into the open (Proverbs 11:12); and because they are faithful in spirit prevent the spread of rumours and slander (Proverbs 11:13). They are thus suited to offer wise guidance as a group, making the city strong and safe (Proverbs 11:14).
The special lesson of this verse is that it is better to rely on a group of wise counsellors, than it is to listen to an individual. For it is more likely that they, acting in unison, will come to a safe conclusion. A committee may be cumbersome, but it guards against the dangers of individualism, and especially against the danger of one person causing trouble for all as a consequence of vindictiveness or self-conceit.