Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible
Proverbs 15:22-3
A Call To Commitment To YHWH And To Recognise His Control Over Our Lives (Proverbs 15:29 to Proverbs 16:3).
Commencing with a mention of YHWH in Proverbs 15:29, YHWH is mentioned five times in this subsection. This includes the opening and closing proverbs which form an inclusio, and four references in the last four verses. He is mentioned a further six time in Proverbs 16:4. Thus in sixteen consecutive proverbs He is mentioned eleven times. This may well be seen as confirming the opening of a new section, the intention being to bring home how closely YHWH is involved in wisdom in Israel, and to lay the foundation for what is to follow.
The first four verses in the subsection refer to ‘hearing'. Thus YHWH hears the prayer of the righteous (Proverbs 15:29); good tidings make the bones fat (Proverbs 15:30); the ear of the wise listens to reproof (Proverbs 15:31); to listen to reproof is to obtain understanding (Proverbs 15:32). And they connect together. It is because YHWH hears the prayer of the righteous (Proverbs 15:29) that their eyes are alight with good things and they hear good tidings (Proverbs 15:30). As a consequence they heed His reproof (Proverbs 15:31), and gain more understanding (Proverbs 15:32). These verses are then followed by a minor chiasmus in which the activity of YHWH is enclosed within a ‘response to YHWH' (fear of YHWH and commitment to YHWH) envelope.
The subsection is presented chiastically:
A YHWH is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous (Proverbs 15:29).
B The light of the EYES rejoices the heart, and good tidings make the bones fat (Proverbs 15:30).
C The ear which LISTENS TO THE REPROOF of life, will abide among the wise (Proverbs 15:31).
D He who REFUSES CORRECTION despises his own soul, but he who LISTENS TO REPROOF obtains understanding (Proverbs 15:32).
D The fear of YHWH is the DISCIPLINARY INSTRUCTION OF WISDOM, and before honour goes humility (Proverbs 15:33).
C The plans of the heart belong to man, but THE ANSWER OF THE TONGUE is from YHWH (Proverbs 16:1).
B All the ways of a man are clean in his own EYES, but YHWH weighs the spirits (Proverbs 16:2).
A Commit your works to YHWH, and your purposes will be established (Proverbs 16:3).
Note that in A YHWH hears the prayer of the righteous, and in the parallel they are to commit their works to YHWH, which will require prayer. In B the light of the EYES rejoices the heart, and in the parallel a man's ways are clean in his own EYES. In C the ear listens to reproof, and in the parallel the answer of the tongue is from YHWH. Centrally in D there is one who refuses correction (discipline) and another who listens to reproof, while in the parallel we have the disciplinary instruction of wisdom, and deep humility.
‘YHWH is far from the wicked,
But he hears the prayer of the righteous.'
This does not, of course, mean ‘far from' in distance, but rather ‘far from' in spiritual experience. In the case of the unrighteous they have no contact with God and no assurance that He will hear their prayers. ‘If I regard iniquity in my heart YHWH will not hear me' (Psalms 66:18). If they offer sacrifices they are an abomination to God (Proverbs 15:8). No doubt in those days they nearly all of them participated in religious ritual, and in family prayers at meals, but it was all formal. It meant nothing, either to God or to them. It did not, however, relieve them from responsibility. He still ‘weighed their spirits' (Proverbs 16:2; compare Psalms 11:4). He still took note of their behaviour.
In stark contrast are the righteous, those who respond to God's wisdom and seek to live by it. In their case God hears their prayers. He weighs their prayers up and responds as He sees fit. Their prayers are a delight to Him (Proverbs 15:8). He is concerned about their welfare (Proverbs 10:3; Proverbs 10:22).
‘The light of the eyes rejoices the heart,
And good tidings make the bones fat.'
It is because the righteous have fellowship with YHWH and He hears their prayers (Proverbs 15:29) that they see and hear good things. The ‘light of the eyes', paralleling ‘good tidings', seems to indicate good things that the eyes see, what comes in through the window of the eyes, and this agrees with the idea of ‘the ear which listens' in the next verse. As Jesus said, ‘the light of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is single (fixed only on what is good and of God) your whole body will be full of light' (Matthew 6:22).
The parallel with good tidings can be seen as confirming that it is good things which are in mind. Thus we could paraphrase ‘as righteous men look on good things it rejoices their hearts'. They see the heavens, and they speak to them of the glory of God. They see the sky and it speaks to them of His handywork (Psalms 19:1). They read His Law and delight in it (Psalms 1:2; Psalms 19:8 b; Psalms 119:18; Psalms 119:47; Psalms 119:70). They mix with the righteous and delight in seeing their good deeds (Psalms 101:6). They refuse to look on evil things (Psalms 101:3). Whatever is good and honourable and true, they fix their eyes on such things and it brings them joy. In the context of the previous proverb they see YHWH answering their prayers and their heart's rejoice. Indeed, their eyes are fixed on YHWH Himself and this fills them with rejoicing (Psalms 25:15; Psalms 123:1; Psalms 141:8). Consequently they walk in the fear of YHWH.
And in the same way when the righteous hear a good report or good news it has a wholesome effect on them. It gives them inward strength and inward joy (their bones are made fat). They realise that it signifies that YHWH's eye is on the righteous (Proverbs 15:3). Good news is always welcome, but especially so when it concerns the prospering of God's ways. From Solomon's view point it is because YHWH reigns over the righteous, and imparts to them His wisdom, that such good things occur (Proverbs 15:33; Proverbs 16:1; Proverbs 16:7; Proverbs 16:9). Because of this He does not allow the righteous to go hungry (Proverbs 10:3). He blesses them with riches both physical and spiritual (Proverbs 10:22). His way is a fortress to them (Proverbs 10:29). He shows His favour towards them (Proverbs 12:2). No wonder they rejoice.
Many, however, see ‘the light of the eyes' as signifying the shining in the eyes of inner vitality and joy, in the same way as we would say ‘his eyes lit up'. But in our view that is not so good a parallel. In Psalms 13:3 the lightening of the eyes indicated recovery from a death situation. In Psalms 38:10 the Psalmist had lost ‘the light of his eyes' because he was exhausted. In Ezra 9:8 it indicates a reviving of life. But all of these could indicate having hope revived by looking on life from a new perspective as a consequence of God's reawakening, as seeing things in a new way.
‘The ear which listens to the reproof of life,
Will abide among the wise.'
In return His wise ones listen to the reproof which ensures that they will enjoy true life, to the reproof that results in life, to life-giving reproof. They respond to God's chastening (Proverbs 3:11), and in consequence they themselves consort with the wise. They ‘walk with the wise' (Proverbs 13:20). His people come together and exhort each other and help each other. They share in God's life together.
‘He who refuses correction despises his own life,
But he who listens to reproof obtains understanding.'
And through listening to reproof they obtain understanding. They learn God's wisdom and God's ways. They gain true knowledge. They acquire good sense. Whilst those who refuse correction and reject discipline simply demonstrate by that that they despise their own lives. For they will not enjoy life, but rather death.
‘The fear of YHWH is the instruction of wisdom,
And before honour goes humility.'
Those who listen to reproof obtain understanding (Proverbs 15:32). Either wisdom instructs them in the fear of YHWH, or the fear of YHWH causes them to be instructed in wisdom, an instruction which has intrinsic within it the idea of discipline. Either way the fear of YHWH makes them wise. They see things through His eyes, and from His perspective. Through reproof and instruction in wisdom the righteous learn to walk in a way which is pleasing to Him.
And those who would please Him, if they would be honoured by Him, must first approach Him in humility. In God's way of working humility must always precede honour. It is he who humbles himself who can be exalted. For no man can be trusted with honour who has not first been humbled, otherwise the honour will go to his head and will do him more harm than good. David's road to God-given kingship was along the hard road of persecution and humiliation. He learned obedience by what he suffered. Paul in his hugely successful ministry went through the sufferings, persecutions and humiliations that kept him humble. Even our Lord Jesus Christ ‘learned obedience by the things that He suffered' (Hebrews 5:8). It was because of the hard road that He trod that He knew by experience the cost of obedience, and came through triumphantly. The fear of YHWH and humility go hand in hand. ‘Thus says the High and Lofty One, Who inhabits eternity, Whose Name is Holy, “I dwell in the high and holy place with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, an to revive the heart of the contrite ones' (Isaiah 57:15).
‘The plans of the heart belong to man,
But the answer of the tongue is from YHWH.'
We might summarise this as, ‘man can plan as much as he wants, but God always has the final word', or ‘man proposes, but God disposes'. The idea behind the word for planning is ‘setting things in order, making arrangements'. All kinds of men are continually making all kinds of arrangements. That is their privilege as thinking beings. But in the end it is YHWH Who says what will be and what will not be. It is YHWH Who answers with His tongue. ‘So shall my word be which goes forth out of My Mouth, it will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please, and prosper in the way in which I send it' (Isaiah 55:11). And one of the answers of His tongue is to speak to those who will listen to reproof, thereby gaining understanding (Proverbs 15:32).
And the most wonderful answer of His tongue was when He sent forth His Word (John 1:1), by Him bringing life to men and salvation from the guilt and power of sin, contrary to all man's way of thinking.
‘All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes,
But YHWH weighs the spirits.'
The contrast between man's planning, and YHWH's response to it (Proverbs 16:1), now leads on to the idea that men always think that their own ideas are clean' (right, justified, blameless). They think that what they are doing is right and justifiable. What they see with their eyes rejoices their hearts (Proverbs 15:30) because they are so confident in what they are doing. They see themselves as above criticism. They do not look underneath at their true motives.
But that is precisely what YHWH does do. He weighs their spirits. He considers the deepest thoughts of their hearts. The people in Noah's day undoubtedly justified themselves, but YHWH saw that ‘every imagination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually' (Genesis 6:5). Man may express his innocence, ‘if you say, “behold we did not know it”. But the writer replies, ‘does not He Who weighs the hearts consider it? And He Who keeps the inner life, does He not know it? And will He not render to every man according to His works?' (Proverbs 24:12). For man looks at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7), and He continually assesses it.
The metaphor may have been derived from the ancient Egyptian belief that on death a man's heart was weighed against truth. But if so it has been transformed into the idea of a continual assessment by God as He contemplates man's behaviour and gets right to the root of the matter (the spirit within).
‘Commit your works to YHWH,
And your purposes will be established.'
So the answer is clear. If you would know that your plans are truly right, and that your way is truly pleasing, ‘commit what you do to YHWH, (literally ‘roll what you do on YHWH'), and your purposes will be established' (confirmed, brought to fruition). This involves more than just a formal prayer of committal. Men have done such a thing and followed it by the most bestial of behaviour. It involves genuinely examining our ways before YHWH, and seeking His confirmation in our hearts when our hearts and minds are truly open to Him, before we proceed (compare Proverbs 3:6). You cannot ‘roll on YHWH' what is displeasing to Him. An illustration of the idea, (but not necessarily the way to go about it), is found in 2 Samuel 2:1.