Proverbs 21:1-31
1 The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.
3 To do justice and judgment is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
4 An high look, and a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked, is sin.
5 The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness; but of every one that is hasty only to want.
6 The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.
7 The robbery of the wicked shall destroya them; because they refuse to do judgment.
8 The way of man is froward and strange: but as for the pure, his work is right.
9 It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawlingb woman in a wide house.
10 The soul of the wicked desireth evil: his neighbour findeth no favour in his eyes.
11 When the scorner is punished, the simple is made wise: and when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.
12 The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthroweth the wicked for their wickedness.
13 Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.
14 A gift in secret pacifieth anger: and a reward in the bosom strong wrath.
15 It is joy to the just to do judgment: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.
16 The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the congregation of the dead.
17 He that loveth pleasurec shall be a poor man: he that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.
18 The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous, and the transgressor for the upright.
19 It is better to dwell in the wilderness, than with a contentious and an angry woman.
20 There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up.
21 He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, righteousness, and honour.
22 A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty, and casteth down the strength of the confidence thereof.
23 Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.
24 Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who dealeth in proudd wrath.
25 The desire of the slothful killeth him; for his hands refuse to labour.
26 He coveteth greedily all the day long: but the righteous giveth and spareth not.
27 The sacrifice of the wicked is abomination: how much more, when he bringeth it with a wicked mind?
28 A false witness shall perish: but the man that heareth speaketh constantly.
29 A wicked man hardeneth his face: but as for the upright, he directethe his way.
30 There is no wisdom nor understanding nor counsel against the LORD.
31 The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safetyf is of the LORD.
Proverbs 21:1. watercourses: not the natural brooks and wadys of Palestine, but the artificial irrigation canals of Egypt or Babylonia, which could be diverted in any direction at will.
Proverbs 21:4. Apparently two unconnected lines belonging to different couplets. A connexion can be established only by forced exegesis. The Heb. is lit. lofty of look and arrogant of heart, the tillage of the wicked is sin. RV lamp for tillage depends on a different pointing, but does not improve the sense.
Proverbs 21:6. Lit. The getting of treasures by a lying tongue (is) a driven breath, seekers of death. RV clearly inserts more than the text warrants to make sense of Proverbs 21:6 b. Read a snare of death (LXX).
Proverbs 21:8. him that is laden with guilt: a rendering of an unknown Heb. form based on a doubtful etymology. A slight emendation gives the insolent.
Proverbs 21:9. a wide house: text is emended. MT reads house of a companion a difficult phrase, which may mean a house where there is company, in contrast to the quiet isolation of Proverbs 21:9 a.
Proverbs 21:11. cf. Proverbs 19:25.
Proverbs 21:12. Lit. A righteous one (i.e. God, cf. Job 34:17) considers the house of the wicked, he overturns the wicked (pl.) to calamity. RV is inadmissible; read mg.
Proverbs 21:15 a. RV destroys the point; render the execution of justice is a joy to the righteous.
Proverbs 21:16. the dead: Proverbs 21:8 *.
Proverbs 21:18. An expansion of the thought which finds a more restrained expression in Proverbs 11:8 *, a strange inversion of just for unjust in 1 Peter 3:18. Toy's weakening of the thought, crude as it seems, is hardly justifiable. Cf. also 4Ma_6:28 f. Psalms 29:5 f. exemplifies the line of thought that could yield such an aphorism. The presence within Jewish theology of two such opposite conceptions of vicarious suffering illustrates the extent of the divergence of the national and the individual eschatology.
Proverbs 21:21. cf. Romans 2:7.
Proverbs 21:26 a. RV is inadmissible. Lit. all day long he desires desire, which gives neither sense nor antithesis. LXX, the wicked desires all the day, yields both.
Proverbs 21:27. Both RV and RVm are possible, but RVm seems to give a better sense. The sacrifice of the wicked is doubly hateful to God when brought with the superstitious purpose of escaping thereby from the consequences of sin.
Proverbs 21:28 b yields no intelligible sense. RV is not admissible, and RVm gives an unjustifiable turn to the Heb. The Heb. is the man who hears will speak for ever. It is possibly another example of two disconnected stanzas.