Proverbs 21
21
1The king’s heart is in the hand of Jehovah as the watercourses:
He turneth it whithersoever he will.
2Every way of a man is right in his own eyes;
But Jehovah weigheth the hearts.
3To do righteousness and justice
Is more acceptable to Jehovah than sacrifice.
4A high look, and a proud heart,
Even the lamp of the wicked, is sin.
5The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness;
But every one that is hasty hasteth only to want.
6The getting of treasures by a lying tongue
Is a vapor driven to and fro by them that seek death.
7The violence of the wicked shall sweep them away,
Because they refuse to do justice.
8The way of him that is laden with guilt is exceeding crooked;
But as for the pure, his work is right.
9It is better to dwell in the corner of the housetop,
Than with a contentious woman in a wide house.
10The soul of the wicked desireth evil:
His neighbor findeth no favor in his eyes.
11When the scoffer is punished, the simple is made wise;
And when the wise is instructed, he receiveth knowledge.
12The righteous man considereth the house of the wicked,
How the wicked are overthrown to their ruin.
13Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor,
He also shall cry, but shall not be heard.
14A gift in secret pacifieth anger;
And a present in the bosom, strong wrath.
15It is joy to the righteous to do justice;
But it is a destruction to the workers of iniquity.
16The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding
Shall rest in the assembly of the dead.
17He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man:
He that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.
18The wicked is a ransom for the righteous;
And the treacherous cometh in the stead of the upright.
19It is better to dwell in a desert land,
Than with a contentious and fretful woman.
20There is precious treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise;
But a foolish man swalloweth it up.
21He that followeth after righteousness and kindness
Findeth life, righteousness, and honor.
22A wise man scaleth the city of the mighty,
And bringeth down the strength of the confidence thereof.
23Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue
Keepeth his soul from troubles.
24The proud and haughty man, scoffer is his name;
He worketh in the arrogance of pride.
25The desire of the sluggard killeth him;
For his hands refuse to labor.
26There is that coveteth greedily all the day long;
But the righteous giveth and withholdeth not.
27The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;
How much more, when he bringeth it with a wicked mind!
28A false witness shall perish;
But the man that heareth shall speak so as to endure.
29A wicked man hardeneth his face;
But as for the upright, he establisheth his ways.
30There is no wisdom nor understanding
Nor counsel against Jehovah.
31The horse is prepared against the day of battle;
But victory is of Jehovah.
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Proverbs 21: ASV
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Proverbs 21
21
1A king’s heart is channeled water in the hand of the Lord;
God directs it where he pleases.#“Channeled water” in Is 32:2 and Prv 5:16 is water that fertilizes arid land. It takes great skill to direct water, whether it be water to fertilize fields or cosmic floods harnessed at creation, for water is powerful and seems to have a mind of its own. It also requires great skill to direct the heart of a king, for it is inscrutable and beyond ordinary human control.
2All your ways may be straight in your own eyes,
but it is the Lord who weighs hearts.#Prv 16:2.
3To do what is right and just#1 Sm 15:22; Hos 6:6.
is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.#External rites or sacrifices do not please God unless accompanied by internal worship and right moral conduct; cf. 15:8; 21:27; Is 1:11–15; Am 5:22; Mal 1:12.
4Haughty eyes and a proud heart—
the lamp of the wicked will fail.#Heart and eyes depict, respectively, the inner and the outer person. “Haughty eyes” peering out from a “proud heart” show a thoroughly arrogant person. How can such a person flourish! Their lamp, which signifies life, will go out.
5The plans of the diligent end in profit,
but those of the hasty end in loss.#The antitheses are diligent and impetuous. The metaphor characterizing each type is taken from the world of commerce. Planning is important; bustle leads to waste.
6Trying to get rich by lying
is chasing a bubble over deadly snares.
7The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,
because they refuse to do what is right.
8One’s path may be winding and unfamiliar,
but one’s conduct is blameless and right.#One cannot always read others’ hearts from their behavior. Unconventional conduct need not indicate evil motives.
9It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop
than in a mansion with a quarrelsome woman.#In Proverbs, two great obstacles to a happy household are foolish children and quarrelsome spouses. The nagging wife is also mentioned in 19:13 and 27:15; 25:24 is a duplicate. #Prv 21:19; 25:24; 27:15; Sir 25:23.
10The soul of the wicked desires evil;
their neighbor finds no pity in their eyes.
11When scoffers are punished the naive become wise;
when the wise succeed, they gain knowledge.#Prv 19:25.
12The Righteous One appraises the house of the wicked,
bringing down the wicked to ruin.#It is difficult to ascertain the subject of the saying. Some hold it is the Lord, the “Righteous One,” who is normally the executor of justice in Proverbs. Others believe it is the just person who is the agent of divine justice. “Righteous One” is a title for God in Is 24:16. The best argument for making God the subject of the verb is that elsewhere in Proverbs righteous human beings never do anything to the wicked; only God does.
13Those who shut their ears to the cry of the poor
will themselves call out and not be answered.
14A secret gift allays anger,
and a present concealed, violent wrath.#Proverbs offers several remedies for anger—a soft word (15:1), patience, and a bribe. The last remedy implies a certain disdain for the disordered passion of anger, for it can be so easily assuaged by a discreetly offered “gift.”
15When justice is done it is a joy for the just,
downfall for evildoers.#The second line is a duplicate of 10:29b. #Prv 10:29.
16Whoever strays from the way of good sense
will abide in the assembly of the shades.#Assembly of the shades: those who dwell in Sheol.
17The lover of pleasure will suffer want;
the lover of wine and perfume will never be rich.
18The wicked serve as ransom for the just,
and the faithless for the upright.#In this bold paradox, the ransom that protects the righteous is the wicked person who attracts, like a lightning rod, the divine wrath that might have been directed at the righteous. #Prv 11:8.
19It is better to dwell in a wilderness
than with a quarrelsome wife and trouble.
20Precious treasure and oil are in the house of the wise,
but the fool consumes them.
21Whoever pursues justice and kindness
will find life and honor.#The paradox is that one comes upon something other than what one pursued. The way to (long and healthy) life and honor is the vigorous pursuit of virtue.
22The wise person storms the city of the mighty,
and overthrows the stronghold in which they trust.
23Those who guard mouth and tongue
guard themselves#Themselves: see note on 13:3. To guard your “self” (lit., “throat,” the moist and breathing center of the body, by metonymy, “life”), you must guard your tongue. Speech in Proverbs is the quintessential human activity and often has a meaning broader than speech alone; it can stand for all human activity. Acting rightly is the best way to protect yourself from evil. from trouble.#Prv 13:3.
24Proud, boastful—scoffer is the name:
those who act with overbearing pride.
25The desire of sluggards will slay them,
for their hands refuse to work.#Desire, or appetite, is the impulse toward food and drink (see Ps 42:3) which spurs animals and human beings into action. But sluggards cannot lift hand to mouth; they bury their hand in the dish (19:24), and so their appetite is thwarted.
26Some are consumed with avarice all the day,
but the just give unsparingly.
27The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination,
the more so when they offer it with bad intent.#Prv 15:8; Sir 34:21–23.
28The false witness will perish,#Prv 19:5, 9.
but one who listens will give lasting testimony.
29The face of the wicked hardens,
but the upright maintains a straight course.#The wicked cannot deter the righteous from walking the straight path, i.e., from practicing virtue.
30No wisdom, no understanding,
no counsel prevail against the Lord.
31The horse is equipped for the day of battle,
but victory is the Lord’s.
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