Next commentary: Proverbs 10:22. i. a. Wisdom and grace are the honour of good men: He that has understanding, that good understanding which those have that do the commandments, wisdom is found in his lips, that is, it is discovered to be there, and consequently that he has within a good treasure of it, and it is derived thence for the benefit of others. The difference is (of course) wisdom. “But it is simpler to take it as the man’s evil, written, as we say, all over his face.” (Kidner). The desire of the righteous will be granted: The righteous man or woman also has a sense of what is to come, but it is rightly filled with optimism and hope. Ingenuity will be no excuse for iniquity, but the sinner must either repent or do worse, either rue it or be ruined by it. 12:6 ), for they may be relied on; and such are the words of just men. Love covers all sins: Peter quoted this in 1 Peter 4:8. The expectation of the wicked: “A wicked man is always imposing on himself by the hope of God’s mercy and final happiness; and he continues hoping, till he dies without receiving that mercy which alone would entitle him to that glory.” (Clarke), ii. The blessing of the Lord makes one rich: There are many who have been blessed with riches and are wise enough to receive those riches as God’s blessing. of In Proverbs 3, Solomon is speaking to his son about the woman called Wisdom. 8:18 . The Proverbs of Solomon - The proverbs of Solomon: A wise child brings joy to a father; a foolish child brings grief to a mother. The righteous is the pillar of the world (so some read it); the world stands for their sakes; the holy seed is the substance thereof. 9. Trick and artifice will be no excuse for iniquity. Our present path in a righteous direction or in a wicked direction will end either in blessedness or rottenness, each answering to the path. But he is a fool who thinks to hide any thing from God. Even where there is no manifest occasion of strife, yet hatred seeks occasion and so stirs it up and does the devil’s work. That keeping will bring one in the way of life. 5:13 ; Jam. Wisdom is found on the lips of him who has understanding, We could say this is true in two senses, in that love covers the sins of others, and that love covers the sins of the one who loves. Love will cover a multitude of sins. That joy of the Lord which is to be found only in the way of the Lord will be our strength (Neh. 27. These proverbs discuss many different subjects. 14. “The dependence of life on water is experienced existentially all over the earth, especially in the ancient Near East, where it is in short supply. The destruction of the poor: In this world, poverty puts the poor man at a great disadvantage, sometimes leading to their destruction. They. But he who perverts his ways will become known. a. The treasures of wicked people, much more the treasure which they have made themselves masters of by any wicked people, by oppression of fraud, though it be ever so much, as a treasure, and laid up ever so safely, though it be hidden treasure, yet it profits nothing; when profit and loss come to be balanced the profit gained by the treasures will by no means countervail the loss sustained by the wickedness, Mt. The labor of the righteous leads to life: For the righteous man or woman, labor is life-giving and leads to life. About this commentary: Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible is available in the Public Domain. Every man and woman can choose if they will be remembered to praise or remembered to shame. a. [Job 6:25] But the mouth of the foolish.] 10. Though they may be poor and low in the world, and may not have power and riches to do good with, yet, as long as they have a mouth to speak, that will make them valuable and useful, and upon that account we must honour those that fear the Lord, because out of the good treasure of their heart they bring forth good things. The rich man’s wealth is his strong city; Righteousness delivers from death, that is, wealth gained, and kept, and used, in a right manner (righteousness signifies both honesty and charity); it answers the end of wealth, which is to keep us alive and be a defence to us. By bearing with each other, … a. a. b. She is even more valuable than gold. b. When we are weak, we can ask God for His strength (Isaiah 40:31) as we walk on the way of the Lord. They do it by spreading slander: false and unsupported accusations against others. He goes on his way with a humble boldness, being well armed against the temptations of Satan, the troubles of the world, and the reproaches of men. John Trapp Complete Commentary. But the perverse tongue will be cut out. It is no better when it is vented in spiteful and mischievous language: He that utters slander is a fool too, for God will sooner or later bring forth that righteousness as the light which he endeavours to cloud, and will find an expedient to roll the reproach away. Fools die for want of a heart (so the word is); they perish for want of consideration and resolution; they have no heart to do any thing for their own good.