Pulpit Commentary - Proverbs 2:1

Pulpit Commentary - Proverbs 2:1 - 2:22

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Pulpit Commentary - Proverbs 2:1 - 2:22

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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

2:1 - 2:22

EXPOSITION

Pro_2:1-22

3. Third admonitory discourse, pointing out the benefits which arise from a sincere, earnest, and persevering search after Wisdom. This discourse divides itself into three parts.

(1) Pro_2:1-9 : a statement of the conditions which, if fulfilled, result in the highest knowledge of Jehovah—the fear of Jehovah and the knowledge of God, who is the Source of wisdom and the Protection and Ensurer of safety to the righteous.

(2) Pro_2:10-19 : the negatively beneficial results of Wisdom, in delivery from the paths of evil, from destructive lusts and passions, from the temptations of wicked men and wicked women.

(3) Pro_2:20-22 : the epilogue, or conclusion, combining encouragement on the one hand, and warning on the other.

Pro_2:1

The teacher here reverts to the original form of his address, as appears from the employment of the term, my son. It seems clear that it is no longer Wisdom personified who is the speaker, from the fact that the words, "wisdom and understanding" in Pro_2:2 are used without the possessive pronoun "my," which would have been undoubtedly inserted if this address had been a continuation of the discourse in the preceding chapter. Some of the ideas of that address, however, are restated, as the crying and lifting up the voice after Wisdom, and the conclusion, wherein the respective destinies of the pious and wicked are portrayed. The particle "if" ( àÅí ) is conditional, and serves to introduce the series of clauses (Pro_2:1-4) which lay down the conditions upon which the promises depend, and which form the protasis to the double apodosis in Pro_2:5 and Pro_2:9. De Wette, Meyer, and Delitzsch regard it as voluntative, as expressing a wish on the part of the teacher, and translate, "Oh that thou wouldst!" and àÄí , "if," is used in this way in Psa_139:19; but the LXX. ( ἐάν ) and Vulgate (si) make it conditional. It is repeated in an emphatic form in Psa_139:3. Receive. The verbs "receive" and "hide" show that the endeavour after Wisdom is to be candid and sincere. "To receive" ( ìÈ÷Çä ) seems to be here used, like the LXX. δεχέσθαι in the sense of "to receive graciously," "to admit the words of Wisdom." It is noticeable that there is a gradation in emphasis in the various terms here used by the teacher. Just as "commandments" is stronger than "words," so "hide" is stronger than "receive." The emphasizing is carried on in the following verses in the same way, and at length culminates in Psa_139:4, which sums up the ardent spirit in which the search after Wisdom is to be prosecuted in presenting it to us in its strongest form. Hide. The original ( öÇôÇï , tsaphan) is here used in a different sense to that in which it occurs in Pro_1:11 and Pro_1:18. It here refers, as in Pro_7:1; Pro_10:14; and Pro_13:22, to the storing or laying up, as of treasure, in some secret repository, and means "to lay up." The Divine commands of the teacher are to be hidden in safe custody in the memory, in the understanding, in the conscience, and in the heart (cf. Pro_4:21; Pro_7:1). The psalmist expresses the same idea in Psa_119:11, "Thy words have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee."

Pro_2:2

This verse is dependent on the preceding. So that thou incline. The literal translation is "to incline;" but the inclination of the ear and the application of the heart follow as a consequence upon the precepting ideas (cf. the Vulgate, ut audiat sapientiam auris tua). The root idea of the original ( ÷ÈùÇÑá , kashav) is "to sharpen," viz. the ear as expressed, and so to give diligent attention to the precepts of Wisdom. In Pro_1:24 it is rendered "to regard." To apply thine heart is to turn the heart with the whole scope of its powers, in the spirit of humility and eagerness, to understanding. As the ear represents the outward vehicle of communication, so the heart ( ìÄá , lev) represents the inward, the intellectual faculty, the mind, or it may mean the affections as suggested by the LXX. καρδία and Vulgate cor. Understanding ( úÀÌáåÌðÈä , t'vunah) is here interchanged with "wisdom," which must determine its meaning to some extent. The LXX. interpreters take it as σύνεσις , the faculty of comprehension." Like áÄéðÈä (vinah) in Pro_1:2, the word describes the faculty of distinguishing or separating: but it does not appear to be here used as representing this "as a faculty of the soul, but as a Divine power which communicates itself as the gift of God" (Delitzsch). A second and perhaps simpler sense may be given to the sentence. It may mean the turning or applying of the heart in an affectionate and loving way, i.e. with full purpose, to the discrimination of what is right and what wrong. The ideas of wisdom and understanding seem to some extent to be brought forward as personifications. They are things outside of ourselves, to which we have to give attention. Religion appeals not only to the affections, but also to the intellect, as this satisfies all the yearnings of our nature.

Pro_2:3

Yea, if thou criest after knowledge. The endeavour after Wisdom is not only to be sincere, it is also to be earnest, as appears from the "yea, if," and the verbs "crying" and "lifting up the voice," both of which frequently occur in Scripture as indicating earnestness. This earnestness is the counterpart of that which Wisdom herself displays (see Pro_1:20, Pro_1:21). Knowledge; i.e. insight. In the original there is practically little difference between "knowledge" and "understanding" ( áÄÌéðÈä and úÀÌáåÌðÈä ). They carry on the idea expressed in "understanding" in the preceding verse, and thus throw the emphasis on the verbs. The LXX. and Vulgate, however, take "knowledge" as equivalent to σοφία , sapientia, "wisdom." The reading of the Targum, "If thou tallest understanding thy mother," arises from reading àÄí for àÅí , but is not to be preferred to the Masoretic text, as it destroys the parallelism.

Pro_2:4

If thou seekest, etc. The climax in the series of conditions is reached in this verse; and the imagery employed in both clauses indicates that the search after Wisdom is to be persevering, unrelaxing, and diligent, like the unremitting toil and labour with which men carry on mining operations. "To seek" ( áÈÌ÷ÇùÑ , bakash) in the original is properly "to seek diligently" (piel), and is kindred to "to search" ( ÷ÈôÇùÒ , khaphas), which again is equivalent to "to dig" ( çÈôÇø , khaphar), the Vulgate effodere, "to dig out." Compare the expression in Job_3:21, "And dig for it more than for hid treasures." We trace in these verbs the idea in the mind of the teacher indicated above, which finds expression also in the object of the search, the silver, in its crude state, and the hidden treasures ( îÇèÀîÉðÄéí mat'monim), i.e. the treasures of gold, silver, and precious metal concealed in the earth. The comparison here made between the search for Wisdom and the search for the hidden treasures of the earth was not unfamiliar to the Hebrew mind, as it is found worked out with great beauty of detail in the twenty-eighth chapter of Job. Again, the comparison of Wisdom with things most precious in the estimation of man is natural and common, and occurs in Psa_119:72; Job_28:15-19. The same ideas and comparisons here used are presented to us in the New Testament teaching, in our Lord's parable of the man who finds the hid treasure in the field, and, in the phraseology of St. Paul, who speaks of "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge," and of "the unsearchable riches of Christ." "Divine knowledge is an inexhaustible mine of precious ore" (Wardlaw). The language of the Proverbs would receive additional three from the circumstances of the reign of Solomon, the most splendid and prosperous era in the annals of the Jewish national history, in the means taken to secure the treasures of other and distant countries; the wealth and the riches of that reign (see 2Ch_9:20-22) would help to bring out the idea of the superlative value of Wisdom. In no era of the Jewish national history was there such abundance of riches, such splendid prosperity, as in the reign of Solomon, whose ships of Tarshish brought "gold and silver" (see 2Ch_9:20-22), and this state of things would give point to the comparisons which the teacher uses in our text.

Pro_2:5

Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord. Then ( àÈï ), introducing the first apodosis, and answering to the conditional "if" of Pro_2:1, Pro_2:3, Pro_2:4. The earnest endeavour after Wisdom meets with its reward, and those that seek shall find (cf. Mat_7:7): and thus an inducement is held forth to listen to the admonition of the teacher. Understand implies the power of discernment, but Zockler gives it the further moaning of taking to one's self as a spiritual possession, just as "find" meaning primarily "to arrive at" conveys the idea of getting possession of (Mercerus). The fear of the Lord ( éÀøÀàÇú éÀçÈåÉä , yir'ath yehovah); "the fear of Jehovah," as in Pro_1:7. As it is the beginning, so it is the highest form of knowledge and the greatest good. Elsewhere it is represented as a fountain of life (Pro_15:27). All true wisdom is summed up in "the fear of the Lord." It here means the reverence due to him, and so comprises the whole range of the religious affections and feelings, which respond to various attributes of the Divine character as they are revealed, and which find their expression in holy worship. The knowledge of God ( ãÇòÇú àÁìÉäÄéí , daath Elohim); literally, the knowledge of Elohim. Not merely cognition, but knowledge in its wider sense. The two ideas of "the fear of the Lord" and "the knowledge of God" act reciprocally on each other. Just as without reverence of God there can be no knowledge of him in its true sense, so the knowledge of God will increase and deepen the feeling of reverence. But it is noticeable that the teacher here, as in Pro_9:10, where, however, it is "the knowledge of the holy" ( ãÇòÇú ÷ÀãùÄÑéí , daath k'doshim), gives the chief place to reverence, and thus indicates that it is the basis of knowledge, which is its fruit and result. The relation here suggested is analogous to that which subsists between faith and knowledge, and recalls the celebrated dictum of Anselm: "Neque enim quaero intelligere ut credam; sed credo, ut intelligam." Elohim, here interchanged with Jehovah, is not of frequent occurrence in the Proverbs, as it is only found therein five times, while the predominating word which is used to designate the Deity is Jehovah. But it is difficult to draw any distinction between them here. Jehovah may refer more especially to the Personality of the Divine nature, while Elohim may refer to Christ's glory (Plumptre). Bishop Wordsworth thinks that a distinction is made between the knowledge of Elohim and the knowledge of man which is of little worth.

Pro_2:6

For the Lord giveth wisdom. The Lord Jehovah is the only and true Source of wisdom. The truth stated here is also met with in Dan_2:21, "He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding." He "giveth," or more properly, "will give" ( éÄúÅÌï , yitten, future of ðÈúÇï , nathan), wisdom; but the connection requires us to understand that the assurance applies only to those who seek after it earnestly and truly (cf. Jas_1:5-7). The two coefficients to our obtaining wisdom are our efforts and God's assistance. Solomon may be adduced as s striking exemplification of this; he asked for "an understanding heart," and God graciously granted his request (see 1Ki_3:9, 1Ki_3:12). Out of his mouth ( îÄôÄéå , mippiv); ex ore ejus; God is here spoken of anthropologically. He is the true Teacher. The meaning is that God communicates wisdom through the medium of his Word (Delitzsch. Pi.). The law proceeds from his mouth (Job_22:22). In the Book of Wisdom (Wis. 7:25), "Wisdom is the breath of the power of God." His word is conveyed to us through men divinely inspired, and hence St. Peter (2Pe_1:21) says that "holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost."

Pro_2:7

Wisdom which is the foundation of security and safety, and hence is sound wisdom, is that which God treasures up for the righteous. The teacher passes to another phase of the Divine character. God is not only the Source of wisdom; he is also the Ensurer of safety, the Source of salvation to those who act uprightly. It will be noted that the use of the word is confined to the Proverbs and Job, with the exception of the two passages in Isaiah and Micah. Buckler. Besides storing up the treasures of sound wisdom, which the righteous may use and so obtain security in their uprightness, God is himself a Buckler, or Shield ( îÈâÅï , magen), to those who walk in innocence. This aspect of God's directly protecting power is met with in other parts of Scripture. In Gen_15:1 he encourages Abram with the assurance, "I am thy Shield." In Psa_33:20; Psa_84:11; Psa_89:18; Psa_144:2, Jehovah is called a Shield to his saints. He renders them security against the assaults of their enemies, and especially against the fiery darts of the wicked one. Again, in Pro_30:5, it is said, "God is a Shield (magen) up to them that walk uprightly." It is incorrect to take îÈâÅï (magen) either as an accusative after the verb or in apposition with "sound wisdom." To them that walk uprightly; literally, to the walkers in innocence ( ìÀçÉìÅëÅé úÉí , l'khol'key thom). úÉí (thom) is "integrity of mind," "moral faultlessness," "innocence." "To walk uprightly" is to maintain a course of life regulated by right principles, and directed to right ends. He "walks uprightly who lives with the fear of God as his principle, the Word of God as his rule, and the glory of God as his end" (Wardlaw). The completeness of the moral and religious character is involved in the expression which is found also in Pro_10:9 and Psa_84:11. The Vulgate translates the latter clause of the verse, proteget gradientes simpliciter, "he will protect those who walk in simplicity;" cf. 2Co_1:12 in illustration of the phrase. He layeth up; i.e. he treasures up (LXX; θησαυρίζειν ), or preserves and protects (custodire, Vulgate), as a person does "treasure or jewel, that it may not be stolen" (Zockler). The majority of commentators read the Keri ( éÄöôÉï , "he will treasure up," future of öÈôÇï ) in preference to the Khetib ( öÈôÇï , perfect of same verb, with prefix åÀ , "and he treasured up"), and this is the; reading adopted in the Authorized Version. The Keri implies that God does treasure up sound wisdom, while the Khetib, as Delitzsch observes, has the force of the aorist, and so represents the treasuring up as an accomplished fact. The same verb occurs in Pro_2:1, where it is translated in the Authorized Version by "hide," and also in Pro_7:1 and Pro_10:14 by "lay up." The laying up, or treasuring, points to the preciousness of that which is treasured, "sound wisdom." Sound wisdom. A great variety of opinions exists as to the true meaning of the word in the original, úÀåÌùÄÑéÈä (tvushiyyah), of which "sound wisdom" is an interpretation. Zockler explains it as "wisdom, reflection;" Delitzsch, as "advancement and promotion;" Dathe, as "solid fortune;" Gesenius, as "aid." The proper meaning of the word seems to he "substance," from the root éÈùÈÑä , "to be, to exist, to be firm." Professor Lee remarks on the word, "From the places in which it occurs, either wealth, thought, or some such sense it manifestly requires. It occurs in Job_6:13, in parallelism with 'help;' in Pro_2:7, with a 'shield;' in Job_1:6, with 'wisdom;' in Job_12:16, with 'strength;' in Pro_3:21, with 'discretion;' in Pro_8:14, with 'counsel' and 'understanding;' in Isa_28:29, with 'counsel;' and so in Job_26:3. In Job_30:22 and Mic_6:9, 'entirely' or the like seems to suit the context; see also Pro_18:1, and generally 'excess,' or 'abundance,' taken either in a good or bad sense, and varied by other considerations, seems to prevail in every case in which this word is used" (see Professor Lee, on Job_5:12). The parallelism of the passage before us seems to require that it should be understood in the sense of security; and transferring the idea to wisdom as the means of security. This idea is reproduced in the LXX. σωτήρια , the Vulgate salus, and the Targum incolumitas.

Pro_2:8

He keepeth the paths of judgment. This verse is explanatory of the latter hemistich of Pro_2:7, and points out more fully in what way God is a Protector of his saints. Some connect the Hebrew infinitive ìÄðÀöÉã (lin'tsor), "to watch or keep," with "them that walk uprightly," and translate, "them that walk uprightly by keeping the paths of judgment;" but this is to transfer the idea of protection from God to such persons. The verb signifies specially "to defend, to preserve from danger," as in Pro_22:12, "The eyes of the Lind preserve knowledge; i.e. defend or protect it from danger." It is God who "keepeth the paths of judgment," as he alone has the power to do so. He watches over all that walk therein, guides, superin. tends, and protects them. The paths of judgment; or rather, justice, àÁøÀäåÉú îÄùÀÑôÈè (at'khoth mishpat). The abstract is here used for the concrete, and the phrase means "the paths of the just," i.e. the paths in which the just walk, or "those who walk justly" (Mercerus). This expression corresponds with "the way of his saints," just as "keep" and "preserve" are synonymous verbs, both meaning "to guard, keep safe, or protect." He preserveth the way of his saints. God does this

(1) by his preventing grace, as in Psa_66:9, "He suffereth not our feet to slip." Cf. Hannah's song, "He will keep the feet of his saints" (1Sa_2:9);

(2) by angelic agency, as in Psa_91:11, "He shall give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways." The saints are ever under the watchful care and mighty protection of Jehovah. His saints ( çÂñÄéãÈå , khasidav); i.e. the pious towards God, the godly, those in whose hearts the principles of sanctity have been implanted, and who cherish earnest inward love to God, and "walk righteously" and "speak uprightly" (Isa_33:15). It is remarkable that the word saints only occurs once (in this passage) in the Proverbs. During the period of the Maccabaean Wars, a party or sect, which aimed at ceremonial purity, claimed for themselves the title of Chasidim or Asidaeans ( Ἀσιδαῖοι ), as expressive of their piety or devotion. They are those whom Moses called "men of holiness," Exo_22:31 ( åàÂðÀùÅÑéÎ÷ÉãÆùÑ , v'an'shev-kodesh); cf. Psa_89:5; Psa_149:1; Psa_89:8; Deu_33:3; Dan_7:18, Dan_7:22, Dan_7:22, Dan_7:25. Under the Christian dispensation, the saints are those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus (1Co_1:2; 1Jn_5:1), and who are holy in all manner of conversation (1Pe_1:25; 1 Macc 2:42; 7:13; 2 Macc 14:6); see Bishop Lightfoot, 'Colossians and Philemon,' diss. 2, p. 355.

Pro_2:9

Then ( àÈæ , az), repeated from Pro_2:5, introduces the second apodosis. As the former referred to God, so this appears to refer more especially to man, and thus we have stated the whole benefit, in its twofold aspect, which Wisdom confers on those who diligently seek her. It is not to be affirmed, however, that righteousness and judgment and equity refer exclusively to man; they must represent some aspects of our relationship to God, both from the meaning of the words themselves, and because the law which regulates our dealings and intercourse with man has its seat in the higher law of our relation to God. Righteousness, and judgment, and equity. These three words occur in the same collocation in Pro_1:3, which see. Yea, every good path. "Yea" does not occur in the original. The expression is a summarizing of the three previous conceptions, as if the teacher implied that all good paths are embraced by and included in "righteousness, and judgment, and equity;" but the term is also comprehensive in the widest degree. The literal translation is "every path of good" ( ëÀÌìÎîÇòÀâËÌìÎèåÉá , cal-ma'gal-tov), i.e. every course of action of which goodness is the characteristic, or, as the Authorized Version, "every good path," the sense in which it was understood by St. Jerome, omnem orbitam bonam. The word here used for "path" is îÇòÀâÇÌì (ma'gal), "the way in which the chariot rolls" (Delitzsch), and metaphorically a course of action, as in Pro_2:15; Pro_4:26.

Pro_2:10-19

Statement of the advantages which result from the possession of Wisdom, and specially as a safeguard against evil men (Pro_2:12-15) and evil women (Pro_2:16-19).

Pro_2:10

When wisdom entereth into thine heart. There is practically little difference as to the sense, whether we render the Hebrew ëÄÌé by the conditional "if" or by the temporal "when" as in the Authorized Version. The conditional force is adopted by the LXX. ἐάν and the Vulgate si. In the previous section of this address, the teacher has shown that the search after Wisdom will result in possession.; now he points out, when Wisdom is secured, certain advantageous consequences follow. The transition is easy and natural. The form of construction is very similar to that adopted previously. There is first the hypothesis, if we give this force to ëÄÌé , though much shorter; and secondly the climax, also shorter and branching off into the statement of two special cases. Entereth; or, shall enter ( çÈáåÉà , thavo) in the sense of permanent residence in the heart. Wisdom is not only to come in, but to rest there (cf. Pro_14:33). The expression is illustrated by Joh_14:23. The imagery of the verse is taken from the reception and entertainment of a guest. As we receive a welcome guest, and find pleasure in his company, so is Wisdom to be dear to the heart and soul. Into thine heart ( áÀÌìÄáÆÌêÈ , b'libecha). The heart ( ìÅá ) "concentrates in it. self the personal life of man in all its relations, the conscious and the unconscious, the voluntary and the involuntary, the physical and the spiritual impulses, the emotions and states" (Cremer, 'Bib. Theol. Lex.,' sub voce καρδία ). It is that in which the ðÆôÆùÑ (nephesh),"soul," manifests itself. It is the centre of the life of will and desire, of the emotions, and of the moral life. Rudloff remarks that everywhere in the Scriptures the heart appears to belong more to the life of desire and feeling than to the intellectual activity of the soul. But at the same time, it is to be noted that intelligent conception is attributed to the heart ( ìÅá ); Pro_14:10; Pro_8:5; Pro_16:9. The expression seems to be put here for the moral side of man's nature; and in the Hellenistic sense, καρδία , the proper equivalent of ìÅá "heart," involves all that stands for νοῦς λόγος συνείδησις , and θυμός ; i.e. it includes, besides other things, the intellectual faculty. The word "soul" ( ðÆôÆùÑ , nephesh) is here found in combination with "heart." The other passages where they are mentioned together are Deu_6:5; Psa_13:2; Jer_4:19; Pro_24:12. The soul is primarily the vital principle, but according to the usus loquendi of Holy Scripture, it frequently denotes the entire inward nature of man; it is that part which is the object of the work of redemption. The homo of the soul is the heart, as appears from Pro_14:10, "The heart knoweth his own bitterness [or, 'the bitterness of his soul,' Hebrew]." While the "heart" ( ìÅá ) is rendered by καρδία and ψυχή , the only Greek equivalent to "soul" ( åÆôÆùÑ ) is ψυχή . The two expressions, "heart," and "soul," in the passage before us may be taken as designating both the moral and spiritual sides of man's nature. Wisdom is to be acceptable and pleasant to man in these respects. It may be remarked that an intellectual colouring is given to the word "heart" by the LXX; who render it by διανοία , as also in Deu_6:5 and other passages, evidently from the idea that prominence is given to the reflective faculty. Classically, διανοία is equivalent to "thought," "faculty of thought," "intellect." Knowledge (Hebrew, ãÈòÈú ); literally, to know, as in Pro_8:10 and Pro_14:6; here used synonymously with "wisdom." Knowledge, not merely as cognition, but perception; i.e. not merely knowing a thing with respect to its existence and being, but as to its excellence and truth. Equivalent to the LXX. αἰσσησις , "perception," and the Vulgate scientia. Is pleasant (Hebrew, éÄðÀòÈí , yin'am); literally, shall be pleasant; i.e. sweet, lovely, beautiful. The same word is used impersonally in Jacob's blessing of Issachar (Gen_49:15, "And he saw the land that it was pleasant"), and also in Pro_24:25, "To those that punish [i.e. the judges] there shall be delight." And this usage has led Dunn to take knowledge as an accusative of reference, and to translate, "There is pleasure to thy soul in respect of knowledge;" but the Authorized Version may be accepted as correct. "Knowledge" is masculine, as in Pro_8:10 and Pro_14:6, and agrees with the masculine verb "is pleasant." Knowledge will be pleasant from the enjoyment and rest which it yields. The Arabic presents the idea of this enjoyment under a different aspect: "And prudence shall be in thy soul the most beautiful glory."

Pro_2:11

Discretion shall preserve thee. Discretion ( îÀæÇîÈÌú , m'zimoth), as in Pro_1:4, is the outward manifestation of wisdom; it tests what is uncertain, and avoids danger (Hitzig). The word carries with it the idea of reflection or consideration (see Pro_3:21; Pro_5:2; Pro_8:12) The LXX. reads, βουλὴ καλή , "good counsel;" and the Vulgate, concilium. Shall preserve thee. The idea of protection and guarding, which is predicated of Jehovah in Pro_1:8, is here transferred to discretion and understanding, which to some extent are put forward as personifications. Understanding ( úÀáåÌðÈä , t'vunah), as in Pro_2:11; the power of distinguishing and separating, and, in the case of conflicting interests, to decide on the best. Shall keep; i.e. keep safe, or in the sense of watching over or guarding. The two verbs "to preserve" ( ùÈÑîÇø , shamar) and "to keep" ( ðÈöÇø , natsar), LXX. τήρειν , occur together again in Pro_4:6.

Pro_2:12

To deliver thee from the way of the evil man. The first special advantage resulting from the protecting guardianship of discretion and understanding. From the way of the evil man; properly, from an evil way; Hebrew, îÄãÆÌøÆêÀ øÈò (midarek ra), not necessarily, though by implication, connected with man, as in the Authorized Version. øÈò (ra), "evil," "wicked," in an ethical sense, is an adjective, as in Jer_3:16 ( ìÅá øÈò , lev ra), "an evil heart;" cf. the LXX; ἀπὸ ὁδοῦ κακῆς ; the Vulgate, Targum, and Arabic, a vid mala, and the Syriac, a viis pravis. "Way," is here used in the sense of "conduct," and the evil way is a line of conduct or action which is essentially wicked or evil. The teacher has already Warned youth against the temptations and dangers of the way of evil men in Pro_1:10-15; he now shows that discretion, arising from wisdom being resident in the heart, will be a sufficient safeguard against its allurements. From the man that speaketh froward things. Perverse utterances are here brought in contradistinction to the evil way or froward conduct. Man ( àÄùÑ , ish) is here used generically, as the representative of the whole class of base and wicked men, since all the following verbs are in the plural, Froward things. The word úÇÌäÀôËëåÉÌú (tah)pucoth), here translated "froward things," is derived from the root øóÌ (haphak), "to turn," "to pervert," and should be translated "perverseness." Perverseness is the wilful misrepresentation of that which is good and true. The utterances are of a distorted and tortuous character. The word, only found in the plural, is abstract in form, and is of frequent, though not of exclusive, occurrence in the Proverbs. It is attributed to the Israelites in Deu_32:20. It is met with again in such expressions as "the mouth of perverseness," Authorized Version "froward mouth" (Pro_8:13); "the tongue of perverseness," "froward tongue," Authorized Version (Pro_10:31); "the man of perverseness," "froward man," Authorized Version (Pro_16:28). What is here said of wicked men is attributed to drunkards in Pro_23:33, "Thine heart shall utter perverse things." The expression finds its explanation in Pro_6:13, Pro_6:14. The spirit which indulges in this perverseness is stubborn, scornful, self-willed, and rebellious, and it is from such a spirit that discretion is a preservative. In Job_5:13 it is said that "the counsel of the froward is carried headlong" (see also 2Sa_22:27; Psa_18:26; Psa_101:4). The LXX. rendering of this word is μηδὲν πιστόν , "nothing trustworthy," which is amplified in the Arabic, quod nullam in se continet veritatem, "that which contains in itself no truth."

Pro_2:13

Who leave the paths of uprightness. Between Pro_2:13 and Pro_2:15 the teacher proceeds to give a more detailed description of those who speak perversely. Who leave ( äÇòÉæÀáÄéí , haoz'vim); literally, forsaking, but the present participle has the force of the preterite, as appears from the context. The men alluded to have already forsaken or deserted the paths of uprightness (see previous note on the word "man." The paths of uprightness ( àÁøÀçåÉú éùÆÑú , ar'khoth yosher); the same as the "right paths" of Pro_4:11. The strict meaning of the Hebrew word translated "uprightness" is "straightness," and hence it stands opposed to "perverseness" in the previous verse. Uprightness is integrity, rectitude, honest dealing. The LXX. translators represent the forsaking of the paths of uprightness as a consequence resulting from walking in the ways of darkness, "O ye who have left the right ways by departing [ τοῦ πορεύεσβαι , equivalent to abeundo] into the ways of darkness." Again, the ways of darkness ( ãÇøÀëÅé çùÆÑêÀ , dar'chey kkoshek) are opposed to the "paths of uprightness" which rejoice in the light. Darkness includes the two ideas of

(1) ignorance and error (Isa_9:2; Eph_5:8), and

(2) evil deeds.

To walk in the ways of darkness, then, is to persist in a course of wilful ignorance, to reject deliberately the light of knowledge, and to work wickedness, by performing "the works of darkness ( τὰ ἔργα τοῦ σκύτους )," which St. Paul exhorted the Church at Rome to east away (Rom_13:12), and by having fellowship with "the unfruitful works of darkness ( τὰ ἔργα τὰ ἀκάρπα τοῦ σκότους )," against which the same apostle warned the Ephesians (Eph_5:11). They are ways of darkness, because they endeavour to hide themselves from God (Isa_29:15) and from man (Job_24:15; Job_38:13, Job_38:15). In their tendency and end they lead to the blackness of darkness forever. In Scripture darkness is associated with evil, just as light is with uprightness (see Joh_3:19, Joh_3:20). The same association of ideas is discoverable in the dualism of the Persian system, as formulated by Zoroaster—Ormuzd, the good principle, presides over the kingdom of light, while Ahriman, the principle of evil, is the ruler of the kingdom of darkness.

Pro_2:14

Who rejoice to do evil. Another element is here brought forward, and the description increases in intensity. The wicked not only rejoice to do evil themselves, but they exult when they hear of evil in others (cf. Rom_1:32). Such may be the interpretation, though the latter part, of the verse is capable of a different and more general rendering as signifying exultation in evil generally, whether it appears in themselves or others. The expression rendered in the Authorized Version, in the frowardness of the wicked, is in the original ( áÀÌúÇçÀôËëåÉú øÇò , b'thah'pucoth ra), in the perverseness of evil, or in evil perverseness, where the combination of the two nouns serves to give force to the main idea, which is that of perverseness. This rendering is adopted in the LXX; ἐπὶ διαστροφῇ κακῇ , "in evil distortion;" in the Vulgate, in pessimis rebus; in the Targum, Syriac, and Arabic, in conversatione mala, "in a bad course of conduct;" and in the Targum, in malitiae perversione, "in the perversion of wickedness." It is not perverseness in its simple and common form that these men exult in. but in its worst and most vicious form (for a similar construction, see Pro_6:24; Pro_15:26; and Pro_28:5). How widely different is the conduct of charity, which "rejoiceth not in iniquity" (1Co_13:6)!

Pro_2:15

Whose ways are crooked; better, perhaps, who as to their ways are crooked. This is the construction adopted by Fleischer, Berthean, Zockler, and others, though it may be remarked that the substantive àÉøÇç (orakh), "way," is common gender, and may thin; agree with the adjective òÅ÷ÅùÑ (ikesh), "perverse," which is masculine. The Targum, LXX; Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic, all make "crooked" agree with "ways," do that, grammatically, the Authorized Version may be regarded as not incorrect. Crooked ( òÄ÷ÀÌùÄÑéí , ik'shim); i.e. tortuous, perverse, not straightforward, ( σκολιαὶ , LXX.). Symmachus translates the original by σκαμβαί , i.e. "bent." Theodotion, by στριβλαί , "twisted, crookt? Sinners, in their perverseness, are ever winding about, turning in every direction, and changing from purpose to purpose, as wayward caprice or shifting inclination, the alternations of evil propensity, happen to dictate (Wardlaw). (For the expressions "crooked ways," see Psa_125:5.) And they froward in their paths; i.e. perverse in their paths. The root idea of the Hebrew niph. participle åÌðÀìåÉæÄéí (vun'lozim), translated "and they froward," is "to bend aside," "to turn away." They are turned aside to the right hand and to the left in their walk. The niph. participle ðÈìåÉæ (naloz) only occurs four times in the Scriptures—here; Pro_3:32; Pro_14:2; and Isa_30:12. This is the last feature in their wickedness.

Pro_2:16

To deliver thee from the strange woman. This is the second form of temptation against which wisdom (discretion) is a preservative, and the great and especial dangers arising from it to youth, owing to its seductive allurements, afford the reason why the teacher is so strong in his warnings on this subject. Two terms are employed to designate the source of this evil—"the strange woman" ( àÄùÈä æÈøÈä , ishshah zara), and "the stranger" ( ðÈëÀøÄéÈä , nok'riyah)—and both undoubtedly, in the passage before us, mean a meretricious person, one who indulges in illicit intercourse. The former term is invariably employed in this sense in the Proverbs (Pro_5:2, Pro_5:20; Pro_7:5; Pro_22:14; Pro_23:33) of the adulteress ( æÈøÄéí , zarim), and Jer_2:25. The participle æÈø (zar), from the verb æåÌø (zur), of which æÈøÈä (zarah) is the feminine form, is, however, used in a wider sense, as signifying

(1) one of another nation, or one of another family;

(2) or some one different from one's self;

(3) or strange.

Thus:

(1) in Isa_1:7 we have "Strangers devour it (your land) in your presence;" but in Exo_30:33 "the stranger" is one not the high priest.

(2) The "stranger" is another (Pro_11:15; Pro_14:10; Pro_20:16; Pro_27:2, Pro_27:13).

(3) The "strange fire" ( àÅùÑ æÈøÈä , esh zarah) is the unlawful fire as opposed to the holy fire (Le Exo_10:1); the "strange god" ( àÅì æÈø , el zar) is the foreign god (Psa_81:9). But the idea of foreign origin implied in the word is more strongly brought out in the next term, ðÈëÀøÄéÈä (nok'riyah), on which Delitzsch remarks that it scarcely ever divests itself of a strange, foreign origin. This word is used to designate those "strange women" whom Solomon loved in his old age, and who turned his heart aside to worship false gods (1Ki_11:1-8), "outlandish women," as they are termed in Neh_13:26; it designates "the strange wives" of Ezr_10:1-44, and Neh_13:27; and is applied to Ruth the Moabitess (Rth_2:10). Again, it has to be further observed that the laws of the Mosaic code against prostitution were of a most stringent nature (Le 19:29; 21:9; Deu_23:17), and no doubt served to maintain a higher standard of morality among Israelitish women than that observed among the Midianites, Syrians, and other nations. Strong prohibitions were directed against the intermarriage of Israelites with the women of the surrounding nations; but the example set by Solomon would serve to weaken the force of these prohibitions, and would lead to a large influx of women of a different nationality. The conclusion we arrive at is that the class mentioned in the text, though not Israelitish by birth, were yet so by adoption, as the context clearly indicates (verse 17) the fact of marriage and the acceptance of certain religious observances. Such women, after a temporary restraint, would eventually set all moral and religious obligations at defiance. and would become the source of temptation to others. The allegorical interpretation given to this passage by the LXX. is to be rejected on the ground that the previous section (verses 12-15) speaks of perverse men. Which flattereth with her words; literally, who has made smooth her words, the hiph. perfect being used of çÈìÇ÷ (khalak), "to make smooth," or "flattering." The preterite shows what her habitual practice is, and is used of an action still continuing, and so may be fitly rendered by the present, as in the Authorized Version: "She has acquired the art of enticing by flattering words, and it is her study to employ them;" cf. the Vulgate, quae mollit sermones suos, "who softens her words;" and the Syriac, quae subvertit verba sua, "who subverts her words," i.e. "uses deceit." The expression occurs again in Pro_5:3; Pro_6:24; Pro_7:5.

Pro_2:17

The guide of her youth ( ðÀòåÌøÆéäÈ àÇìÌåÌó , alluph n'ureyah); properly, the associate or companion of her youth. The Hebrew, àÈìÌåÌó (alluph), being derived from the root àÈìÇó , (alaph), "to accustom one's self to," or "to be accustomed to" or "familiar with" anyone. The word is rendered as "friend" in Pro_17:9; Pro_16:28; Mic_7:5. The idea of guidance, which is adopted in the Authorized Version, and appears also in the Vulgate dux. and Targum ducatus, is a secondary idea, and is derived probably from the relation in which the husband stands to his wife. Various interpretations have been given to the expression. It occurs again in Jer_3:4, where Jehovah applies it to himself, and says, through his prophet, to the religiously adulterous Judah, "Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My Father, thou art the Guide of my youth ( àÇìÌåÌó ðÀòËøé , alluph n'ura)?" It has also been understood as referring to the woman's parents, her father and mother, who were her natural guardians. But the context seems to require that it should be taken as designating her husband. It will then be the correlative of "the wife of thy youth" of Mal_2:14. The covenant of her God; i.e. the marriage covenant, called "the covenant of her God," because entered into in his presence. The forsaking of the guide of her youth is essentially bound up with a forgetfulness of the solemn covenant which she had entered into in the presence of God. No specific mention is made in the Pentateuch of any religious ceremony at marriage; yet we may infer, from Mal_2:14, Mal_2:15, where God is spoken of as "a Witness" between the husband and "the wife of his youth," "the wife of thy covenant," that the marriage contract was solemnized with sacred rites. The Proverbs thus give a high and sacred character to marriage, and so carry on the original idea of the institution which, under the gospel dispensation, developed late the principle of the indissolubility of the marriage tie. It is no objection to this view that the monogamic principle was infringed, and polygamy countenanced. The reason of this latter departure is given in Deu_22:28 and Exo_22:16. The morality of the Proverbs always represents monogamy as the rule, it deprecates illicit intercourse, and discountenances divorce. It is in entire accordance with the seventh commandment. The woman who commits adultery offends, not only against her husband, but against her God.

Pro_2:18

For her house inclineth unto death; rather, she sinks down to death together with her house (Bottcher, Delitzsch). The objection to the Authorized Version is that it does not tbllow the construction of the original, the verb "sinks down" ( ùÈÑçÈä , shakhah) being feminine, while "house" ( áÈéÄú , bayith) is invariably masculine. Aben Ezra translates, "She sinks down to death, (which is to be) her house;" but it seems better to regard "her house" as an adjunct of the strange woman. Her house includes all who belong to her. She and they are involved in the same fate. The Authorized Version is evidently influenced by the Vulgate, Inclinata est enim ad mortem domus ejus, "For her house is inclined to death." The LXX. gives a different rendering, Ἕθετο γὰρ παρὰ τῷ θανάτῳ τὸν οἶκον αὐτῆς , "For she hath placed her house beside death." So the Arabic. The "for" ( ëÄÌé , ki) refers back to verse 16, and indicates how great is the deliverance effected by wisdom. The meaning of the passage is aptly illustrated by Pro_7:27, "Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death." And her paths unto the dead. The dead ( øÀôÈàÄéí , r'phaim) are properly the quiet, or the feeble. They are the shadowy inhabitants or shades of Hades, the inferi of the Vulgate, and are here put for Sheol itself. Compare the ἔδωλα καμνόντων of Homer, and the umbrae, "shades," of Virgil. The word occurs again in Pro_9:18; Pro_21:16; and in Psa_88:11; Isa_26:14, Isa_26:19; Job_26:5.

Pro_2:19

None that go unto her return again. The fate of the companions of the strange woman is described as irrevocable. All who visit her shall not return again. The Targum reads, "They shall not return in peace." The difficulty which they who give themselves up to the indulgence of lust and passion encounter in extricating themselves makes the statement of the teacher an almost universal truth. Hence St. Chrysostom says, "It is as difficult to bring back a libidinous person to chastity as a dead man to life." This passage led some of the Fathers to declare that the sin of adultery was unpardonable. Fornication was classed by the scholastic divines among the seven deadly sins, and it has this character given to it in the Litany: "From fornication, and all other deadly sin." St. Paul says, "No whoremonger nor unclean person … hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God" (Eph_5:5; cf. 1Co_6:9; Rev_22:15). The sin which they commit who have dealings with the strange woman is deadly and leads on to death, and from death there is no return, nor laying hold of or regaining the paths of life (see Job_7:9, Job_7:10). Compare the words with which Deiphobe, the Cumaean sibyl, addresses AEneas—

"Tros Anchysiade, facilis descensus Averno

Sed revocare gradum superasque evadere ad auras,

Hoc opus, hic labor est."

(Virgil, 'AEneid,' 6.126-129.)

"O Trojan, son of Anchyses, easy is the path that leads to hell. But to retrace one's steps, and escape to the upper regions, this is a work, this is a task."

Pro_2:20-22

Conclusion of the discourse in which are antithetically stated the respective destinies of the good and the bad, the upright and the wicked.

Pro_2:20

That (Hebrew, ìÀîÇòÇï l'maan); in order that (Vulgate, ut), carries us back properly to Pro_2:11. The protecting power of wisdom is developed in a positive direction. Negatively, it delivers from the evil man and from the strange woman, but it does more—"it shall keep thee in order that thou mayest walk in a good way," etc. The Hebrew ìÀîÇòÇï (l'maan) is coordinate with "to deliver thee," but it serves to bring the discourse to a conclusion. Umbreit renders it "therefore," thus making what follows an inference from the preceding discourse. So the Syriac, ambula igitur, "therefore walk." In the way of good men ( áÀÌãÆøÆêÀ èåÉáÄéí , b'derek tovim); i.e. in the way of the good, in an ethical sense, i.e. the upright, as in Isa_5:20. The Vulgate renders, in via bona, "in the good way." "The way of good men" is the way of God's commandments, the way of obedience. Keep. The Hebrew ve