Proverbs 11:21. Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished.
Literally, “hand to hand.” Striking hands, or touching hands, is an Oriental mode of sealing a bargain, and is sometimes practiced even in this country. “Give us your hand on that” is a colloquial expression occasionally heard among an inferior class of traders. In the East the parties making a contract touch each other’s right hands, and then each raises his hand to his lips or forehead. Sometimes the hands are simply joined. The text, then, is expressive of a covenant. See also Ezra 10:19; Ezekiel 17:18. A morn solemn form of expressing faithfulness, amounting, indeed, to an oath, is seen in the uplifted hand. See note on Genesis 14:22 (#5) and also on Ezekiel 21:14 (#577).
Joining hands was frequently practiced as a mode of pledging security, and is thus referred to in Job 17:3; Proverbs 6:1; 17:18; 22:26.
For remarks on “giving the hand” as a pledge of submission, see note on Jeremiah 1:15 (#560).