THE wise and the foolish woman are brought before us in vivid contrast in the opening verse:
1 Every wise woman buildeth her house:
But the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.
The wise woman, by counsel and example, will lead her household in the right way, directing their steps in accordance with the word of the Lord. Thus her house is established on an immovable foundation of righteousness. The foolish, through her evil behavior and unworthy instruction, lays up sorrow for herself and grief for her offspring by her unholy influence. Contrast the mothers of Moses and of Ahaziah (Ex. 2; 2 Chron. 22:2, 3).
2 He that walketh in his uprightness feareth Jehovah:
But he that is perverse in his ways despiseth Him.
It is the life that proves whether one is really walking before God or not. The testimony of the lips, if contradicted by the behavior, is of little worth. The one who fears the Lord will be characterized by godliness and faithfulness.
“He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk even as He walked.”
If the ways are perverse, and opposed to His revealed will, it is proof that God is really despised, and not feared: He wants reality. To talk of reverence while obeying the dictates of a selfish, carnal nature, is but hypocrisy. This was Saul’s snare. Samuel declared the answer to it all when he said, “Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to harken than the fat of rams” (1 Sam. 15:22). The testimony of the people themselves proves the prophet to have walked before them in the fear of God (1 Sam. 12).
3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride:
But the lips of the wise shall preserve them.
Out of his own mouth the fool, by his vain boasting, condemns himself; but the words of the wise declare the state of their hearts. Able to give the soft answer that turneth away wrath; slow to speak and swift to hear—their conversation manifests the wisdom that is in them. See Goliath and David (1 Sam. 17:41-49).
4 Where no oxen are, the crib is clean:
But much increase is by the strength of the ox.
It would be a drastic measure indeed to slay the oxen in order to have a clean stable. The purpose would surely be attained, but at what a cost!
The strength of the ox adds to the wealth of the farm, and makes it well worth the use of a little time spent regularly in cleansing the stall. “Doth God take care for oxen, or saith He it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, doubtless, it is written.” It is cause for lamentation to notice the readiness with which assemblies sometimes resort to getting rid of troublesome saints, thus cutting off much increase and blessing which might have ensued had patience and grace but been exercised. Too often it is taken for granted that the great object of discipline in the house of God is to get rid of the offender; whereas the truth is just the opposite. Earnest endeavor to recover the erring one should be the first thing thought of. Much crying to God, and identifying ourselves with the sin of one who has misbehaved, will accompany this, if we are before Him about it as we should be. Finally, if all is in vain, and the evil-doer persists in his sin, refusing to repent, excision is the last sad acknowledgment that the case must be left in the hands of God.
To bring the matter before the saints, and take summary action, before every available means has been used with a view to his recovery. may indeed cleanse the assembly; but it will be to the loss of all. We need one another. It is when we have the effectual working of every part, by that which every joint supplieth, that there is blessing and increase of the whole. How much better is it to cleanse by leading an erring brother to repentance, thus covering his sin, than by excommunicating him before all possible means have been exhausted in seeking his restoration to God! See Judges 20:35-48; 21:1-3).
5 A faithful witness will not lie:
But a false witness will utter lies.
The faithful testimony-bearer gives forth words of truth and soberness. A false witness cannot be depended on, for he has committed himself to the declaration of what he knows is untrue. The Christian is called to be a follower of Him who is preeminently “the faithful and true witness.” Refusing to handle the word of God deceitfully, he is to speak what he knows on the authority of divine revelation. To give out the vaporings of the human mind, with its idle speculations, will be to utter lies instead of truth. See Paul before Festus and Agrippa (Acts 26:25); and note the sad contrast in the case of Peter in the corridor of the council-room (Luke 22:55-62).
6 A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not:
But knowledge is easy unto the intelligent.
The scorner may inquire, but he sets not his heart upon the answer. Therefore wisdom he fails to find. But to the intelligent who are actuated by a sincere desire to know the truth, even if it mean to be obliged to judge themselves and their ways thereby, knowledge is easy.
It is so, preeminently, with the attainment of the understanding of the Scriptures. The mocker is continually finding cause for objections and foolish quibbles in the word of God. The devout and upright soul sees only light where the other sees darkness. If a man has difficulty in accepting the truth of the Bible, it will almost invariably be found that it is because he is clinging to and persisting in some unholy course that the Word condemns. When sin is judged, and iniquity repented of, all becomes clear. Pilate was one who asked, “What is truth?” but was not concerned enough to tarry for a reply, though Truth Incarnate stood before him. Daniel, long before, had proven that all is plain to the spiritually intelligent.
7 Go from the presence of a foolish man,
When thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
8 The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way:
But the folly of fools is deceit.
9 Fools make a mock at sin [or, at the trespass-offering]:
But among the righteous there is acceptance.
When it becomes evident that a man is bent on folly, with no concern about righteousness, it is best to leave him to himself. To argue or reason with such a one is useless. It is defiling to the wise, and but gratifying to the pride of the fool. “From such turn away.”
The prudent has wisdom given him to guide him aright. For this the fool has no desire. His heart is utterly false, and deceit is on his lips. At sin, and the offering for it, he mocks. He has never realized the heinousness of the one, nor the need of the other. Consequently it is in vain to try to turn him from his lawless course. The righteous find acceptance because they have judged themselves, and bowed to God’s just and holy sentence. Owning their true estate, they find a better one. Walking in obedience to God, they are acceptable to Him.
Let none gather from this that Scripture teaches that acceptance, in the sense of salvation, is on the ground of legal works. Far from it. Not until a man is justified by faith, as Abraham, does he do the works of righteousness. Good deeds are not the procuring cause of justification and new birth, but the result of these great and important blessings.
For an example of the fools who make a mock at sin, and refuse instruction, see Jer. 44:15-19, where the remnant in Egypt defy the word of the Lord spoken through His prophet.
10 The heart knoweth its own bitterness;
And a stranger doth not intermeddle with its joy.
Every heart has its secret of joy or sorrow that no other ever shares. Hidden deep down from the sight of the nearest and the dearest are, often, griefs too deep for utterance, or joys too great for words. Flow truly was this the case with our blessed Lord Himself! Who ever sounded the depths of the anguish of His soul, or who can estimate aright His joys?
To such a High Priest we can go with our own heaviest sorrows, and with Him we can share our inmost thoughts of exultation and delight.
11 The house of the lawless shall be overthrown:
But the tent of the upright shall flourish.
12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man,
But the end thereof are the ways of death.
13 Even in laughter the heart is sorrowful;
And the end of that mirth is heaviness.
If the “young man” who gives his attention to the wisdom of Solomon perish at last, as a result of missing the path of life, it will not be for lack of warning, and a paucity of instruction. Clearly and unmistakably, the two classes are again contrasted.
We read first of the house of the lawless and the tent of the righteous. The house might seem by far the more stable, but it shall be overthrown; for its foundations shall be destroyed because built upon sinking sand. The pilgrim’s tent wherein the upright tabernacles as he journeys through a foreign scene—foreign to the new nature within him—will abide and flourish till tenting days are over.
Man naturally chooses his own way—a way that seemeth right unto himself. But it ends in death, for it is opposed to the truth of God. “The labor of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city” (Ecc. 10:15).
There is a city which the most sinful and vile, if believing in a future state at all, cannot but long to enter—that city discerned afar off by Abraham, and described by John as the New and Holy Jerusalem, of which the Lamb who died is the Center and Lamp from whom shines all the glory of God. He Himself said, while on earth, “I am the Way.” By His name alone is salvation proclaimed to sinners lost and guilty. There is none other name, and no other way, that will lead to the city of light.
A way there is—yes, many such; but none can rightly be designated the way save Jesus only. The end of a way that seemeth right is death—death moral, death spiritual, death eternal, yet death conscious forever Those who refuse the Way, to tread a way of their own choosing, find no true joy or confidence. “They, being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Rom. 10:3). Hence their way is one of doubt and uncertainty. Though they laugh, the heart is not at rest, and their mirth is destined to end in madness. See Micah in Judges 17 and 18:14-26.
Happy those who refuse every way of man’s devising, and turn to Him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life!
14 The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways
And a good man shall be satisfied from himself.
The word “backslider” occurs in this verse only. Elsewhere in the Bible it is never used. “Backsliding” is found a number of times in our English version, fifteen in all (generally as an adjective, though also as a participle, and several times as a noun), but only in the books of Jeremiah and Hosea. It is well to notice that neither form of the word occurs in the New Testament.
A backslider is one who has given up ground once taken for God. Many a soul gives up in heart long before it is manifested in the life. The conscience becomes defiled; and if self-judgment does not follow, the truth begins to lose its power over the heart. The sad result of a broken-down testimony soon follows, till he is filled with his own ways. It is important, however, to carefully distinguish between backsliding and apostasy. The backslider is one who fails in practically carrying out the truth. The apostate, on the other hand, gives up the truth entirely, even denying the Lord that bought him; thus proving his unreality, whatever his previous profession may have been. It is to such that John refers in his first epistle, chapter 2:19, as also Paul in Heb. 6 and 10. Needless to say, no true believer ever becomes an apostate.
The good man—that is, the man who is real for God—shall be filled from what is in himself. The testimony of the Lord controls the reins of his being. His life will be in accord therewith.
Peter was a backslider in heart long before he fell; so, we may rest assured. was David. In the faithful stand of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, we see men whose hearts were under the sway of divine principles when in seclusion, and who therefore overcame in public (Dan. 3).
15 The simple believeth every word
But the prudent man looketh well to his going.
16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil;
But the fool rusheth on, and is confident.
17 He that is soon angry dealeth foolishly
And a man of wicked devices is hated.
18 The simple inherit folly
But the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
19 The evil bow before the good;
And the lawless at the gates of the righteous.
Wise and simple are relative terms, referring not so much to mental condition as to the fear of the Lord on the one hand, and indifferent self-sufficiency on the other.
The simple are ready with amazing incredulity to believe anything given forth by men as foolish as themselves, while stumbling over the clearest truths of revelation. No one has such strong faith in the greatest absurdities as the very man who quibbles over the truth of God. The unbeliever can believe unhesitatingly that he is the descendant of a long line of lower animals ranging all the way from protoplasm to ape, while he sneers at the Christian who receives by faith the divine record that “God hath made man upright, but they have sought out many inventions.” The prudent man mistrusts himself, and trusts the word of the living God. Ordering his steps in that Word, he looks well to his going.
Fearing the Lord, the wise man departs from evil. The fool, heeding no one, led by his lustful desires, rushes on in vainglorious self-confidence to his own destruction. If opposed in his follies, he rages in anger, but finds himself the object of the hatred of his fellows, because of his wicked devices. In searching for lawless pleasures he shall inherit folly, and at the end, when his wild race is run and his years of recklessness are past, in his decrepitude and poverty he shall bow at the gates of the righteous, forced at last to own that they had chosen the better part. Having devoted themselves to the acquisition of wisdom, the good are crowned with knowledge, and honored, when the simple are despised. Contrast Saul and David.
20 The poor is hated even of his own neighbor:
But the rich hath many friends.
21 He that despiseth his neighbor sinneth:
But he that is gracious to the afflicted, happy is he.
22 Do they not err that devise evil?
But loving kindness and truth shall be to them that devise good.
In a world like this, where covetousness rules, the rich will always have many to laud and admire them; while the poor will be despised and oppressed. To so act is to greatly err, for hath not God chosen ofttimes the poor of earth to be rich in faith? The eye of God is beholding all, and He will reward those who are gracious and kindly in their dealings with the lowly. He will see that loving-kindness and truth are meted out to them in return. Contrast the princes of Judah with Ebed-melech (Jer. 38:1-13; 39:15-18).
23 In all labor there is profit:
But the talk of the lips tendeth only to penury,
Labor is profitable, both because of what is produced, and in that it fills the hands and occupies the mind, thus greatly lessening the danger of giving way to a corrupt nature. But mere talk, empty boasting, and foolish vaunting of oneself, results in material and spiritual poverty. How suited the prayer for fallen creatures, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth: keep the door of my lips” (Psa. 141:3)! See the parable of the two sons, one of whom labored to profit; the other said, and went not: it was the talk of the lips alone (Matt. 21:28-31).
24 The crown of the wise is their riches:
But the foolishness of fools is folly.
Whether poor or wealthy in this world’s
goods, the wise are always rich, because possessing treasure that can never fade away. The fool, whatever his possessions, is but filled with folly, and nothing shall profit him eventually. Of Nabal, Abigail had to say, “Nabal (a fool) is his name, and folly is with him.” And the words are true of all his class. Amnon is a fit illustration of this unhappy company (2 Sam. 13:13). For the lasting portion of the wise, see Dan. 12:3.
25 A true witness delivereth souls:
But a deceitful witness speaketh lies.
In verse 5 we had a faithful witness; here, a true witness. Such a one will deliver souls. Our Lord presents Himself in the double character of the “Faithful and True Witness” to Laodicea. He it is, in a day of lukewarmness and laxity, who abides the Faithful Testimony-bearer, maintaining the truth; and the True Witness, delivering all who bow in repentance. A deceitful witness is in every way the contrary of this—playing fast and loose with the teaching of the Scriptures, to the eternal loss of those who credulously accept his unholy speculations. “If the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” Contrast Moses with Jannes and Jambres (2 Tim. 3:8).
26 In the fear of Jehovah is strong confidence:
And His sons have a place of refuge.
27 The fear of Jehovah is a fountain of life,
To depart from the snares of death.
To teach the fear of Jehovah was the object of the Holy Spirit in inspiring Solomon to pen the Proverbs. He who has learned it finds strong confidence and a place of refuge. It is not the slavish fear of an abject bondman, but that filial reverence which all His children love to render Him. Such rejoice to have found a fountain of life, and instruction as to their path on earth, so that they may avoid the snares of death. “Sons,” or “children” (A. V.), is used here in a moral sense. Relationship to God, as we now know it, was not revealed before the coming of the Son of God into the world to make known the Father. But those who truly feared the Lord were manifested as His children though they had not received the Spirit of adoption, enabling them to cry, “Abba, Father.” See Cornelius (Acts 10).
28 In the multitude of people is the king’s honor:
But in the want of people is the destruction of a prince.
Rank and title avail nothing if there be not those who own the authority of a monarch. When the Lord Jesus “in His own times shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, King of kings, and Lord of lords,” all redeemed creation shall own His benign sway. David and Ish-bosheth illustrate the verse (2 Sam. 3 and 4).
29 He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding:
But he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
The man of God will have the ability to rule his spirit. Controlling himself, he manifests great understanding; for he who lacks self-control is little able to profit others. A hasty spirit but exalts folly and hinders the reception of what may be set forth, even though it be right and true. Bad temper is always a sign of weakness. The man who knows he has the mind of God can afford to quietly wait on Him. See Micaiah and Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah (1 Kings 22:24, 25).
30 A sound heart is the life of the flesh:
But envy the rottenness of the bones.
A sound heart is the heart of one who is broken before the Lord, and has learned not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think. Envy manifests at once the lack of self-judgment, and, on the part of a Christian, bespeaks a coming breakdown of his discipleship if he fails to humble himself in secret. This was the hidden cause of Asaph’s unhappiness, “until he went into the sanctuary of the Lord” (Psa. 73).
31 He that oppresseth the poor, reproacheth his Maker:
But he that honoreth Him, is gracious to the needy.
To deal hardly with those in poverty is to reproach God who made both rich and poor. and whose inscrutable wisdom permits some to be in affliction, while others have more than heart can wish. He who honors God will view the needy as left to test the hearts of those in more comfortable circumstances, and will value the privilege of ministering to them as far as able, thus showing them the kindness of God. See the case of Mephibosheth (2 Sam. 9).
32 The lawless is driven away by his evil-doing:
But the righteous is confident, even in his death.
The deaths of lawless and righteous stand out, like their lives, in vivid contrast. The wicked is taken away in and by his iniquities, and goes out into a hopeless eternity to face his guilty record at the bar of Omnipotent Justice. The upright in heart, who in life has faced his sins in the presence of the Holy One, dreads no judgment after death, so falls on sleep with trustful hope of coming joy and bliss. Balaam wished for such a death, but found the opposite (Num. 23:10; 31:8). Stephen knew the confidence referred to, and could kneel down and die with a prayer for the forgiveness of his murderers on his lips (Acts 7:59, 60).
33 Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding:
But that which is in the foolish is made known.
The intelligence and sagacity of the man of understanding make known the wisdom that is in his heart; while the senseless behavior of fools tells all too plainly what is within. See note on verse 24.
34 Righteousness exalteth a nation:
But sin is a reproach to any people.
History is but the perpetual illustration of what is here declared. Nations, like individuals, are judged according to their ways. No country has prospered long that forsook the path of national righteousness. When pride and vanity, coupled with greed and cruelty, have been in the ascendant, the hour of bumbling was not far away. Israel will ever be the great object-lesson for all people. When the word of God was esteemed, and His will honored, they prospered. When sin and neglect of God triumphed, they became a reproach. He was right who said, “Israel is the pillar of salt to the nations, crying to all people, ‘Remember!’”
35 The king’s favor is toward a wise servant:
But his wrath is against him that causeth shame.
Nothing causes one in authority to set value upon the services of a minister of state so much as the display of wisdom and discretion; but let his counsel prove disastrous, and evil result from accepting his advice, the king’s indignation will know no bounds. May those who seek to serve a greater King be characterized by that wisdom which shall make them of real value in the work He has committed to them. See Darius and Daniel, in contrast with Ahasuerus and Haman (Dan. 6:3; Esth. 7:7-9).