Original Meaning
THE FAMILIAR METAPHOR of wisdom’s way opens and closes the chapter; the way of discipline and correction is for those who love knowledge (12:1), the way of righteousness for those who desire life (12:28). That willingness to listen and learn leads to wise speaking and teaching so others may learn and live as well. One listens to learn to speak, one learns in order to teach. The following outline groups together proverbs according to recurring vocabulary and theme. Although all proverbs in a group do not speak to the theme, the contrast between righteousness and wickedness runs throughout.1
Learn and stand (12:1–7)
Praise and blame (12:8–12)
Speech and silence (12:13–23)
Diligence and laziness2 (12:24–28)
The first and third groups stress the importance of good speech and listening to correction; they point to the activities of teaching and learning. The second and fourth groups talk about labor and fruits; the fourth incorporates sayings about counsel and encouraging words as a fruit of one’s labor. The purpose in looking for such groupings is to recognize recurring elements. Like themes in a symphony or colored spotlights on a stage, the themes of proverbs appear and reappear, sometimes on their own, sometimes in combination with others.
All the proverbs of this chapter (except v. 14 and perhaps v. 28) make some sort of contrast. Yahweh is named only in 12:2, 22, both verses using the same Hebrew word for “favor” and “delight” (raṣon) in those who do good and deal truthfully. The key words “discipline,” “prudent,” and “snare” are applied to wise and foolish speaking, reminding readers of the invitations to wisdom and folly in chapter 1. Description of the “diligent” and “slack” recalls the lazy in chapter 6. Other proverbs link up with those that come before and after. Sayings about outcomes and women are clustered in 11:16–23 and 12:2–7. The word musar appears in 12:1 as “discipline” and in 13:1 as “instruction.”
Learn and Stand (12:1–7)
THE PROVERBS OF this section link character and outcomes as summed up in verse 7; the righteous will stand while the wicked will vanish.
12:1. This proverb, like most, incorporates both similarity and difference. The obvious dissimilarity contrasts love of discipline, a sign that one loves knowledge, with hating correction, a sign that one is “stupid” (baʿar, “brutish” or “like a beast”; cf. 30:2; Ps. 73:22; 92:6). Thus, the opposite of knowledge is more than ignorance; it is allowing that lack of understanding to motivate and drive one’s actions.
There is a difference between loving discipline—teaching and correction that warn of possible errors—and correction, which speaks to errors already committed. “Discipline” (musar) has appeared in every previous chapter except chapters 2 and 11 and it will appear again in 13:1. The first line of 12:1 repeats “love” for emphasis, for readers know how rare that love is. Those who pride themselves on knowledge often avoid correction, yet those who love the truth want to learn when they are in the wrong.
12:2. The “crafty man” is (lit.) “one who schemes,” using a word from the prologue (mezimmah, 1:4, where it is translated “discretion”). There, this skill of discernment means one can determine what is right; here the skill is used to devise wrong. Skills can be put to bad use if not tempered with correction and instruction. Perhaps the difference is that the one who is good shapes life according to values outside of the self while the one who schemes only looks within to one’s own intentions; the proverb makes clear that such intentions can be other than good. Note the similarities with 11:27: “He who seeks good finds goodwill, but evil comes to him who searches for it.” In 12:2, “the LORD” (yhwh) is named in both lines as the source of both outcomes. His “favor” (raṣon) links this proverb with “delight” (raṣon) in 11:1, 20.
12:3. The Hebrew phrase “root of the righteous” repeats in 12:12, where that root flourishes, another symbol of endurance. Here that root is (lit.) “never moved.” Yahweh told the prophet Jeremiah that he would pull up the roots of those who wanted to establish themselves through wickedness (Jer. 1:9–10); those who would make themselves as strong as trees turn out to be nothing more than weeds. The presence of Yahweh named in Proverbs 12:2 lingers in this saying. It reminds the reader that no one lives independently, especially the wicked. In fact, the wicked can be sure they will perish, as has already been stated in 10:30.
12:4. The image of the worthy woman (ʾešet ḥayil) occurs at the end of Proverbs (31:10) and plays a significant role in the story of Ruth (3:11), which follows Proverbs in the Hebrew Bible. The image also takes the reader back to the sayings on women in Proverbs 11:16, 22. Those two sayings contrast a woman of grace (ḥen) with one who lacks sense. Here the connection with a husband’s reputation and well-being is made explicit. As in previous proverbs about sluggards and pigs’ noses (10:26; 11:22), this one stands out from its context, a series of four righteous/wicked contrasts (12:3, 5–7). The contrast with its background causes its readers and hearers to stop and reflect on such potent images as crowns (cf. 4:9) and rotten bones (cf. 10:7).
Once again, the focus is on the man’s decisions about character. While we may rightly reject the thought that a woman only exists to do a man good, we do not have to reject the principle of choosing one’s life partner wisely, true for both men and women. Directed toward men, this proverb urges its young readers to value character above beauty (cf. 31:29–30), but all readers are instructed to hold character as the most important quality to seek in a mate.
12:5. The contrast between “plans” and “advice” focuses attention on the intentions of persons, their deliberations on what they will and will not do. “Righteousness” makes the difference between intentions that deceive and those that are “just” (mišpaṭ; cf. 8:20; 13:23). While “advice” is typically good and beneficial in Proverbs (taḥbulot; cf. 1:5; 11:14; 12:5; 20:18; 24:6), this wicked counsel will certainly do harm. The Hebrew word for “deceitful” (mirmah) appears in 12:17 and 20 (i.e., three times in this chapter).
12:6. The first of a number of sayings on speech, the personification of words that “lie in wait” recalls the invitation of the violent men at the beginning of the book (1:11). Their downfall was clearly stated; here it is implied by contrasting their words with the “speech” (lit., “mouth”) that delivers. The wit of the proverb has the upright delivered by the very means the wicked meant to do harm.
12:7. The theme of permanence first stated in 12:3 is echoed here. The first line can be read as an imperative: “Overthrow the wicked and they are gone.” The image of a “house . . . [that] stands” may refer to a family that endures, or it may serve as an independent metaphor for one’s property. Either way, the principle that outcomes follow choices “stands firm” also.
Praise and Blame (12:8–12)
THE PROVERBS OF this section not only comment on character, they observe how human communities do the same when they assign praise and blame. Yet these concerns of shame and honor are blended with the basic needs of sustenance in the juxtaposition of 12:8–9. The person of intelligence earns honor, the one of perverse heart, shame. Yet it is better to be of small reputation if you have means (a servant) than to give yourself honors and lack bread.
Verses 9–11 work together also. The Hebrew words “lack” and “bread” from verse 9 appear in verse 11, but separately and with a twist. In verse 11, those who work the soil will have bread (leḥem), but those who go after empty fantasies lack sense (and by implication, bread).3 In between, a saying that compares the compassion of the righteous and the wicked (12:10) hints at the inseparable qualities of wisdom, humility, and kindness. These qualities lead to the satisfaction of basic human needs.
12:8. Literally, the first line reads, “according to the mouth of his intelligence a man is praised,” repeating the word “mouth” (peh) from 12:6, where it is used for speech. The perverse heart is not praised but despised and dishonored. The proverb reminds us of the importance of shame and honor as motivators for many cultures.
12:9. The “better . . . than” saying is a typical form of proverb (ṭob . . . min; see also 15:16–17; 16:8, 19, 32; 17:1; 19:1; 21:9, 19; 25:24; 27:5, 10; 28:6; see also 16:16; 22:1; 25:7). The strategy of comparison, however, has already been used; for example, wisdom is worth more than gold or jewels (3:13–15; 8:19). Although one would not wish to be despised for having a warped mind (12:8), a humble or small reputation in the eyes of others is not so bad. In fact, it is better than empty pretense. The comparison is heightened by juxtaposing the humble person who has a servant with the braggart who does not even have his daily bread.
12:10. Humility is also the theme of this proverb, setting the righteous person whose care extends outside the self with the wicked person whose attempts to show compassion are cruel. One cares for the lowest creatures, while the best the other has to offer is still hurtful. Better to be the righteous person’s horse than the wicked person’s neighbor!
12:11. A proverb about the rewards of labor moves the imagery from the stable to the field. “Works” uses the same Hebrew root as “servant” in verse 9 (ʿbd), both in positive senses, and “lacks judgment” echoes the phrase “lacks food.” This verse is nearly identical with 28:19.
12:12. This verse restates and summarizes the theme of the section, this time comparing the life and work of the righteous to a root, that part of the plant that goes deep into the earth to find water and nourish the plant and its good fruit. Righteousness bears fruit, but wickedness only desires what others have caught in their snare. In other words, the righteous work for what they own, but the wicked want what belongs to others, a theme that first appeared in chapter 1. “Root” echoes the “root of the righteous” in 12:3.
Speech and Silence (12:13–23)
VERSES 13–23 GATHER around the topics of speech and silence, but there are other relationships among the sayings. Just as there may be a chiastic structure for 12:1–15 as proposed earlier (see footnote 1), 12:16–23 may also be arranged in a modified chiasm.4
The vocabulary in 12:16–17 is repeated in 12:22–23. The prudent overlooks and keeps knowledge in 12:16, 23 (lit., “conceals,” ʿarum koseh), truthful witness and lips (ʾ emunah), and false witness (šaqer) appears in 12:17, 22. In addition, the vocabulary in 12:20–21 appears in 12:25–26 (heart/joy and cheer; righteous/wicked). In between the two sets of linking pairs, 12:18–19 form a pair on the theme of speaking.5 Likewise, catchwords link 12:24 and 27 by the repetition of “laziness” and “diligence” and 12:26 and 28 with a repetition of “way.”6
Verses 18–21 are loosely linked by the themes of speech and šalom. One kind of speech brings healing, the other deep wounds (12:18). One lasts forever, one is gone in an instant (12:19). One is fueled by evil and deceit, the other a desire for peace and its accompanying joy (12:20); each is repaid in kind (12:21). The association of truthful speech and silent knowledge as seen in 12:16–17 appears in 12:22–23. Verse 22 reminds readers that Yahweh finds false lips detestable, a thought similar to the condemnation of 12:2.
We must remind ourselves that our desire to find an outline or rhetorical structure may not catch the spirit of discovery and gamesmanship that the sages required of their readers. We suggest outlines and arrangements to appreciate the recurrence of catchwords and themes, but many of the associations do not fit as easily within our orderly arrangements. Proverbs are often linked together by catchwords, so 12:12a and 13a may be linked by the imagery of the trap or snare as well as the righteous/wicked contrast. Verse 14 is connected to 12:11 by the theme of labor and may comment on 12:12, the flourishing root of the righteous producing good fruit.7
However, it is the emphasis on the use of lips and mouth that becomes the major linking device. In Hebrew, the “sinful talk” (lit., “trespass of lips”) that ensnares in 12:13 contrasts with the “fruit” that fills the mouth in 12:14. In sum, my purpose in proposing groups and clusters is to point out connections; while the structures are speculative, they are intended to point out links between similar or contrasting proverbs.
12:13. Here is an ancient version of “what a wicked web we weave, when first we speak to deceive.” Continuing the imagery of trapping from 12:12, this proverb contrasts the snare of the evil person’s words with the escape of the righteous, echoing the theme of 12:6. This proverb explicitly shows the trap of evil words. The righteous, who do not lay such traps, never get caught in them, and the proverb suggests that they also escape the traps set by others. But those who use their words to “lie in wait” (12:6) end up being ensnared by them.
12:14. This verse does not present a contrast but compares the “fruit of the lips” with the “work of the hands” (cf. 13:2; 18:20). The metaphor likens the rewards of hard work (cf. 12:11) with the fruit of good speaking, linking hands and mouth (peh). Just as speaking is a form of doing, so both hands and mouth can be put to purposes good or evil.
12:15. The first of two proverbs about fools contrasts two counselors. The fool listens only to himself while the wise one “hears” (šmʿ ) advice or counsel (cf. Wisdom’s counsel in 8:14). Proverbs 12:14 and 15 are a wonderful pair. The first stresses good speaking, the second careful listening. Along with use of ears, one can also find the images of mouth, hands, and eyes (Heb. “right in his own eyes”) in 12:13–15 (cf. 4:20–27; 6:12–19).
12:16. Verses 15 and 16 are linked by the catchword “fool.” The contrast in both verses is between the loud fool, blindly self-directed and easily provoked, and the silent sage, who listens to counsel and conceals an insult. The prudent person appears again in 12:23, where again silence demonstrates understanding and builds up relationships instead of breaking them down.
12:17. Silence is not required in every situation, however, for there are times in which an honest witness must make a report to counteract the lies of the false witness. The honest testimony is “righteous” (ṣedeq), while the false witness spreads “deceit” (mirmah; cf. 12:5, 20). Most likely the situation depicted is the settlement of a business dispute, though other settings are possible (cf. Deut. 19:15–18).
12:18. The first line can be read, “There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword.” The contrast with the healing tongue of the wise reminds the reader that words are rarely neutral, and they usually leave their mark for good or bad. It is not stated how the wise might come along to undo the damage of the reckless; perhaps it comes through countertestimony (12:17), or perhaps it is simply through compassionate care that brings healing. Similarly, a trustworthy messenger brings healing instead of trouble (13:17).
12:19. “Truthful lips” remind the reader of 12:17 and look ahead to 12:22. “Endure” translates the same word used in 12:3 for “established” (yikkon). The contrast is again between the brief and fleeting existence of the wicked and the staying power of the righteous. Lies may look as though they can feather one’s nest and bring security, but in fact, they build the nest on a precarious branch. It sometimes takes time for truth to show itself strong, but as Van Leeuwen observes, “What goes counter to reality is shattered by it in a moment, like a ship on the rocks.”8
12:20. “Deceit” (12:5, 17) lives in the heart of those who devise evil, always looking for its chance to do harm. By contrast “joy” dwells in the heart of one who (lit.) “counsels peace” (yoʿ aṣe šalom). The word for “promote” is related to the “advice” (ʿeṣab) of 12:15, suggesting that the wise one absorbs what is heard so it can be offered to others and the joy shared.
12:21. The joy of šalom described in 12:20 also brings with it freedom from fear. “No harm befalls the righteous,” but the wicked get their fill. This proverb seems straightforward, and it may be that the interaction with 12:22 is intended. In the sayings, contrasts in rewards and outcomes are often juxtaposed with simple statements of Yahweh’s reactions to evil and good. Yahweh is almost never depicted as active judge but as the one who watches his intentions and desires work themselves out on the stage of human action.
12:22. As in the previous three proverbs that name “the LORD,” the focus is on that which brings him delight (raṣon, 11:1, 20; 12:2). That delight is in (lit.) “those who act in faithfulness” (ʾ emunah), repeating the root used for “truthful” in 12:17 and 19. That which Yahweh “detests” is an abomination, an action that provokes God’s loathing and disgust (cf. 11:1, 20).
12:23. Just as the “prudent” person covers over an insult (12:16), so that person also keeps knowledge covered as well (koseh in both verses). The link with the earlier verse not only marks a frame or inclusio, it points up a particular virtue of prudence, the wisdom of knowing when to be silent and when to speak. As in 12:16, the fool simply blurts out what is inside without any consideration of its effects on others. The mention of “heart” points to the connection the ancients made between the contents of the heart and its gateway through the mouth and lips. This proverb provides a humorous explanation for why knowledge so often seems in short supply! It may also warn against talking too much.
Diligence and Laziness (12:24–28)
THESE LAST FIVE VERSES contrast diligence and laziness (12:24, 27) as well as the distinct ways of righteousness and wickedness (12:26, 28). This parallel structure is interrupted by an unusual proverb about fear and worry (12:25) that commands our attention.
12:24. The theme of work and its fruits from 12:9–14 reappears in 12:24 and 27, both using the same Hebrew word for “lazy” (remiyyah; cf. 10:4; 19:15). Together, these verses say that slackers are too lazy to even take care for their own food, so they will certainly not have wealth. Ironically, if the lazy will not work for themselves, they will eventually be forced to work for another. The contrast between hands that work like a servant yet rule like a king shows the same kind of reversal of expectations as the hands that seek rest but wind up working in forced or conscripted labor (cf. Judg. 1:28; 1 Kings 5:13–14). There may be a wordplay in using remiyyah, for it comes from the same root as “deceit” (cf. Prov. 12:20). Thus, a slack or loose bow that fails is called “treacherous” (Ps. 78:57; Hos. 7:16), a metaphor for faithless Israel who promised to obey but did not, slacking in doing Yahweh’s work (Jer. 48:10).
12:25. A proverb about worries and encouraging words seems out of place in the sequence, but the saying does relate to the larger context. The double use of “heart” and “joy” in 12:25 and 20 suggest they must be read together as a statement and development of a theme. The thread common to both is the positive result of good speaking; it brings “joy” to the speaker in 12:20 and “joy” to the listener in 12:25. Anxiety, by contrast, causes the heart (lit.) “to bow down” like prisoners before their captors (cf. Isa. 51:23).9 Speech to oneself from within, from the anxious heart, is contrasted with the external word that brings joy (Prov. 14:13; 15:23). Again, as in 12:20, the work of a good person bears good fruit. The translation preserves some of the wordplay in the contrast between “weighs down” (yašḥennah) and “cheers up” (yeśammeḥennah).
12:26. This proverb is not easily translated, so the NIV footnote shows the alternate reading for the first line, “is a guide to his neighbor.” The second line is clear that “the way of the wicked leads them astray,” a contrast to the way of righteousness and life in 12:28. Whereas no persuasive solution for the first line has been proposed,10 I think it best to choose the alternate for its focus on travel and guidance. For example, if we translate “the righteous point the way to a neighbor,” a contrast is drawn between a righteous one who is able to help others and a wicked one who cannot even take care of self (cf. 10:17; 11:24–27). The way of the wicked is no way at all, for it leads nowhere, and those who take it become lost.
12:27. The way to translate the first line of this proverb is somewhat unclear as well. Does the lazy person refuse to “roast” game, or does that person simply fail to “go after” it? Whatever the signs of laziness here, that slacking is contrasted with diligence (as in 12:24). If the hand of the diligent rules in 12:24, here it holds its earnings as precious. Humorous proverbs about the sluggard typically make a serious point; like the wicked, lazy people have nothing to give others, for they cannot even take care of themselves!
12:28. The image of “the way,” seen previously in the negative portrait of the fool and wicked person (12:15, 26), reappears here. “Way” and “path” are clear parallels, as are “life” and “death” (note that “immortality” is lit., “not death”), suggesting that the two lines contrast the way of life with the path of evil. In Proverbs, life is “not death”—that is, many years lived in health and security—rather than life eternal. Note that the life and death contrast is only used here in the last verse in this chapter. While the themes of life and death run throughout, this statement of the obvious stands alone and sums up all that has gone before, highlighting the image of the way. This last saying, more than any other, connects the themes of this chapter with the instructions of chapters 1–9 and the recurring motif of the two ways, life and death.
Bridging Contexts
IN CHAPTER 12, the contrast between the way of the righteous and the way of the wicked that dominates chapters 10–15 extends and develops the theme of outcomes and rewards. The righteous are rooted (12:3, 12) and will therefore live (12:28), while the wicked will not be established but overthrown (12:3, 7). This chapter also continues to probe the choices that bring about the two outcomes, examining intentions of the heart that direct the hands and lips.
This mosaic of individual sayings creates a series of pictures on the self-disciplines of speaking, the nature of public honor and shame, and Yahweh’s reaction to these character choices. In all, the basic choice between listening only to one’s own thoughts and desires or listening to the teaching of others is set out in stark contrast. As we draw together these proverbs we are reminded again and again that we need the teaching, correction, and counsel of others (12:1, 15), but we also need their encouragement (12:25) and approval (12:8). Most of all, we need to live in communities where truthfulness is prized (12:19, 22).
Listening. New to this chapter is the emphasis on reasons to refrain from speaking. The proverbs collected here make a connection between listening to correction (12:1, 15) and concealing both insults and knowledge by declining to speak of them (12:16, 23). One never learns wisdom if one never stops talking. The chapter includes a number of negative illustrations to suggest when one should be silent, avoiding such speech sins as bragging (12:9), rash words of anger (12:16), and reckless attack (12:18). Taking these proverbs to heart, we will learn to be “quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because our anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires” (James 1:19–20, TNIV).
But more is at stake here, as valuable and necessary as this counsel is. The prudence that conceals insult and knowledge in Proverbs 12:16, 23 exercises discernment; it weighs the potential effects of words before releasing them, because like birds set free, they cannot be taken back. The heart that lacks such discernment lets folly fly (12:23). Therefore, the quality of the words we speak and the silences we keep reveal how well we have learned to consider the outcomes of our choices and actions. Heart and lips are every bit the actors that our hands and feet are.
Thus, the silence and reserve that listens to instruction and withholds insult is quite different from the emphasis on listening skills we find in contemporary marriage counseling and success literature, as valuable as these insights are.11 The ancient sages did not speak about the value of feeling understood as we do, but they did understand that respect for others requires that we be quiet at times.
Such silence itself is a form of eloquence, for listening silence speaks a message of respect to those who would teach us, and knowledge kept hidden is the opposite of knowledge that puffs up (12:23; cf. 1 Cor. 8:1). Just as refusing to display knowledge is a sign of humility, so is refusing to respond to the insult. Thus, Moses refused to defend himself against the insults of his brother and sister (Prov. 12:16; cf. Num. 12:1–6). However, this humility does not mean that we never speak, only that we speak to build up and defend others, not ourselves. The one who listens to correction earns the right to teach and give correction, but the fool loses that right both by refusing to listen and by speaking words that harm.
Truth telling and šalom. A second emphasis of the chapter contrasts the deceit that hides in the heart (12:20) with the truthful lips that promote peace and endure (12:19; cf. 12:5, 17, 19, 22). Truth never requires silence or modesty, not in legal disputes or in personal relationships, for truth’s desire is for good. Lies are conceived in the desire to gain something unjustly, whether that gain be material possession or social standing (12:8–9).
As we have seen in earlier chapters, the history of Israel is replete with examples of lying and false witness for gain, including Ahab and Jezebel’s theft of Naboth’s reputation and vineyard, but other forms of deceit may be in mind here as well. Wisdom’s counter to such damaging lies is a truthful witness, and its fruit benefits not only the witness (12:14, 19) but the entire community that enjoys its šalom (12:20). “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:17–18). Truth builds trusting relationships and brings healing; therefore, we can say that truth brings life. Here is a specific example of righteousness in which Yahweh delights (Prov. 12:22).
The fruits of šalom are noticed by Yahweh but also by the community that benefits (12:20 and 22). Our behavior is being watched more often than we like to think, for the observers are either interacting with us or watching from a distance. Because our choices are under public scrutiny, wisdom is praised and perverse hearts are despised (12:8). But readers may still wonder why we so often see reputations made by wealth, power, and especially these days, by fame itself. Perhaps celebrity as fostered by mass media creates a different set of standards that would never be allowed in smaller communities.
In face-to-face relationships, it is intention for good that brings about praise. A wife that has a noble character of her own is no mere ornament for her husband but a partner in a loving community, a model for the community at large. So also the man who knows the needs of his animals and friends, providing food and a good word (12:10, 25), models the character of love that receives its reward of praise.12 Maslow was right: In addition to air, water, food, and safety, we need to belong and we need the positive opinion of others. We can seek to gain it through false and hollow means of pretense or through sincere care. Righteousness is social in every respect, for it means we care how we are perceived by others. We need the positive regard of our communities, and the qualities listed here are the means to obtain them.
However, a look around at contemporary society might conclude that many people feel oppressed by their communities (or at least in competition with them), for they see that virtues often go unrecognized and that we often are held in judgment for deficiencies in lesser things. Doing the right thing is not always repaid with honor, and we all know the stories of rewards in life going to the beautiful and talented, sometimes because they flaunt being “bad.” Self-assertive and self-congratulating words and actions have won the good life for many.
Looking a little more closely, we can see that some of this reversal stems from our culture’s tendency to misname the virtues that are acceptable. For example, one study of common conceptions of masculinity lists the following traits: (1) Be unlike females; (2) be successful; (3) be aggressive; (4) be sexual; and (5) be self-reliant.13 Turning to the proverbs, one searches in vain for ostentatious display of wealth, machismo celebration of sexuality, or any value that, at root, is competitive. The sage’s awareness of our interconnectedness goes against the grain of such competition, for in their view, we were created to build others up and be built up in turn (cf. Eph. 4:25–32). Here is another dimension of righteousness that brings Yahweh delight.
Yahweh’s delight. In addition to the human virtues of listening and truth telling, we should also attend to the two sayings that speak of Yahweh’s delight in them. When we reflect on what a chapter of Proverbs says about God, we should first observe what is said directly and then what is implied or can be inferred from those proverbs and their literary context. The first is primary and guides the latter. In chapter 12, the two verses that name “the LORD” (yhwh; 12:2, 22) identify what pleases him: a good person who deals and speaks truthfully. He condemns one who schemes and abhors one who speaks falsely. The first verse speaks of intention, the second of action; Yahweh observes and judges both.
Careful readers can draw implications from the interaction between these two sayings and the rest of the chapter. Therefore, as readers find themselves in agreement with the values of truth and straight dealing held up throughout the series of proverbs, they may also be pleased to read that Yahweh shares their reactions to these behaviors. But this chapter has also emphasized the social outcomes of praise and contempt based on one’s reputation for speaking and acting. The community discerns what it finds favorable and unacceptable (cf. raṣon, favor or delight in 10:32; 11:27)—perhaps, we may say, after the example of “the LORD,” who “delights” (raṣon, “favor” in 8:35) in those who find wisdom.
These proverbs describe Yahweh’s purposes for the creation. In other words, while the outcomes of the contrasting proverbs do not speak of Yahweh’s direct intervention in human affairs, they do correspond with what pleases him and what he detests. But it may also be that the strategy behind this collection of proverbs uses the reader’s reaction to good and evil to show that Yahweh also loves what builds up and hates what tears down. In other words, the reader’s reaction to the proverbs becomes a strong argument that Yahweh’s way is the good way.
Implied in these proverbs may also be one answer to the question: “If God is so good, why is there evil in our world?” While we know there is no final answer to this question, we do learn from these sayings that God’s displeasure at evil often takes the form of allowing events to run their course. So the prophet Habakkuk learned that God would deal with Israel’s sin by raising up proud and ruthless Babylon against them (Hab. 1:1–11). Even as the wicked brought violence and injustice against the righteous, so the Babylonians would bring their evil on them.
While this is no final answer to the atrocities of violence that we and our parents have seen in our own days, we do learn a working principle that God’s hatred of evil does not always intervene but often allows evil to boomerang back on itself. This principle probably makes more sense in a small community of face-to-face relationships than it does in larger matters of warfare and social domination. Learning to appreciate where in life a principle applies is one of the skills of discernment.
Those who teach and preach from this chapter may wish to use the two Yahweh proverbs to shape a message about intent and actions, pointing out the contrasts between deceit in the heart and truthful lips. Another strategy may choose a cluster, such as the trio on status (12:8–10) or the larger section on speech (12:13–23), and use one or two proverbs as examples of the theme.
Contemporary Significance
THE WAY WE SPEAK determines how others speak of us. There is good news in this chapter, for even though words can lie in wait for blood and pierce like a sword (12:6, 18), there is life in the way of righteousness (12:28), life not only for the wise but also for those who benefit from the fruit of their lips (12:14, 17). The wicked are trapped in their own words, and fools are exposed. The order and boundaries set out by God at creation hold strong, even though they are often assailed, and so the wisdom of these proverbs advises joining the side of the winner. To do so is to invite instruction; ironically, the one who loves knowledge also loves correction, for only the fool has nothing to learn (12:1, 15). The proverbs of this chapter continue to encourage such openness to instruction by reminding its readers that wisdom and folly will make themselves known. Neither remains hidden for long.
The choice of wisdom over folly shows itself in choices that begin in the heart and manifest themselves in actions of hands and tongue. These choices accumulate into a portrait of character, for as Aristotle reminded us, virtue is a series of habitual choices. Stephen Fowl believes that construing a person’s character is a “narrative achievement. That is, to render a character, one must fit that character into a narrative sequence of actions.”14 Each person, as it were, is in the process of writing a life story that demonstrates how well one has lived. That rendering of character is not done by the individual alone, however, but also by the church.15
If this is the case, then one renders self or renders the character of others based on the account of actions, a reflection on intentions, and an assessment of the outcomes or results. Proverbs asserts that we can determine how others will assess our characters. We are told that the community does and will make its judgments, even as stories about a person’s actions are told in families and towns. Gossip tends to evaluate, sometimes fairly, sometimes not, but the stories are always framed in negative and positive judgments of character.
Jesus “welcomed Zacchaeus gladly,” and this provoked a response from the people present who had made their evaluation: “He has gone to be the guest of a ‘sinner.’ ” But Zacchaeus decided to change that assessment and start a new story of his life, giving half of his ill-gotten gain to the poor and returning what he had obtained by cheating four times over (Luke 19:1–10). The change was motivated by Jesus’ radical acceptance of a sinner, but it could also be said that Zacchaeus began to rewrite his story when he took extraordinary steps to see Jesus, climbing the tree and risking ridicule. Jesus announced to the whole crowd that salvation had come to his house, and so “a good man obtains favor from the LORD, but the LORD condemns a crafty man” (Prov. 12:2). Intentions that begin in the heart show themselves in deeds and words, and the Lord who watches both sometimes overturns the judgment of the community.
The majority of sayings in Proverbs 12 center on how one uses the human capacity to influence others through speech. Verses 17–19 in particular note the possibilities of damage and blessing: “Words [that] pierce like a sword” can be reckless (12:18), but the tongue can cut in other ways that are more intentional. In the fifth century Romanos the Melodist preached a sermon in poetry, chanting that Judas “sharpened his tongue” to betray “Jesus, kissed in treachery—Christ, sold through jealousy—God, voluntarily seized.”16 The sermon warned against words used for evil, while other sermons sought to move others toward virtue.
In 1630, John Winthrop preached about the “city set on a hill,” an image that inspired the rhetorical visions of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, and Ronald Reagan. Winthrop’s hope for this new model society lay with showing “more enlargement towards others and less respect for ourselves. . . . There are two rules whereby we are to walk one towards another: justice and mercy.”17 Both these preachers modeled in their speaking a view of a personal and social life guided by biblical virtues of these proverbs.
We take their message to heart, reminding ourselves that words can hurt or heal and asking ourselves how it might apply to leaders in the church: pastors, church leaders, and teachers in seminaries and Sunday schools. We know from experience that people can be vain and petty, but those same persons can also be just and compassionate. No one we know is, as we sometimes joke, “pure evil.” We may find ourselves asking, How do these sayings portray human nature when they set one boldly against the other, and how do we read them, knowing that we have potential for both? My answer is to view the two characters of righteousness and wickedness and their two ways as symbols of the many daily choices we make.
Those daily choices assemble themselves into a character that then weighs in on one side of the scales or the other. We may be called upon to make momentous choices that influence many or we may not, but all of us face daily opportunities to speak truth, deal fairly, and receive correction when necessary. Fred Craddock, hearing many sermons in his childhood about heroic Christians, grew up believing that to give one’s life meant making one great sacrifice to save someone else.
I was sincere then, as I have been these forty-five years. I give my life, but nobody warned me that I could not write one big check. I’ve had to write forty-five years of little checks—eighty-seven cents, twenty-one cents, nibbled away this giving of life. Are you able to drink the cup? I can drink the cup in one giant quaff and let my life be given. No, no, no. My life is one of drinking a sip here, a sip there, and soon you reach retirement and did anybody notice that you gave your life and drank the cup?18
A character is not narrated by one story but many. The binary opposition of the Proverbs asks us to decide which summary of our stories we would like to have characterize our lives. If popular opinion decides we are wise, our follies are not held against us the way they are if we choose the opposite. Then, even our wise acts and words go unnoticed. Just or unjust, I believe this kind of categorizing goes on, and the sayings may be telling us to get used to it and choose accordingly.
Choices made in favor of speaking the uplifting word (12:25) or the truthful word (12:17) can be the “way” of our lives. We may think without speaking, and we often speak without thinking. Proverbs would have us become persons who know when to speak and when to keep silent. Good speech results in the combination of both thinking and speaking. To speak is to act, so we are called to consider the effects of our words.
Truth is best spoken when the good of another person is at stake, and while this does not rule out times when we must speak the truth for ourselves, we always ought to ask who we are more anxious to defend. I know that my most frequent tendency is to speak in defense of myself and less often in defense of others. Certainly this means that bad reports about another’s behavior in the church should not be swept under the rug, but neither should they be broadcast in gossip. Rather, testimony is heard, remembering that conflicting accounts may be inevitable (12:17).
Even though unfair gossip can circulate, these proverbs encourage us to trust that wisdom and folly will eventually be revealed and that we can even join in the process by choosing to speak words that are truthful and fair. In our business lives and social lives and in those times when the two intersect, we can refuse to speak in ways that bring us honor or profit when we don’t deserve it, and we can speak up when the rights and reputations of others are on the line. Such truth telling is recognized by the community, because folly fools no one for long, and more important, it is always noticed by the Lord of truth.