Original Meaning
THIS CHAPTER BEGINS and ends with sayings about Yahweh’s purposes and victory. In between are proverbs gathered into clusters about final outcomes and rewards. Some, like the proverbs on laziness (21:5, 25), love of pleasure (21:17), and a quarrelsome wife (21:9, 19), do not fit into this general framework.1 A single observation on the power of gifts and bribes stands out from its context (21:14).
Yahweh looks at the heart (21:1–3)
Sins of a proud heart, lies, and violence (21:4–8)
Final outcomes and judgments (21:9–19)
Examples of wise moderation and strength (21:20–23)
Sins of pride and power (21:24–29)
Yahweh’s victory (21:30–31)2
Yahweh Looks At the Heart (21:1–3)
THREE PROVERBS TIE together Yahweh’s relationship to the king with Yahweh’s desire for integrity.
21:1. The royal sayings in chapter 20 spoke of the king’s powers of discernment and judgment; here the emphasis is on the greater purposes of God. Even the king is a subject of Yahweh, for the seat of human intentions, the heart, is in Yahweh’s hand. Just as water is directed to a good purpose by digging irrigation ditches and building dams, so the king’s heart will follow the directives of Yahweh to establish his purpose of justice.3 The history of Israel and its erring rulers shows that the king was never a puppet. Thus, this proverb describes the ideal situation of the good king who wisely responds to guidance. Theme and vocabulary remind the reader of 16:1. The threefold rhythm of the Hebrew, “channels of water, heart of the king, in hand of the LORD,” echoes the grouping of three Yahweh proverbs in the previous chapter (cf. 20:22–24).
21:2. Like the similar proverb of 16:2, this saying, like 21:1, links a person’s ways to the heart that directs them. As skilled as we humans are in justifying our own ways, believing we are right (“straight,” yašar), it is Yahweh who weighs the heart to get an accurate measure of its intentions. Intentions of the heart are also deep waters (20:5), and although the wise can draw them out, there are limits. Yahweh alone can determine what is known and what is hidden from a person’s own self-perceptions.
21:3. The final proverb of this Yahweh cluster moves from the intentions of the heart to the action it directs. Deeds are not to be placed in a special category but describe the way everyday dealings with others ought to take place. Everyday deeds that are “just” and “right” are (lit.) “chosen by the LORD” over special religious actions such as sacrifice. The comparison does not demean devotional practices but does observe that it is easier to have sacrifice without right living than it is to have right living without religious practice. Thankfully, believers do not have to choose. If we did, however, the proverb reminds us that Yahweh has had plenty of experience with people who believed that sacrifice was enough (21:27; Jer. 7:1–11). Perhaps this proverb parallels Proverbs 16:3, urging us to commit our work to Yahweh in righteousness.
Sins of a Proud Heart, Lies, and Violence (21:4–8)
CONTRASTED WITH DOING “what is right and just” (21:3), this catalog of deviations resembles the list of abominations of 6:17–19.4 The first, a “proud heart” (21:4), can be said to inspire all the others that follow as the “lamp” or light that guides the wicked.
21:4. The translation of “lamp” is a conjecture, since the Hebrew vowel points yield “tillage” or “plowed ground,” but here the emendation to “lamp” after 24:20 is warranted.5 What is clear from the saying is the negative association of pride with sin, for the wicked take as their guiding light the conceit that they can judge what is right. Believing that what is right for them is all that matters, they do not care what is acceptable to Yahweh (cf. 21:3). Throughout Scripture, haughty eyes and arrogant kings will be brought low (Isa. 2:11, 17; 10:12), but kings who reject arrogance are promised a long dynasty (Deut. 17:20).
21:5. One would expect to find laziness as the opposite of “diligence,” as in 12:27, but here “haste” is another form of laziness. “The plans of the diligent” points up the significant contrast that haste usually comes from lack of foresight or preparation (cf. the sluggard of 20:4). Haste in general is disapproved throughout Proverbs (20:21; 29:20), but here the contrast of “poverty” with “profit” may point to a scheme designed to make a fast buck.
21:6. Connected with the previous saying by the theme of profit (perhaps the quick and easy kind), this saying equates treasures obtained by deceit with things transitory and deadly. The two enemies “fleeting vapor” (cf. Eccl. 1:2) and “deadly snare” (cf. Prov. 18:7) negate human desires for permanence and security, often expressed in Proverbs as a long life. As in 21:5, the end result of the lying tongue is poverty. The NIV text note reports the change from the Masoretic text’s “those who seek death.” Following the LXX and the Vulgate, the phrase “snares of death” (cf. 13:14; 14:27) can be read with slight emendation.
21:7. The “violence of the wicked” is not specified. Throughout the Old Testament injustice and lies are forms of violence that bring their own reward, but actual physical violence is probably in view here. The irony that the wicked’s own violent behavior “will drag them away” creates the picture of a person caught and dragged like a fish in a net (Hab. 1:15) and extends the metaphor of the snare from Proverbs 21:6. “To do what is right” is (lit.) “to do what is just” (laʿ aśot mišpaṭ), using vocabulary that links this saying with 21:3. Those that refuse to do justice for others will have it done to them.
21:8. The contrast between a “guilty” person (zar) and an “innocent” one (zak, “pure”) is not so clear in the Hebrew text, where the word for guilty is often translated “strange.”6 The contrast between ways that are crooked (“devious,” hapakpak) and straight (“upright,” yašar) is clear and should guide the reading (cf. 21:2). Character and deeds match more often than they do not.
Final Outcomes and Judgments (21:9–19)
PROVERBS ABOUT CONSEQUENCES and judgments are collected between the frame of similar proverbs on the “quarrelsome wife.” The larger section could be divided in two by the strange appearance of a proverb about bribes and anger in 21:14.
21:9. The humor in this proverb and its companion in verse 19 breaks up the seriousness of the sayings on pride and injustice that come before and after. Obviously someone took pleasure in creating new variations on the formula to intensify the comparisons. It is better to live in a leaky house (19:13; 27:15), no, better to live on the roof of the house (21:9=25:24),7 no, better to live in the desert and not even have a house (21:19), than to live with a quarrelsome wife. This woman is known for her ability to stir up conflict—a sign of folly also for a quarrelsome man (20:3).
21:10. The Hebrew uses body images; the throat or desire (nepeš) of the wicked craves evil, and the neighbor will find no mercy in those eyes (beʿenaw). How then can anyone expect such a person, centered only on self and desires, to show mercy to a neighbor? This person only craves, never gives. We readers expect desire (nepeš) to crave acquisitions and pleasures, but we do not expect to learn that evil becomes a desirable end in itself. Whatever the motivation, some people simply enjoy doing wrong. The bite of the saying is that no one can live anywhere near such a person, perhaps a link with 21:9.
21:11. This proverb assumes that the mocker will not learn, even when punished with blows (cf. 19:25; 20:30). Nevertheless, even a “simple” (lit., “naive”) person can learn from the example. The same dynamic is at work when the young man’s parents quote personified Wisdom’s threats against the mockers in 1:20–33. Better still, the wise person will learn from instruction, not physical punishment (cf. 1:5; 9:9, 12). Therefore, both forms of discipline are worthwhile, though in different ways. The word “instructed” (śkl) appears in 21:12 as “takes note.”
21:12. Continuing the theme of punishment from verse 11, the “evil” (raʿ ) craved by the wicked in 21:10 is rewarded with their “ruin” (raʿ, “trouble, evil”; cf. 21:7). The NIV text note shows that “the Righteous One” translates ṣaddiq here; that is, the One who brings ruin is Yahweh. Throughout the wisdom writings it is God who overthrows the wicked and frustrates the words of the unfaithful (cf. Job 12:19; Prov. 22:12).8 The catchword śkl (“observe”) links Proverbs 21:11 and 12; whereas the wise observe to be instructed, Yahweh observes to judge.
21:13. Those who give no mercy (21:10) receive none. Just as the cries of the poor go unanswered, this saying leaves it to the reader to conclude that Yahweh will shut his ears to those who did not listen to the poor. This proverb completes the picture of 21:11–12; Yahweh will bring to ruin those who cause the ruin of others, and he will not help those who do not help the poor. The threat is similar to wisdom’s bitter promise: “Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me” (1:28; for the positive statement of the principle, see 19:17). The “cry of the poor” may be their ever-present need or their response to a specific injustice (cf. 21:14–15).
21:14. Read together with verse 13, this proverb hints that some people may be willing to give a gift or bribe to soothe human wrath but will not make a gift to the poor to avert divine anger! Both lines of this saying emphasize the hiddenness of the bribe-gift, the secrecy most likely a sign that it is given to pervert justice (17:23; cf. 1 Sam. 12:3; Job 36:18; Amos 5:12). It is not clear whether the anger mentioned is the king’s (Prov. 20:2), a judge’s (17:15; 18:5), or that of some other person. The point is that it is one thing to accept a settlement for personal damages and quite another to take payment to ignore someone else’s just cause.
21:15. The picture of justice victorious in broad daylight is in view here as both the righteous and evil see the outcome, a reverse of the secrecy of gifts and bribes in verse 14. It is not clear whether everyday fair dealing or just court decisions are in view here, but the “terror” of the “evildoers” is a clue that some sort of judgment is at work (cf. 10:28–29). It is not their downfall that brings joy to the righteous but the fact that justice is done.
21:16. In line with verses 11–15, the image of the “path” or “way” (derek) here illustrates final outcomes; a traveler who strays from the good path will not end up in a good place. The “company of the dead” is (lit.) the “assembly of the repaʾim” (2:18; 9:18), the shades that populate the netherworld, a sure sign that the traveler is not just lodging for the night—this journey is over!
21:17. The saying is chiastically structured around a repetition of “one who loves.” In the first line this person loves “pleasure” (lit., “rejoicing,” śimḥah; cf. 21:15); in the second, “wine and oil.” The connection with the rejoicing in 21:15 leaves the reader asking what might be wrong with wine and oil, gifts of God that gladden the heart (Ps. 104:15). First, it seems that this “love” empties the purse; to love wine and oil and not the work that produces them is shortsighted and eventually leaves one wanting (cf. Prov. 20:4). Moreover, this love is a reversal of other priorities. One who seeks justice and virtue will also find life’s enjoyments, but one who puts those ahead of virtue will end up missing them both.
21:18. Interpretations of this enigmatic proverb vary widely, perhaps because the matter of “ransom” touches on the heart of the Christian doctrine of atonement. However, in the ancient world a ransom was a payment of compensation for damages (6:35; 13:8) or some other crime (Ex. 21:30; cf. Num. 35:31), a way for individuals to pay their debt to society with a ransom. Throughout Proverbs the righteous are rescued from the trouble that rightly comes on the wicked instead of them (Prov. 13:8; 11:8). Therefore, the point is not so much that the righteous need a ransom for crimes or guilt but that the wicked will receive their just reward, a theme that connects 21:15–18. Money also links a number of the proverbs, for like a ransom, a gift or bribe can soothe anger (21:14), but one can pay for pleasures and become poor (21:17).9
21:19. Unique among the quarrelsome wife sayings, this proverb brings the household imagery to a climax (see comments on 21:9); better to be alone, living without a house in the desert, than in a miserable domestic situation. “Ill-tempered” may not describe the wife’s personality but the general state of vexation in such a house. Like its near neighbor in verse 9 (“better to live”), this satiric proverb stands out from its context, presenting the reader with a riddle about its significance. Perhaps it extends the metaphor of the foolish and loud woman from Proverbs 9 to say, “Choose your life partner carefully, choose wisdom!”
Examples of Wise Moderation and Strength (21:20–23)
FOUR PROVERBS OFFER positive examples of wisdom as a mirror reflection of the sins of 21:10–18.
21:20. Linked with the previous proverb by the image of the household, this wise one (cf. 21:11) stores up the knowledge and the goods he acquires. The “stores of choice food” are (lit.) “desirable stores” or “precious treasures.”11 This saying contrasts the wise one who practices moderation and foresight and the fool who swallows everything in gluttony and shortsightedness. Like 21:17, this proverb urges control of appetite and thrift as two cures for gluttony. However, read along with Ecclesiastes 2:18–19, the proverb could be a “somber comment on the ephemeral nature of wealth,” for one may gather goods only to leave them to a fool to squander.11
21:21. Another saying about possessions and virtues, this proverb pictures a person who seeks the qualities of “righteousness” (ṣedaqah; cf. 21:15; 20:7) and “love” (ḥesed; cf. 19:22; 20:6). In seeking these virtues, one also finds the three primary desires of the proverbs: life, prosperity, and honor (cf. 3:16; 22:4). One cannot do better than to find long life, wealth enough to share, and a good name in the community.12 By implication, this is the same “wise” person of 21:20 and 22.
21:22. Another saying about the “wise” (cf. 21:20), here the victorious wise one brings down a city along with its signs of great power, warriors, and stronghold. The last Hebrew word, “they trusted it,” is key, pointing out the confidence placed in strength and numbers and contrasting it with the wise person’s trust in God.13 The wise one knows how to use the power of counsel and words, but he also recognizes its limits.
21:23. This proverb plays on the word šmr, translated in the NIV as “guard” in the first line and “keeps” in the second: “one who guards mouth and tongue, one who guards self from troubles.” The image of keeping watch ties this saying to 21:22 and its guarded stronghold, implying that it is harder to guard one’s speech than a city (yet the wise are up to the challenge; cf. 16:32).
Sins of Pride and Power (21:24–29)
A SERIES OF proverbs on sins that follow out of pride (21:24; cf. 21:4) concludes with a pair of Yahweh proverbs on human limits of power.
21:24. The character of the mocker is further exposed. Such a person will not learn (21:11; cf. 19:25) because of pride and arrogance (cf. 21:4; also 11:2; Obad. 1:3; Hab. 2:5). “Overweening pride” may be translated “fury of pride,” describing the rages that come on one who exercises no control over mouth and tongue (cf. Prov. 21:23).
21:25. The first of a pair of proverbs on the sluggard’s craving explains why that appetite will be “the death of him.” The focus is on the hands that “refuse to work.” There is a reversal here; appetite that does not motivate a person to work (16:26) will ultimately lead to other means of satisfying it. The wicked person “craves evil” (cf. 21:10; Ps. 112:10), though a number of proverbs use the same word for the “desire” of the righteous (taʾ awat, Prov. 10:24; 11:23; 13:12, 19; 19:22; Ps. 10:17; 21:2). The difference is in the object of the desire as well as the means used to obtain it. How often laziness and gluttony go together!
21:26. The picture of one who craves all day long (21:25) is contrasted with one who practices continual giving. This contrast between an appetite that cries for more and a person able to give without saying “that’s enough” may describe the wise one of 21:20. A righteous person like this does not shut his ear to the poor (21:13). We may go further and say that if the righteous give without sparing, the giving goes beyond what one has to spare.14
21:27. Evil deeds have been named “detestable” throughout Proverbs, so certainly the hypocritical sacrifices of a wicked person will draw the same response from Yahweh (cf. 21:3). It is even worse if the sacrifice is brought to serve another purpose, even though the proverb does not specify what such “evil intent” might be. Jesus’ example of those who give to the poor with trumpets blaring is one example of seeking favor from those who are watching (Matt. 6:2). Read alongside the picture of generous giving in the previous verse, this offering also begins to look like a bribe (cf. Prov. 21:14).
21:28. The first line is familiar and most likely represents a theme in variation (cf. 19:5, 9). The second line is meant to carry the punch of the proverb, but unfortunately it is not clear. The Hebrew text as it stands reads, “the one who listens will speak forever,” which the NIV footnote paraphrases, “but the words of an obedient man will live on.”15 In this reading, the one who hears might be an honest witness who reports correctly what was heard, or an honest judge, or perhaps any discerning listener. “Destroyed forever” translates the phrase differently to preserve the parallel with the line before,16 but the first reading makes good sense that the discerning person will endure (cf. 21:23).
21:29. As translated, this proverb draws a contrast between those who make their way by putting up a hard and impenetrable front with those who reflect on their ways, the latter depicting an attitude of openness. The second line again presents translation problems, for the Hebrew text (ketib) reads “establishes his ways” (cf. 16:9), while the Hebrew marginal note (qere) reads “considers his way” (cf. 14:8; 20:24). Whether the translation reflects a teachable attitude or its outcome is not as important as the contrast with the “bold front” or “brazen face” of the wicked (cf. 7:13).17 The last Hebrew word in each line carries the bite of the proverb. One attends to his face, the other to his way; one attends only to the self and its preservation, the other to the larger picture of life lived uprightly, in harmony with Yahweh’s creation and community.
Yahweh’s Victory (21:30–31)
21:30. THERE IS a sort of “wisdom . . . insight . . . plan” that betrays the first principle of true wisdom (1:7), namely, choosing to set oneself “against the LORD” rather than to fear him (Ps. 5:5; 36:2).18 Perhaps we can better say that any wisdom of this sort “is no wisdom” at all. Set in the literary context of this cluster, the proverb’s threefold repetition of “is no” (ʾen) emphasizes the limits of human endeavor, recognizing the foolish pride that inspires the behaviors listed in Proverbs 21:24–29. The terms “wisdom,” “insight,” and “plan” may have military connotations that are made more explicit in the next verse.
21:31. The war horse is both strong and constrained, a symbol of human power. Riders can harness a horse and even prepare it for battle, but victory belongs to Yahweh, not the one who pulls the reins (Ex. 15:1, 21; Deut. 20:1; Ps. 20:7; 33:17; 37:9; Jer. 51:2). Common to this proverb and the one before is the theme of human effectiveness—intellectual effort in preparing and planning and physical prowess. The two proverbs name different but related errors: The first and most obvious is to go against God; the second and more subtle, to forget to thank God for victory and trust in your own foresight and strength. The parallelism in both verses reminds the reader of the mysterious relationship between human initiative and divine purposes that have come to the forefront in this second half of the collected proverbs (Prov. 16:1–22:16).
Bridging Contexts
ONE OF THE most notable features in the chapter is the paired recurrence of themes and keywords. While we cannot be certain that their presence indicates an intentional structure, it is notable that two sets of Yahweh proverbs (21:1–3 and 30–31) frame a collection of paired themes that fall into a mirror pattern, namely, the upright way (yašar and derek in 21:2, 29), sacrifice (21:3, 27), pride (21:4, 24), and the quarrelsome woman (21:9, 19).
Puzzling sayings about “the Righteous One” and the gift given in secret fall in the middle (21:12, 14), while “righteous” and “righteousness” appear throughout, often in contrast with the wicked (21:3, 12, 15, 18, 21, 26). Throughout the first half of the chapter, the phrase “do justice” appears three times (ʿ asoh mišpaṭ, 21:3, 7, 15); in the last of these, the righteous rejoice when that justice brings terror to the evildoers. The theme of judgment and reversal echoes throughout the cluster of proverbs at 21:12–15, a theological center, assuring that the righteous will be vindicated and the wicked judged. But how does this relate to the mysteries of Yahweh’s purposes in 21:1–3 and 30–31? And why does a strange proverb about gifts and bribes stand near the middle of this chapter?
Yahweh and human beings. It may be that the pairing of word and theme suggests a strategy of looking for the proverb’s mate to find the key to its meaning. If we consider that small clusters of proverbs are paired this way, we can compare the two sets that name “the LORD.” The first trio of Yahweh proverbs tells us that he knows the human heart, weighing its motives and knowing when right actions do not accompany acts of worship like sacrifice. The two Yahweh proverbs that conclude the chapter stress that no powers, intellectual or physical, can stand against him, so that even kings who mount horses must grant that victory belongs to Yahweh, not their own strength or cunning. Knowledge and rule are the boundaries within which wise living must remain. To believe one can stand against Yahweh is foolish pride; to think one can deceive and go undetected is foolish self-deception. Either choice is out of touch with reality.
Yet it is this self-deceiving pride that led the unnamed pharaoh of the Exodus to play games with God, tricking the Hebrews time and time again and finally chasing the released slaves with horses and chariots. The narrative puzzles and tantalizes us as we read that God hardened that king’s heart (Ex. 10:1), but this is not the picture we have here in Proverbs 21:1. Rather, God turns the king’s heart like the watercourse. The metaphor suggests that he guides but does not dictate the king’s actions, directing them to a good purpose.
It is not clear whether 21:1 speaks of Israel’s king or kings in general, but we may try to find a general principle. If a king will acknowledge God’s knowledge and guidance, the fruits of righteous wise living will be watered and grow.19 But if a king should ask with Pharaoh, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey him” (Ex. 5:2), then the struggles and destruction of the wicked are played out instead. So in the Exodus narrative, neither Pharaoh’s wise men nor his horses and armies were able to stand against Yahweh (Ex. 7:10–13; 14:23–30; Prov. 21:30–31).
Yet Pharaoh was as forthright as he was hard; few of Israel’s king’s were so honest in their refusal to listen and learn. Some, like Saul, thought that one could replace teachability and obedience with sacrifices and still claim loyalty, but as Samuel reminded Saul, “Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry” (1 Sam. 15:22–23; cf. Prov. 21:3–4, 24, 27).
The Yahweh proverbs of this chapter not only call its readers to humility and teachability, they offer the hope that those who choose Yahweh’s guidance of wisdom will live a life directed to good purposes—in the case of the king, ensuring justice for others; in the case of the ordinary reader, a passion for justice and fair dealing that shapes our desires. In interpreting the principle of these proverbs for our own times, we must reject all forms of pride and deception, weighing the motives of our hearts by Yahweh’s standards of righteousness and justice.
Desire. A number of the proverbs of this chapter treat the familiar topic of desire, most conspicuously the pair on craving that depicts the wicked who crave evil and the sluggard who simply craves for more (21:10, 25–26). Of the two pictures, we may find ourselves having more in common with the sluggard, for as we have seen throughout Proverbs, the sluggard is lazy about all kinds of work, including the labor of learning wisdom. Moreover, we recognize some of the sluggard’s inclination to put appetite above everything else. We also remember that the book of Proverbs often juxtaposes the one who loves evil with the sluggard (6:6–19), perhaps to remind us that we face a variety of temptations.
Common to both is the exaltation of desire above everything else. The wicked will make a fortune with a lying tongue, employ violence and devious ways (21:6–8), present false sacrifice and false witness, and do all this with a bold front (21:27–29). The sluggard, by contrast, is easily spotted, not only by laziness but also unbounded craving. The sluggard rejects labor; the scoundrel is full of energy but rejects a moral code. Both reject love for neighbor, for the ideal righteous person of Proverbs is not only moral and industrious but a charitable person (21:26). Again, we see that evil and lazy persons express their craving differently, but both disregard the neighbor and fail to give. Thus, while some “love wine and oil” and foolishly devour all they get (21:17, 20), the wise store it, perhaps with the intention to share.
In sum, the two pictures work together to show us that while some are vulnerable to temptations that do our neighbors active harm, many more are prone to lazy indifference to their need and failure to give and care. Both, in a sense, shut their ears to the cry of the poor (21:13). In seeking to appropriate the principles of these proverbs for our own day, we must ask whether we are primarily tuned to the cry of our desires or the cry of the poor.
Other proverb pairs. Two other proverb pairs stand out in this chapter: the pair on the quarrelsome wife (21:9, 19) and a less obvious pair on payment and ransom (21:14, 18). While we may take the first pair of “better than” proverbs as ancient examples of satire (remembering that there is a quarrelsome man who kindles strife in 26:21), we recognize the truth common to both, that it is better to live alone than to live in unrelenting conflict.
The second of the two proverbs adds the description “ill tempered” (kaʿas), using a word that typically refers to the fool who shows his “annoyance” (12:6), who brings “grief” to his father (17:25), and whose “provocation” is heavier than stone and sand (27:3).20 As provocation is the sign of the fool, the proverbs suggest that to live with such a woman is to live with a fool; for that reason it is better to live alone. Moreover, in the symbolism of proverbs, if the young man is not to become a fool, he must seek out a good and wise woman, making wisdom his life partner. In Proverbs 31 that woman does a man good, but here one does not wish to share a home with a woman who shows such signs of folly. The principle of reversal may be at work in this picture of a man who chooses folly only to spend his life trying to get away from its effects.
Interestingly, the apparently unrelated proverb about gifts and bribes in 21:14 falls in the middle of this section framed by the two proverbs on the contentious woman, five proverbs before it and five after. In between are proverbs that depict a series of sins (21:10, 13, 14, 16, 17) and proverbs about justice (21:11, 12, 13, 15, 18). The “ransom” of 21:18 is the last of a series of reversals; the wicked who want to ruin others are themselves brought to ruin by the “Righteous One” (21:12), the one who hears no cry will not be heard (21:13), and justice, when accomplished, brings terror to those who terrorized the righteous (21:15).
Yet the proverb on the secret gift and bribe shows no such reversal and makes no moral statement (21:14). Instead, it simply observes that secret gifts and bribes do calm the anger of others, leaving readers to imagine such a situation, perhaps a bribe given to tell someone to stay quiet and let others take a fall. Yet while it is true that there are payments that divert wrath and soothe anger, only a fool believes that secret gifts and bribes can work over the long haul.
Moreover, there is a similar observation on the joys of eating “secret” bread and stolen water in Proverbs, and it is made by the foolish woman (9:17). Verse 18 looks at another sort of payment, a “ransom” of the very life of the wicked for the righteous. Read in the context of chapter 21, then, the bribes that undo the righteous (21:14) are themselves undone by an unspecified ransom (21:18), presumably from Yahweh, who weighs hearts and whose purposes stand (21:1–3, 30–31).
In sum, it seems that the pairs of proverbs on vexing women and compensating payments are pieces of a puzzle that fall into place when the folly common to both is observed. Foolish people cause strife, and foolish people believe that illicit payoffs can resolve it. The final ransom in 21:18 hints at Yahweh’s work of reversal; what the wicked wish on others comes on them instead, a principle we saw in Proverbs 1. The appearance of foolish women and wicked men may signal readers to look back at previous warnings against the wicked men who leave straight paths to walk dark ways (2:13–15) and the woman of seductive words whose paths lead down to death (2:16–19; 9:18).21
The pair of proverbs at 21:30–31 warn us that there is always potential for a battle between our wills and God’s will, a potential characterized by those whose ways are right in their own eyes and those who give thought to their ways (21:1–3, 29). To incorporate this principle into our own situation, we must observe the dangerous follies of our own day and keep an eye out for the ways that point to our own struggle to submit ourselves to God’s will.
Contemporary Significance
THE PRINCIPLE OF reversal. As we seek to translate the message of these collected proverbs for our own day, we recognize that some of the misdeeds depicted here are closer to our own situations than others. While it is true that only some people will resort to bribes and ill treatment of neighbors to get what they want, most of us are more vulnerable to the sins of omission. So, for example, even if we do not actively take advantage of the poor, we do often fail to hear their cries and act on their behalf (21:13). However, common to both is the principle of reversal, that what we do to or for our neighbors will eventually come back to us.
The various reversals in the chapter can provide a model for our application of the principle, anticipating the Golden Rule as Jesus taught it. Certainly Jesus’ application of the principle behind these proverbs, “Do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 7:12), gives us reason to consider the effect our actions have on others and ourselves. We might ask ourselves, “What would I want done to me,” because given the nature of things, it just might come back on our heads!
We can also make helpful applications if we reverse the negative pictures and put the corresponding virtues into our lives. Thrift and moderation are the reverse of gluttony (21:20). Generous giving is another reverse of gluttony (21:26), but perhaps it also is a reverse of self-serving gifts and bribes (21:14). A guarded tongue (21:23)—that is, speech that considers its effect on others—is the reverse of the lying tongue and perhaps also of insincere worship (21:6, 27). In all there is a principle more well known than practiced, that in seeking the good of others, we find that good comes to ourselves (21:21).
Succeeding in life. When we have finished this work of translation, we may find ourselves wondering why it is that so many find self-centered living attractive when it is proven time and time again that this way of life is ultimately self-defeating. Put another way, we may ask why our culture has turned selfish pursuits into virtues. We may find that temptations to pride are more subtle than we imagined and that they require a certain level of self-deception. So, for example, if we were to count the number of hours we devote to advancing our careers or our status, we may be surprised. This is not to say that all achievements and successes are wrong or that the only humble way to live is one of passive self-resignation. Rather, when we set the goals and achievements of life above God’s desire for a kingdom of šalom, we get off course. It is one thing to succeed in life, it is another to live for success.
In his best-selling book, Bobos in Paradise,22 David Brooks traces the history and development of two competing views of success and their synthesis at the end of the twentieth century. In days past, bourgeois society with its conventional wealthy lifestyle was satirically and sometimes bitterly countered by the bohemian lifestyle, which rejected both wealth and manners, preferring instead to emphasize freedom of mind and spirit. If the one stressed material success, the other emphasized self-actualization. The conflict appeared to reach a climax in the social turmoil of the 1960s; many remember the hippie disdain for conventional values and quest for freedom. In the 1980s we saw the rise of young urban professionals, and the yuppie lifestyle stressed hard work and conspicuous consumption.
As the twenty-first century dawned, argues Brooks, the two were melded into one well-educated, overachieving, and conspicuously consumptive character, someone who is every bit as concerned to make a self as to make money. The BOBO, or Bourgeois Bohemian, is an amalgam of the upper-crust establishment of the first half of the century and the counterculture that sprouted and took root in the second (although the two movements are much older than that). What Brooks found especially interesting is the conflicted attitude this new upper class carries about its success. Although increased access to higher education has led to a greater number of high-salaried professionals, this new upper class takes pains to distance itself from crass consumerism.
This class is responsible for more yards of built-in bookshelf space than any group in history. And yet sometimes you look at their shelves and notice deluxe leather-bound editions of all those books arguing that success and affluence is a sham: Babbit, The Great Gatsby, The Power Elite, The Theory of the Leisure Class. This is an elite that has been raised to oppose elites.23
It seems, then, that the bourgeois goals of material success and conspicuous consumption have not been nullified by bohemian aspirations to freedom and self-discovery. Rather, the latter has been assimilated, so that many of the ideals of community or charity that were left in either view have been muted, if not forgotten. Just as conspicuous consumption was not rejected as much as transformed, the ideals of social justice have been absorbed and thereby neglected. Brooks ends his book with a call for new political and social engagement: “Healthy self-interest becomes self-absorption if it is detached from larger national and universal ideals.”24
Once again, as we seek to appropriate the lessons of the proverbs, we remind ourselves that the strong contrasts in these sayings symbolize the choices that stand before us, even as we recognize that the contrasts are not always so clear in real life. It has been said that the reason we need so many proverbs is because life itself comes to us in so many diverse and complicated ways. Proverbs allow us to look at the situations of our lives and ask: Is what is true in this proverb true in this situation as well? Thus, the reappearance of righteous/wicked contrasts reminds the reader of the proverbs collected in chapters 10–15 and their insistence that the two ways lead to different ends.
Giving and justice. If we are to appropriate these lessons of proverbs, we must also remember that none of us is perfectly righteous or purely wicked, yet the temptations depicted in these sayings call us to examine ourselves and ask which virtues we would like to have characterize our lives. Of the many mentioned in this chapter, two are prominent: the habit of giving and the love of justice.
As an antidote to laziness and craving, the proverb recommends giving “without sparing” (21:26). Peter Gomes found an example of such giving in a woman named Oseola McCarthy, a laundry worker who somehow managed to save $300,000 and then gave it to a historically black college for scholarships. In 1996, McCarthy was given an honorary degree by Harvard University, along with Walter Annenberg, who had made the largest individual contribution to higher education.
When it came time to present the honorary degree to Miss McCarthy in the wake of Ambassador Annenberg’s, the university marshal began, “Mr. President, we have with us today another philanthropist. . . .” The choice of words was deliberate, and more than her gift, Oseola McCarthy has given new life to the notion that philanthropy proceeds not from great resources, or in response to great need, but out of great love.25
Gomes observes that the habit of giving distinguishes the righteous in unexpected ways.
As an antidote to acts of evil that fail to love neighbor (or worse, to harm neighbors without concern), the proverbs hold out love for justice. The triumph of justice stands out in 21:11–15, but that cluster is framed with the consequences that come to those who harm others (21:5–7, 16–18). If we reverse that picture of evil, we can look for ways to love justice and pursue it in our daily existence. Let’s be honest and admit that we feel the most anger and resentment when we ourselves have suffered a wrong, yet too often we silently stand by when it has been dealt to another.
There are two senses of justice. One is for daily interactions that reminds us, as did John the Baptist, don’t lie, don’t cheat, don’t gouge (Luke 3:10–14). In our everyday exchange of money, goods, and words, we can ask ourselves: Have I been fair? Is this deal straight or crooked? The other more complicated meaning of justice has to do with acting to ensure justice for others. Some choose to work through political action, others choose to protest, and still others believe that teaching values of fairness and equality will make a difference.
As part of a city-wide program, Marilyn Scott, an African-American library worker, not only read a story about racial prejudice to a first grade class, she told them about her own experiences of rejection. The children were asked why people would do such things, and in thinking of answers, they also imagined what their own responses would be. At the end of the session, they were asked, “So what would you do to stop somebody from hurting somebody’s feelings like that?” Nearly every hand in the class went up and each child was called on, some more than once, until every suggestion was heard. Scott then told them, “You’ve got the right to speak up. . . . That’s what these lips and tongue are for.”26 In sum, cultivating a habit of giving and a love for justice does more than reject the path of evil, it seeks to “overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21).