Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl: Obvious Stubborn Foolishness v. Wise Calm Honesty, Proverbs 12:10-17

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

Proverbs 12:10–17

[10] Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast,

but the mercy of the wicked is cruel.

[11] Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,

but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense.

[12] Whoever is wicked covets the spoil of evildoers,

but the root of the righteous bears fruit.

[13] An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips,

but the righteous escapes from trouble.

[14] From the fruit of his mouth a man is satisfied with good,

and the work of a man’s hand comes back to him.

[15] The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,

but a wise man listens to advice.

[16] The vexation of a fool is known at once,

but the prudent ignores an insult.

[17] Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence,

but a false witness utters deceit. (ESV)

Obvious Stubborn Foolishness v. Wise Calm Honesty

v.10 This proverb contrasts the compassion belonging to righteous persons and that possessed by wicked ones. A righteous man’s compassion extends even to the animal kingdom, just as the compassion of God does: “Consider the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them” (Matthew 6:26; compare with Luke 12:24). The righteous seek to imitate our Lord, even in this. On the other hand, the wicked man's compassion is not compassion at all but rather cruelty. The wicked, instead of showing mercy toward others, which is often self-sacrificial, are so caught up in self-centered behavior that all of their efforts are directed inward.

v.11 This verse promotes working with one's God-given resources and abilities rather than trying, through sinful means, to achieve the normally unachievable or obtain that which is not in their means to obtain. This is not to say that "reaching for the stars" is sinful unto itself, but the use of sinful designs to get there is being condemned.

v.12 Verses twelve and thirteen are linked together by the use of the words "righteous person," which is one word in Hebrew. In verse twelve, a wicked person is depicted as one who has some knowledge of or observes the sinful machinations and schemes of evil people and desires to emulate such sinful behavior to the same ends for which the wicked person employed them. This poor education is the opposite of the instruction in Divine Wisdom, which the one who seeks to be righteous obtains by grounding himself in God and His holy Word. The evil person seeks to trap others to get one up on them, while the righteous bears true God-pleasing fruit.

v.13 This verse begins another series of proverbs of the mouth, which will continue through verse twenty-three, verse twenty-one being the only exception. This proverb calls attention to sinful and devious words, which have a damaging effect on those who hear them. Again, the evil person who utters such words traps himself in sin by uttering them and subsequently harming his neighbor. The righteous man is righteous only by the grace of God and sometimes succumbs to sin, including sins of the mouth. But he also knows that our righteous God has the ability to rescue him from trouble through his confession of his sins and receiving holy absolution from the Lord.

v.14 This proverb does not contrast the wicked with the unrighteous but gives a two-part proverb describing the righteousness imputed to believers by grace through faith alone. Similar to an earlier verse (13:2), it illustrates that the righteous man is enabled by God to speak things that are beneficial not only to his neighbor who hears them but to his own ears as well, reinforcing the Divine Wisdom he has received from the Lord and put into practice. His work is fruitful because his good works come not from himself but from a good God (compare with Proverbs 12:11-12).

v.15 Similar to a righteous man, the wicked man's words and deeds work upon himself as well as his neighbor, but in his case, it works to erode any Wisdom he has acquired, setting him on the path which can lead to death if it is not altered. Heeding advice which is not centered on God's Word is detrimental to the fool and the wise alike. The fool is especially stubborn, however, self-justifying his actions and convincing himself they are correct.

v.16 This proverb connects to the previous one with the word "fool." In Hebrew, this word is literally "stubborn fool," a particularly vexing status. A stubborn fool has a uniquely destructive obstinacy of not having the virtuous attributes of a calm, measured response to insults but rather flying off the handle without stopping to think. He blunders about like a wounded animal, letting the world know he has been wounded. The prudent man of Wisdom knows there are better ways to handle and project his emotions.

v.17 This proverb had myriad applications. It could be applied to giving a defense for one's faith and being a steadfast believer in the face of opposition. However, the vocabulary used here points to specifically earthly pursuits, like testifying honestly in a legal proceeding.