Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl—Proverbs 20:19-24 Life & Conduct Ic

Tuesday, February 14, 2023

Proverbs 20:19–24

[19] Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets;

therefore do not associate with a simple babbler.

[20] If one curses his father or his mother,

his lamp will be put out in utter darkness.

[21] An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning

will not be blessed in the end.

[22] Do not say, “I will repay evil”;

wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you.

[23] Unequal weights are an abomination to the Lord,

and false scales are not good.

[24] A man’s steps are from the Lord;

how then can man understand his way? (ESV)

Life & Conduct Ic

v.19 Compare this verse with Proverbs 11:13. That proverb concerned discerning the difference between someone who can keep a secret and a gossip. This proverb warns us to avoid people who cannot keep a secret. This proverb makes us think similar thoughts to what St. Paul teaches about avoiding those who cause divisions by teaching false doctrine and using smooth talk (Romans 16:17-18).

v.20 Those who call down God’s wrath on their parents defy God’s authority. In the OT, the penalty for this was death (Exodus 21:17; Leviticus 20:9; Deuteronomy 27:16). While it may seem just to call down God’s wrath on an ungodly parent, God’s judgment belongs to God alone.

v.21 Hastily acquiring wealth without thought to morality is a sign of foolishness. Such wealth is impermanent and brings only judgment on the last day. Steinmann (Concordia Commentary, Proverbs) notes: "A person could gain an 'inheritance' quickly (or 'by greed'; see the first textual note) by facilitating the death of his father. Therefore this proverb relates to the cursing of parents in Prov 20:20. Taken together, these proverbs suggest that attempting to obtain (or even desiring) an inheritance prematurely is a form of cursing one's parents. The father in Lk 15:12 was astonishingly generous because he bequeathed to his prodigal son a share of the inheritance while he, the father, was far from dead; the son's request was tantamount to a death wish for his father."

v.22 This proverb counsels us to rely on God to dish out vengeance and to rescue His faithful. This is not to say that the Christian may not pursue justice using the civil authorities because good government is a gift of God, and He uses it to administer punishment in the everyday world. However, this proverb does forbid private revenge (see also Romans 12:17-21).

v.23 This verse echoes Proverbs 11:1 & 20:10. v.10 This verse warns us to "not put our thumb on the scale." Using inaccurate weights and measures (or, in modern terms, a deceitfully calibrated scale for the purpose of selling less than what your customer pays for) is a business practice condemned by God from ancient times (see Proverbs 20:23 and Amos 8:5). While cheating people by deceit in order to make more profit may not be easily detectable by the customer or even human authorities, God sees it and will judge it accordingly.

v.24 God desires all people to believe His Wisdom and be guided by it to salvation in Christ Jesus. Those who reject His Wisdom, therefore, follow the path leading to eternal death. Since they do not discern Divine Wisdom, they find this path to be both appealing and wise (see also Proverbs 7:27; 9:18; 14:12; 16:25). Steinmann says of the second line of this proverb: "The second line affirms that sin still clouds the minds of believers even as they walk their pilgrimage along God’s path in this life (cf. Jer 17:9–10; Rom 3:9–20). God alone knows the ways of their hearts and their every deed, even secret and inadvertent sins of which they are not aware (Deut 29:28 [ET 29:29]; Jer 16:17; Ps 19:13 [ET 19:12]). Therefore it is imperative to rely on God and his Word to guide one to salvation instead of leaning on human understanding, even one’s own intellect (see Prov 3:5–6; 14:12; 16:25; Jer 17:5–8; Jn 14:6).”