Proverbs 10

Beginning here, Proverbs looks more like a list of individual folk wisdom without order or connection. Unfortunately, some people treat the whole Bible as if each verse stands alone; they neither appreciate the context nor the whole narrative of which a verse is a part. So their interpretation follows their fancy. Still, Proverbs actually is a collection of seemingly unrelated verses, and so the text can be difficult to understand.

Below is the whole of Chapter 10, but we are not going to seek meaning in every verse; that would take too long and probably go in too many directions. Instead, let’s survey the themes that Solomon addresses.

These proverbs are structured around contrast. Solomon places two concepts side by side as opposites, and then challenges the reader to choose one or the other.

The most often used contrast in this chapter is between ‘the righteous’ and ‘the wicked’, but also ‘righteousness’ and ‘wickedness’. Remember that the setting or the occasion is the wise sage, usually Solomon, who is teaching his pupils. These are people who are supposed to growing wise. Look for other contrasts as we read.

10: 1-8.              The proverbs of Solomon.

A wise child makes a glad father,

                     but a foolish child is a mother’s grief.

Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,

                     but righteousness delivers from death.

The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry,

                     but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.

A slack hand causes poverty,

                     but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

A child who gathers in summer is prudent,

                     but a child who sleeps in harvest brings shame.

Blessings are on the head of the righteous,

                     but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

The memory of the righteous is a blessing,

                     but the name of the wicked will rot.

The wise of heart will heed commandments,

                     but one with foolish lips will come to ruin.

This first set of proverbs (there is no natural division), begins and ends with the contrast ‘wise’ and ‘foolish’, and plays on the high notes of ‘righteous’ and the low notes of ‘wicked’. Solomon records the various ways that choosing the path of the righteous and wise is far better than the path of the wicked and foolish. No argument there.  

10: 9-16.      Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,

                               but whoever follows perverse ways will be found out.

Whoever winks the eye causes trouble,

                               but one who rebukes boldly makes peace.

The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life,

                               but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.

Hatred stirs up strife,

                               but love covers all offenses.

On the lips of one who has understanding wisdom is found,

                               but a rod is for the back of one who lacks sense.

The wise lay up knowledge,

                               but the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.

The wealth of the rich is their fortress;

                               the poverty of the poor is their ruin.

The wage of the righteous leads to life,

                               the gain of the wicked to sin.

One verse stands out in the middle of this set; verse 12. This is the only contrast of ‘hatred’ and ‘love’. It is a fair predictor of the way our relationships go: “Hatred stirs up strife (think politics here), but love covers all offenses (think of our shared humanity, our neighbors).” The ultimate case is the love that God showed in Jesus as he hung on the cross; love led Christ to sacrifice his life to cover all sins.

10: 17-24.    Whoever heeds instruction is on the path to life,

                               but one who rejects a rebuke goes astray.

Lying lips conceal hatred,

                               and whoever utters slander is a fool.

When words are many, transgression is not lacking,

                               but the prudent are restrained in speech.

The tongue of the righteous is choice silver;

                               but the mind of the wicked is of little worth.

The lips of the righteous feed many,

                               but fools die for lack of sense.

The blessing of the Lord makes rich,

                               and he adds no sorrow with it.

Doing wrong is like sport to a fool,

                               but wise conduct is pleasure to a person of understanding.

What the wicked dread will come upon them,

                               but the desire of the righteous will be granted.

The situation in view is relationships and communication. How do you reject a rebuke? First, deny it. Second, counter-attack with a slander against the person making the judgement. Third, divert people’s attention from your own wrong-doing by falsely accusing someone else of wrong-doing. The prudent don’t talk a lot; but the wicked fill the room, or the internet, with babel.   

The Updated Edition of the New Revised Standard Version (NRSVUE) translates verse 22 as “and toil adds nothing to it,” leaving the impression that God blesses you with riches and labor is not necessary. However, the older New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) that we have been using, and most other translations, have “and he adds no sorrow with it.” The Hebrew word in question, ‘eseb, can mean ‘hurt’, ‘toil’, ‘sorrows’, ‘labor’, ‘hardship’, or ‘offense’. So, I prefer the established translation, otherwise it looks like you can get rich without working, and that is counter to a “slack hand” and “sleeping through harvest.”

10: 25-32.    When the tempest passes, the wicked are no more,

                               but the righteous are established forever.

Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes,

                               so are the lazy to their employers.

The fear of the Lord prolongs life,

                               but the years of the wicked will be short.

The hope of the righteous ends in gladness,

                               but the expectation of the wicked comes to nothing.

The way of the Lord is a stronghold for the upright

                               but destruction for evildoers.

The righteous will never totter,

                               but the wicked will not remain on the earth.

The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom,

                               but the perverse tongue will be cut off.

The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable,

                               but the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.

This concludes the contrast between the righteous and upright, on the one hand, and the wicked and perverse on the other. The problem in this day and age, of course, is that we have trouble figuring out which is which.

Job had no time for this folk wisdom, not unlike today’s prosperity gospel spouted by some TV preachers. Job was a righteous man who suffered without cause. In their long conversation, Zophar slams Job: “Do you not know this from of old, ever since mortals were placed on earth, that the exulting of the wicked is short, and the joy of the godless is but for a moment. Even though they mount up high as the heavens, and their head reaches to the clouds, they will perish forever like their own dung…” (Job 20: 4-6).

Job, in his suffering, replies bitterly: “Why do the wicked live on, reach old age, and grow mighty in power? Their children are established in their presence, and their offspring before their eyes. Their houses are safe from fear, and no rod of God is upon them. … They spend their days in prosperity, and in peace they go down to Sheol. They say to God, ‘Leave us alone. We do not desire to know your ways’” (Job 21: 7-9, 13-14).

So, which is it? Remember that both the book of Job and the book of Proverbs are classified as literature, not history, not commandments (the Law), and not promises. The story of Job reads like a script for a play[1] and proverbs reads like random bits of folk wisdom. Literature does not tell us what to think as much to think about these things.

Do the wicked always die young, or is it true that “only the good die young.”[2] I think that Jesus gave us a hint that there is no rule of thumb for this. When people asked him about the worshippers that Pilate killed, or the people who were sitting in the shade of a grain bin that collapsed and killed them. Jesus didn’t answer the question directly. Instead, he deflected it to make this point:

“At that very time there were some present who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish as they did. Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them—do you think that they were worse offenders than all the other people living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish just as they did” (Luke 13:1-5).

Is Proverbs right? Yes, persistent wickedness will be punished in the end. Is Job right? Yes, at times it looks like God is too slow in meeting out justice; and bad things do happen to good people seemingly without reason. So, God’s interaction with the world is more complex than either Proverbs or Job would have us believe. They bring up questions; but the answer is that the fear of the Lord gives life; life in companionship with God in the short run, and everlasting life in the presence of God in the long run.  What more do you want?

[1] In fact, the playwright Archibald MacLeish wrote a play titled “J. B.” in 1952 which was much acclaimed. I read it as part of an English literature class taught by Jerry Healey at Bethel College in 1964.

[2] As Billy Joel has it, incorrectly I think.