Bible Commentaries
Proverbs 29

Verse 1

Pro 29:1

Proverbs 29:1

"He that being often reproved hardeneth his neck Shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy."

Often, hard-headed stubbornness is the reason behind the termination of one’s employment, or for his confrontations with others, which are potentially violent or even fatal. Our proverb, however, deals with one’s spiritual growth. It is the failure to heed the reproof and gentle instruction founded upon God’s Word that can damage and even destroy the soul. Proverbs 13:18 and Proverbs 15:10 also warn against the man who hates reproof.

Proverbs 29:1. Jehovah had tried to get Judah to do right, but they would not listen; therefore, He destroyed them without remedy: “Jehovah...sent to them by his messengers, rising up early and sending...but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until the wrath of Jehovah arose against his people, until there was no remedy” (2 Chronicles 36:15; 2 Chronicles 36:17). When wisdom is thus despised, this is the result: “Ye have set at naught all my counsel, and would none of my reproof...when your fear cometh as a storm, and your calamity cometh on as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish come upon you, then will they call upon me, but I will not answer” (Proverbs 1:25-28).

Verse 2

Pro 29:2

Proverbs 29:2

"When the righteous increase, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man beareth rule, the people sigh."

See discussion of this and related proverbs under Proverbs 28:28.

Proverbs 29:2. The contrast is between a righteous and a wicked ruler and between the people’s rejoicing under the righteous ruler and their sighing under the wicked. Previous contrasts involving the same in Proverbs: “When it goeth well with the righteous, the city rejoiceth; And when the wicked perish, there is shouting” (Proverbs 11:10); “When the righteous triumph, there is great glory; But when the wicked rise, men hide themselves” (Proverbs 28:12); “When the wicked rise, men hide themselves; But when they perish, the righteous increase” (Proverbs 28:28).

Verse 3

Pro 29:3

Proverbs 29:3

"Whoso loveth wisdom rejoiceth his father; But he that keepeth company with harlots wasteth his substance."

This proverb is only a slight variation from at least a dozen others that stress the same truth. "Licentiousness is put as the opposite of wisdom in Proverbs 2:10; Proverbs 2:16; Proverbs 5:1-3; Proverbs 6:23-24; Proverbs 9:1; Proverbs 9:13. Additionally, the first line is found in Proverbs 10:1; Proverbs 23:13; Proverbs 23:24; Proverbs 27:11; and line two is similar to Proverbs 5:9-10.”

Proverbs 29:3. This verse talks of two altogether different kinds of sons and the consequences. Other passages showing a son’s conduct’s effect upon his parents: “A wise son maketh a glad father; But a foolish son is the heaviness of his mother” (Proverbs 10:1); “A wise son maketh a glad father, But a foolish man despiseth his mother” (Proverbs 15:20); “My son, be wise, and make my heart glad” (Proverbs 27:11), Yes, men have been made poor though their evil lusts: “Lest strangers be filled with thy strength” (Proverbs 5:10)—margin says “wealth” instead of “strength”; “On account of a harlot a man is brought to a piece of bread” (Proverbs 6:26). The Prodigal Son “wasted his substance with riotous living” (Luke 15:13). According to his elder brother, he spent it on “harlots” (Luke 15:30).

Verse 4

Pro 29:4

Proverbs 29:4

"The king by justice establisheth the land; But he that exacteth gifts overthroweth it."

A policy of excessive taxation has usually been the primary cause of every fallen government in the history of the world. "A king by justice gives stability to a land, but he whose exactions are excessive ruins it.” This rendition is applicable, not merely to excessive taxation, but to bribery by the `exaction of gifts.’ "By justice a king gives stability to the land, but one who exacts gifts ruins it.”

Proverbs 29:4. A double contrast: “by justice” vs. “exacteth gifts” and “establisheth the land” vs. “overthroweth it”. When a king rules according to the laws of justice, things go well with both him and the land, for God blesses, and the people are happy. The bribe-taking king (“he that exacteth gifts”) overthrows it because such is not right, God is not pleased, and the people do not approve it.

Verse 5

Pro 29:5

Proverbs 29:5

"A man that flattereth his neighbor, Spreadeth a net for his steps."

"One who flatters another seeks to deceive and usually has an ulterior motive.” One should always be suspicious of fulsome praise.

Proverbs 29:5. Flattery is insincere compliments. This verse shows it is “buttering” a person in order to “eat” him. “A flattering tongue worketh ruin” (Proverbs 26:28). When some people speak “fair”, they should not be believed; their hearts may be filled with abominations (Proverbs 26:25), The flatteries of our verse are nothing more than something that will draw one’s attentions away from the net that is being spread in one’s way. Such operate on the idea expressed in Proverbs 1:17 : “In vain is the net spread in the sight of any bird.”

Verse 6

Pro 29:6

Proverbs 29:6

"In the transgression of an evil man there is a snare; But the righteous doth sing and rejoice."

"The snare is that the sinner is caught and held fast by his sin. It becomes a habit which he is unwilling or unable to break.” The contrast here is not very obvious. "It means (1) either that the good man has a peaceful conscience free of the snare of sin, or (2) that, although the righteous man has also sinned, he has repented; God has forgiven him, and therefore he sings.”

Proverbs 29:6. The contrast within the verse shows that the “snare” ensnares the transgressor himself. This very language is used in several other passages, all relating to one’s transgression: “A fool’s mouth is his destruction, And his lips are the snare of his soul” (Proverbs 18:7); “It is a snare to a man rashly to say, It is holy and vows to make inquiry (Proverbs 20:25); “Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul” (Proverbs 22:25). But righteousness does not ensnare one; it leads to singing and rejoicing.

Verse 7

Pro 29:7

Proverbs 29:7

"The righteous taketh knowledge of the cause of the poor; The wicked hath not understanding to know it."

"The righteous man is concerned for the cause of the helpless, but the wicked understand no such concern.” There is no test that separates the wicked from the righteous as effectively as this one. The Christ himself said, "Blessed are ye poor"; and to ignore the rights and necessities of the poor, in all dispensations of God’s love, is the invariable hallmark of the wicked.

Proverbs 29:7. The righteous give to the poor because they first of all take knowledge of their situation and then care. Because the wicked do not care, they do not bother themselves to take knowledge of their condition, and if they know about it, they dismiss it from their thoughts. Job is an example of one who investigated need: “I was a father to the needy: And the cause of him that I knew not I searched out” (Job 29:16). Psalms 41 :l says, “Blessed is he that considereth the poor.” This would not be the priest and the Levite of Jesus’ parable (Luke 10:31; Luke 10:33).

Verse 8

Pro 29:8

Proverbs 29:8

"Scoffers set a city in a flame; But wise men turn away wrath."

"Unscrupulous men kindle strife in a city; the sensible discourage party-spirit.” "Insolent men set the city in an uproar, but wise men assuage popular anger.” These three renditions give us three synonyms for the evil man in line one: "scoffers, unscrupulous, and insolent."

Proverbs 29:8. The setting of this verse is an attacked or besieged city. Men may scoff at the enemy that is able to overthrow the city. Conquerors often spared a city destruction if it surrendered, but if it resisted, it was conquered and then destroyed. Thus, “it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked” (Proverbs 11:11). The wise men who turn away wrath would be those who, seeing that they were hopelessly outnumbered and defeated, asked for terms or conditions of peace.

Verse 9

Pro 29:9

Proverbs 29:9

"If a wise man hath a controversy with a foolish man, Whether he be angry or laugh, there will be no rest."

"The subject of the second line is uncertain; but the proverb seems to be a warning against a wise man’s going to law with a fool.” "When an intelligent man brings a lawsuit against a fool, the fool only laughs and becomes loud and abusive.” "If a wise man has an argument with a fool, the fool only rages and laughs, and there is no quiet.” The RSV is superior here.

Proverbs 29:9. When a foolish men is encountered in a controversy, he may get angry (realizing he is getting the worst end of it), or he may laugh (not sensing that he is being defeated). Such a controversy never comes to a suitable, satisfying point of conclusion as it should. “Pulpit Commentary”: “After all has been said, the fool only falls into a passion or laughs at the matter, argument is wasted upon him, and the controversy is never settled.” “Wordsworth”: “The irreligious fool is won neither by the austere preaching of John the Baptist nor by the mild teaching of Christ, but rejects both (Matthew 11:16-19).”

Verse 10

Pro 29:10

Proverbs 29:10

"The bloodthirsty hate him that is perfect; And as for the upright, they seek his life."

The inherent antagonism between good men and bad men, between righteousness and wickedness, between God and sin appears here. "And Cain who was of the evil one slew his brother; and wherefore slew he him? because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous" (1 John 3:12). The very goodness of righteous, God-fearing people is more than sufficient grounds for the murderous hatred of them by wicked people.

Proverbs 29:10. One must pause to analyze this verse. It is Hebrew parallelism in which the latter statement is a restatement of the first. Let us rerun the verse in our own understanding of it: “The bloodthirsty hate him that is perfect; they (the bloodthirsty) seek the life of the upright.” Why do they do this? Some out of envy (like Cain—1 John 3:12). Some because they are rebuked by the upright (like Ahab—1 Kings 22:7-8). Some because the upright are an abomination to them (see Proverbs 29:27 of this chapter). Some because they fear the upright (like King Saul—1 Samuel 18:5-9; 1 Samuel 24:17-20; 1 Samuel 26:1-2). Some because they can more easily get what the perfect have than they can what others have (see Proverbs 1:11-13). Three times does Psalms 37 refer to the wicked seeking to devour the righteous: “The wicked plotteth against the just, And gnasheth upon him with his teeth” (Psalms 37:12); “The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, To cast down the poor and needy, to slay such as are upright in the way” (Psalms 37:14); “The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him” (Psalms 37:32).

Verse 11

Pro 29:11

Proverbs 29:11

"A fool uttereth all his anger; But a wise man keepeth it back and stilleth it."

The KJV has this: "A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterward.” "This indicates that a wise man restrains his anger till he can give it proper vent.” "Stupid people express their anger openly, but sensible people are patient and hold it back.” We like this because it means that righteous people overcome their anger.

Proverbs 29:11. A fool does not exercise self-control, for self-control is based upon wisdom which he does not have. Therefore, a wise person quiets his spirit when it could erupt, but a fool doesn’t. Compare Proverbs 14:33 : “Wisdom resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding; but that which is in the inward part of fools is made known.”

Verse 12

Pro 29:12

Proverbs 29:12

"If a ruler hearkeneth to falsehood, All his servants are wicked."

"If a ruler listens to lies, then all his servants will be evil.” "If a ruler listens to lies, then all his servants become depraved.” As these renditions stand, they seem to say that a king’s listening to falsehoods would somehow make his servants evil. Toy commented that, "The courtiers adjust themselves to the prince.” We cannot find any support in any of the versions or commentators for our feeling that something else is meant here. "If a king, or any other man in authority, can be moved by false reports that he heeds, then false reports will be lodged against all his servants by evil men seeking to replace them." If a king believes falsehoods, he will soon have no confidence in any of his servants!

Proverbs 29:12. This verse pictures a wicked ruler of which there have been many. Both their advisers are wicked (he hearkens to their “falsehood”), and his servants are “wicked”. A wicked ruler, wicked counselors, and wicked servants can only add up to a wicked reign.

Verse 13

Pro 29:13

Proverbs 29:13

"The poor man and the oppressor meet together; Jehovah lighteneth the eyes of them both."

Cook rendered "oppressor" here as "usurer,” and the last line as, "God bestows his light equally on both." This, of course, is the equivalent of, "God maketh his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust" (Matthew 5:45).

Proverbs 29:13. Proverbs 22:2 is similar. Whether a man is poor or an oppressor, God has made him (Proverbs 22:2), he lives in God’s world, and he is a recipient of God’s good whether he makes good use or it or not: “He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sendeth rain on the just and the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). This does not say that God is pleased with both (or with either).

Verse 14

Pro 29:14

Proverbs 29:14

"The king that faithfully judgeth the poor, His throne shall be established forever."

Proverbs 16:12 and Proverbs 25:12 are similar. Throughout Proverbs, it is taught that, "The perpetual duration of a dynasty depends not upon intellectual or physical superiority, but upon moral character.”

Proverbs 29:14, There will be the poor in every king’s realm, and the law of God is to care for them: “The poor will never cease out of the land: therefore I command thee, saying, ‘thou shalt surely open thy hand unto thy brother, to thy needy, and to thy poor, in thy land” (Deuteronomy 15:11). This verse makes a special promise to the king who obeys God’s will in the matter as does Psalms 72:2-3 : ‘“He will judge thy people with righteousness, And thy poor with justice. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, And the hills, in righteousness.” Other factors establishing one’s throne: “Kindness and truth” (Proverbs 20:28); “Righteousness” (Proverbs 25:5),

Verse 15

Pro 29:15

Proverbs 29:15

"The rod and reproof give wisdom; But a child left to himself causeth shame to his mother."

Proverbs 13:24 and Proverbs 23:13 also deal with discipline for children. See comments under similar proverbs. In several other disciplinary instructions, the undisciplined son is said to cause shame, grief, etc. to his father; and the wise or well-disciplined son is said to bring joy to his father. See Proverbs 17:21 and Proverbs 23:24-25. Toy noted that, "The mother might have been mentioned here (1) because she is charged with the principal duty of rearing the child, or (2) merely for rhetorical purposes.” Really, what is said of either parent, in this connection, is certainly true of both.

Proverbs 29:15. When children misbehave, they need correction (“Correct thy son, and he will give thee rest”—Proverbs 29:17), If you don’t, if you let him keep on in his ways, he will bring “shame to his mother” and other heartaches to both parents: “A foolish son is the heaviness of his mother” (Proverbs 10:1); “He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow; And the father of a fool hath no joy” (Proverbs 17:21); “A foolish son is a grief to his father, And bitterness to her that bare him” (Proverbs 17:25). In correcting, some merely “talk” to their children, and others merely “whip” them. But this verse points out the necessity of doing both properly, for it speaks of the “rod” (whipping) and of “reproof” (talking) giving wisdom. Don’t you want your child to be wise? Then wisely reprove him and wisely whip him. This is Bible: Proverbs 19:18; Proverbs 22:15; Proverbs 23:13-14; Ephesians 6:4; Hebrews 12:9. A child “left to himself” is one who is neglected, whose parents have not taught him, have not overseen him, have not been with him, have not loved him, and have not corrected him. “Pulpit Commentary”: “The verb translated ‘left’ is used in Job 39:5 of the wild ass left to wander free where it wills.” No child is capable of self-rearing. Such neglected offspring “causeth shame”. His parents who neglected him will be ashamed of him, and his desire to get away from home will probably be matched by their relief to see him go!

Verse 16

Pro 29:16

Proverbs 29:16

"When the wicked are increased, transgression increaseth; But the righteous shall look upon their fall."

Other proverbs in the same vein of thought are: Proverbs 11:10-11; Proverbs 28:12; Proverbs 28:28; and Proverbs 29:2, above. See comments under those references. "Here the proverb carries the theme further than the other passages by its closing assurance.”

Proverbs 29:16. The more wicked those people are, the more sin there will be. Sin spreads like a mighty contagion: “Because iniquity shall be multiplied, the love of the many will wax cold” (Matthew 24:12). John tells us that there has been a big “take-over” of this world by sin: “The whole world lieth in the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Paul speaks of “this present evil world” (Galatians 1:4). If you “follow the crowd,” you will be lost, for Jesus said, “Wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many are they that enter in thereby” (Matthew 7:14). Knowing the tendency of mankind to do whatever the crowd does, Exodus 23:2 says, “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to turn aside after a multitude to wrest justice”. Thank God, there will always be some who will not give in to the ways of the world. They are “the righteous”. There will always be a “Noah” or a “Jeremiah” or an “Elijah” or a “Daniel” or a “Caleb and Joshua” to uphold what is right and who will be spared when the wicked fall: “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall surely abide under the shadow of the Almighty...A thousand shall fall at thy side, And ten thousand at thy right hand; But it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold, And see the reward of the wicked” (Psalms 91:1-8).

Verse 17

Pro 29:17

Proverbs 29:17

"Correct thy son, and he will give thee rest; Yea, he will give delight unto thy soul."

See my discussion of discipline under Proverbs 29:15.

Proverbs 29:17. Any godly parent is grieved at the wrongdoing of a child. And an undisciplined child will go from bad to worse until his parents’ nerves can take no more. “Correct” him, and he will give you “rest”; yes, and more: he will actually grow out into something good to bring “Delight” to your heart. Your author observes in his book, “Simple, Stimulating Studies in the Proverbs”: “Some parents have no rest because of the misdeeds of their children. They are always into something, always tearing something up, always breaking something, always doing something the parents don’t want them to do; in short, they weary the parents going from one thing to another. The right kind of correction...will not only give you rest concerning your child, but the child will actually be a delight to your soul. What a difference!”

Verse 18

Pro 29:18

Proverbs 29:18

"Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; But he that keepeth the law, happy is he."

Both the American Standard Version and the RSV butchered this beautiful verse, neither of them approaching the grandeur of the KJV. "Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

Proverbs 29:18. The word “vision” here implies the inspired message of God (often by a living representative of it). When there was not prophet to reveal God’s will to the people or no preacher to hinder their going into sin, people get into sin with nothing to restrain them. “We note the license of Eli’s time, when there was no open vision (1 Samuel 3:1); in Asa’s day, when Israel had long been without a teaching priest (2 Chronicles 15:3); and when the impious Ahaz ‘made Judah naked’ (2 Chronicles 28:19); or when the people were destroyed by reason of lack of knowledge of Divine things (Hosea 4:6)” (“Pulpit Commentary”). Yet, even in those days there would still be some who would keep the law, and those who did would be blessed of God: “Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it” (Luke 11:28); “If you know these things, blessed are ye if ye do them” (John 13:17); “He that looketh into the perfect law...and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing” (James 1:25).

Verse 19

Pro 29:19

Proverbs 29:19

"A servant will not be corrected by words; For though he understand, he will not give heed."

"The servant mentioned here is a slave whose obedience is reluctant.” Such a person will deliberately refuse to be properly instructed.

Proverbs 29:19. Servants were an uneducated group of persons. Personal gain and advancement held no motivation for them. There were likely times when they would sulk. When they got into this mood, it took more than words to get them going again, Bodily punishment was the only “language” that would get through to them (“A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, And a rod for the back of fools”—Proverbs 26:3), and sometimes not even that worked (“A rebuke entereth deeper into one that hath understanding than a hundred stripes into a fool”—Proverbs 17:10). Such sullen, unresponding stubbornness might result in his death or his sale. An observation: Such stubbornness is not limited to slaves of long-ago. There are people who will not respond to words of wisdom, for even though they understand, they prefer the preservation of their ego than giving heed to the wisdom of another.

Verse 20

Pro 29:20

Proverbs 29:20

"Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? There is more hope of a fool than of him."

This is the same as Proverbs 26:12, except there it is the man "who is wise in his own conceit" who is more hopeless than a fool. Here it is the man who is hasty in his words.

Proverbs 29:20. Yes, there are some who are hasty of speech. They may be nervous, fidgety people to whom a moment of silence is killing and who speak from the top of their heads instead of the bottom their hearts. Such will have many an apology to make throughout life or suffer the loss of friends. Or some are hasty of speech because of not being aware of the problems that can be caused by such utterances. We have a saying, “Think before you speak.” Some say, “think twice before you speak.” A quick-tongued person suffers from this verse’s comparison (“There is more hope of a fool than of him”) as does a conceited man in Proverbs 26:12.

Verse 21

Pro 29:21

Proverbs 29:21

"He that delicately bringeth up a servant from a child Shall have him become a son at the last."

"We really do not know the significance of the word rendered `a son’ (or `an heir’ in the margin), and so this verse is obscure.”

Proverbs 29:21. “Delicately bringeth up” means to pamper, to spoil, to give one privileges and favors without expecting corresponding responsibilities and obligations. On “son”, the marginal note reads: “The meaning of the word is doubtful,” accounting for various translations: “ungrateful” (Ewald); “as a son” (“American Bible Union”); “his continuator” (“Young’s Literal”). “Clarke” observes that “such persons are generally forgetful of their obligations, assume the rights and privileges of children, and are seldom good for anything.” Isn’t that true of most people who are “delicately brought up”, pampered, spoiled? Such boys grow up to be men in name only, and such girls grow up to be poor wives.

Verse 22

Pro 29:22

Proverbs 29:22

"An angry man stirreth up strife, And a wrathful man aboundeth in transgression."

We have already discussed the issues presented here under Proverbs 15:18 and Proverbs 22:24.

Proverbs 29:22. Hebrew parallelism again: “angry man” and “wrathful man”; “stirreth up” and “aboundeth”; and “strife” and “transgression”. Proverbs 15:8 says, “A wrathful man stirreth up contention;” and Proverbs 28:25 says, “He that is of a greedy spirit stirreth up strife.” One who is angry is stirred up, and this causes him to say things and to do things that stirs up strife in others. This “strife” is not usually a passing thing, but it causes transgression to abound, Because of this Ephesians 4:26 says, “be ye angry, and sin not.” In other words, when angry, take care that you do not sin by what you do and say. How can one keep from sinning further when angry? By taking care of oneself instead of the other fellow: “Let not the sun go down upon your wrath” (Ephesians 4:26)—get yourself under control immediately. Let us remember James 1:20 : “The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.”

Verse 23

Pro 29:23

Proverbs 29:23

"A man’s pride shall bring him low; But he that is of a lowly spirit shall obtain honor."

We have exactly the same admonition here that is found in Proverbs 11:2; Proverbs 16:18-19. See comment there. Pride, insolence, arrogance and similar evil and `superior’ attitudes toward others are vigorously condemned throughout Proverbs.

Proverbs 29:23. Each individual will have likes and dislikes, spirit, and desires, but just as Proverbs 29:22 shows that such can get out of control by way of anger, this verse shows that such can get out of control by way of pride. Man’s pride is when he is puffed up, but such actually leads down instead of up. Humility (being of a lowly spirit) actually leads up instead. Others sense a person’s pride and deplore it. So does God. Both are against promoting such. For teaching and instances of this subject, see Proverbs 15:33; Proverbs 16:18; Proverbs 18:12; Isaiah 66:2; Daniel 4:30-31; Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11; Luke 18:14; Acts 12:23; James 4:6; James 4:10; I. Pet. Proverbs 5:6.

Verse 24

Pro 29:24

Proverbs 29:24

"Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul; He heareth the adjuration and uttereth nothing."

"The background of this appears to be the situation described in Leviticus 5:1. A curse is pronounced upon an unknown thief, which is heard by one of the thief’s associates. However, the associate does not reveal what he knows; and so he bears the full brunt of the curse, as well as the thief. Such a man, `hates his own soul.’ The crime is bad enough, but the failure to confess is suicidal.” The mention of the word `adjuration,’ here, "Is probably a reference to an oath in court, thus adding perjury to dishonesty.”

Proverbs 29:24. This is a court scene. The thief is brought in, and the one wronged. The judge has pronounced a curse upon the thief and upon anyone who knows the crime but refuses to divulge the information. He “hateth his own soul” in that he is bringing a curse upon himself by his action.

Verse 25

Pro 29:25

Proverbs 29:25

"The fear of man bringeth a snare; But whoso putteth his trust in Jehovah shall be safe."

We may paraphrase this thus: "Fear man; fall into a trap; fear God; receive eternal life." Trusting in the Lord and fearing God are one and the same thing. Christ himself dealt with this. "And I say unto you, my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, who after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell. Yea, I say unto you, Fear him" (Luke 12:4-5).

Proverbs 29:25. What “snare”? “The snare of the devil” (2 Timothy 2:26). Fearing men caused Abraham to deny that Sarah was his wife (Genesis 12:11-13; Genesis 20:2), some of the Jewish rulers who believed on Jesus not to say openly (John 12:42), Peter to deny Jesus (Matthew 26:69-74) and to withdraw himself from some Gentiles (Galatians 2:12), leaders to compromise the truth (1 Samuel 15:24), weak Christians to recant under persecution (Matthew 13:20-21), etc. This is one of the greatest causes of preachers failing to preach the Word of God as they should.

Verse 26

Pro 29:26

Proverbs 29:26

"Many seek the ruler’s favor; But a man’s judgment cometh from Jehovah."

"Many seek the favor of a ruler, but from the Lord a man gets justice.” "Many seek the presence of a ruler; but only from the Lord may one expect justice.” The weakness and corruption of all human systems of jurisprudence are suggested by this.

Proverbs 29:26. The last statement of the verse indicates that people try to buy off the king from condemning them in court. They will do everything they can (legitimate and illegitimate) to secure his favorable verdict, but even if they succeed in doing this, they still have God to deal with. Men may have let Jonah on board, but God still prevailed in his case. Ahab may have gotton Naboth’s vineyard, but God didn’t let him enjoy it (1 Kings 21:17-19).

Verse 27

Pro 29:27

Proverbs 29:27

"An unjust man is an abomination to the righteous, But he that is upright in the way is an abomination to the wicked."

Again, as in Proverbs 29:10, above, we have a statement of the eternal antagonism between good and evil. We like the way the Anchor Bible rendered it: "A depraved man is abominable to the just, as an honest man is abominable to the wicked one.”

Proverbs 29:27. The just and the unjust live in the same world, both eat to sustain physical life, live in houses, etc., but there the comparison ends, for they have adopted altogether different ways of living. The righteous deplore the ways of the wicked (stealing, lying, cheating, drinking, fighting, hating, immorality, etc.). Jesus commended the church at Ephesus: “Thou canst not bear evil men” (Revelation 2:2). But the wicked deplore the upright just as much, for their ways are a rebuke to them. The wicked have often persecuted the righteous.

Proverbs of Solomon - Proverbs 29:1-27

Open It

1. About what sort of issues do you tend to be stubborn?

2. What gets you mad?

3. Why do you think crime is increasing in our society?

Explore It

4. What fate awaits the person who is stubborn, or stiff-necked? (Proverbs 29:1)

5. What characters did Solomon talk about in these proverbs? (Proverbs 29:1-27)

6. How did Solomon distinguish between the wicked, the wise, and the foolish? (Proverbs 29:1-27)

7. What damage does a flatterer do? (Proverbs 29:5)

8. By what is an evil person snared? (Proverbs 29:6)

9. About what do righteous people care? (Proverbs 29:7)

10. How do the fool and the wise person deal with anger? (Proverbs 29:11)

11. What imparts wisdom? (Proverbs 29:15)

12. When do people cast off restraint? (Proverbs 29:18)

13. What did Solomon say about the person who speaks in haste? (Proverbs 29:20)

14. What did Solomon say about fear? (Proverbs 29:25)

15. From where do we get justice? (Proverbs 29:26)

Get It

16. Why will people be stubborn even when they know they are wrong?

17. How can flattery hurt a person being flattered?

18. How can a person be ensnared in his or her own evil?

19. Why are the poor generally denied justice?

20. How do you vent your anger and frustration?

21. What is the right way to deal with anger?

22. What is the relationship between correction and wisdom?

23. Why do people cast off restraint when they are ignorant of God’s Word?

24. When do we usually speak without thinking?

25. How can we be responsible and not hasty with our words?

Apply It

26. In what specific area of your life do you need to be more flexible and less stubborn?

27. How can you better manage the way in which you deal with or express anger?