"The wicked are overthrown, and are not; But the house of the righteous shall stand."Toy's rendition of this is: "The wicked are overthrown and vanish, but the house of the righteous stands."[10] "We have here another assurance of the instability of evil."[11] read more
"A man shall be commended according to his wisdom; But he that is of a perverse heart shall be despised.""A man is praised as he shows insight: a brainless creature is despised."[12] "A man is praised according to his wisdom, but men with warped minds are despised."[13] read more
"Better is he that is lightly esteemed, and hath a servant, Than he that honoreth himself, and lacketh bread.""It is better to be an ordinary man working for a living than to play the part of a great man but go hungry."[14] "Better a man of low rank with a servant, than one who makes a show and has to do his own work."[15] read more
"A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast; But the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel."A various reading for the second clause is, "The heart of the wicked is cruel," or "The heart of the wicked is without mercy."[16] This proverb reflects the thought of the commandment that, "Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn." (Deuteronomy 25:4). read more
"He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread; But he that followeth after vain persons is void of understanding."It was a rural society that first received this proverb, a society in which the majority of people tilled the land for a living. The words `his land' indicates ownership or occupancy of the land. "The `vain persons' of the second clause may also be accurately rendered as `worthless pursuits.'"[17] Some make up their own proverbs, as in this: "The man who tills his land will... read more
"The wicked desireth the net of evil men; But the root of the righteous yieldeth fruit.""The Hebrew here is obscure and meaningless in context; and the renditions are diverse. The KJV adds `fruit' (retained in the ASV), the RSV follows the LXX, the Douay Version of the Bible (New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1948), adds the word `fortification.'"[19] read more
"In the transgression of the lips is a snare to the evil man; But the righteous shall come out of trouble."Christ said, "By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned" (Matthew 12:37). "A wicked man is trapped by his own words, but an honest man gets himself out of trouble."[20] read more
"A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth; And the doings of a man's hands shall be rendered unto him.""A person is rewarded because of the good things that he says; and in the same way the work he does gives him profit."[21] One of the best ways to oil the gears of human relations, to make friends and influence people, is simply that of saying nice, friendly, complimentary and gracious things to the people with whom we are in daily contact. read more
"The way of a fool is right in his own eyes; But he that is wise hearkeneth unto counsel.""The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice."[22] read more
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Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Proverbs 12:6
"The words of the wicked are of lying in wait for blood; But the mouth of the upright shall deliver them."The antithetical contrast here regards the purpose of words: "The words of the wicked are for an evil purpose. Those of the righteous are for the purpose of delivering men."[9] read more