Proverbs 3:2 - Exposition

Length of days ( orek yamim ); Vulgate, longitudo dierum. The expression is literally "extension of days," and signifies the prolongation of life, its duration to the appointed limit—a meaning which is brought out in the LXX . μῆκος βίου , "length of days," the Greek word βίος being used, not of existence, but of the time and course of life. It occurs again in Proverbs 3:16 , and also in Job 12:12 and Psalms 21:4 . "Length of days" is represented as a blessing in the Old Testament, depending, however, as in the present instance, on the fulfilment of certain conditions. Thus in the fifth commandment it is appended to the honouring of parents ( Exodus 20:12 ), and it was promised to Solomon, at Gibeon, on the condition that he walked in the way, statutes, and commandments of God ( 1 Kings 3:14 ). The promise of prolongation of life is not to be pressed historically as applying to every individual case, but is to be taken as indicating the tendency of keeping the Divine precepts, which, as a rule, ensure preservation of health, and hence "length of days." Long life ( vush'noth khayyim ); literally, years of life ; Targum Jonathan, Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic, anni vitae ; LXX ; ἔτη ζωῆς . The Authorized Version scarcely serves to bring out the sense of the original, as there is practically no difference in meaning between "length of days" and "long life? The idea conveyed in the expression, "years of life," is that of material prosperity. The thought of an extended life is carried on from the preceding expression, but it is amplified and described. The years of life will be many, but they will be years of life in its truest sense, as one of true happiness and enjoyment, free from distracting cares, sickness, and other drawbacks. The Hebrew plural, khayyim, "lives," is equivalent to the Greek expression, βίος βιωτός , "a life worth while living" (cf. Plat; 'Apol.,' 38, A). To the Israelitish mind, the happiness of life consisted in "dwelling in the land" ( Deuteronomy 4:40 ; Deuteronomy 5:30 , etc.), and "abiding in the house of the Lord" ( Psalms 15:1 ; Psalms 23:6 ; Psalms 27:3 ) (Zockler). The conjecture that the plural, khayyim, signifies the present and the future life, is unfounded. The scope of the promise before us is confined to the present stage of existence, and it is negatived also by the similar use of the plural in Proverbs 16:5 , "In the light of the king's countenance is life ( khayyim ) , " where khayyim cannot possibly refer to the future life. Khayyim stands for life in its fulness. "Godliness" has indeed, as St. Paul wrote to Timothy, "promise of the life that now is, aud of that which is to come" ( 1 Timothy 4:8 ). Peace ( shalom ) . The verb shalam, from which the substantive shalom is derived, signifies "to be whole, sound, safe," and hence "peace" means internal and external contentment, and tran-quillity of mind arising from the sense of safety. In Proverbs 16:17 the ways of Wisdom are designated peace. While, on the one hand, peace is represented by the psalmist as the possession of those who love God's Law ( Psalms 119:165 ), on the other, it is denied the wicked ( Isaiah 48:22 ; Isaiah 57:21 ). Shall they add to thee ; i.e. shall the precepts and commands bring (Zockler) or heap upon (Muffet) thee.