Proverbs 11:31 - Exposition

The righteous shall be recompensed in the earth. Them are two ways of understanding this verse. The word rendered "recompensed," שַׁלַ ( shalam ) , is a vox media, and can be taken either in a good or bad sense. So the meaning will be, "The righteous meets with his reward upon earth, much more the sinner," the "reward" of the latter being, of course, punishment. But the versions lead to another interpretation, by which "recompensed" is rendered "chastised;" and the meaning is—if even the righteous shall be punished for their trespasses, as Moses, David, etc; how much more the wicked! The Septuagint, quoted exactly by St. Peter ( 1 Peter 4:18 ) has, "If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?"