Proverbs 21:17 - Exposition

He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man; qui diligit epulas, Vulgate; for feasts are chiefly, though not exclusively, intended. He shall become "a man of want" ( machesor ) as Proverbs 11:24 . He that loveth wine and oil shall not be rich. "Wine and oil" were the usual adjuncts of banquets ( Psalms 23:5 ; Psalms 104:15 ). Some unguents used for anointing honoured guests were very costly. The pound of spikenard expended by Mary of Bethany was worth mere than three hundred pence—the wages of a labourer for nearly a whole year (see John 12:3 ; Matthew 20:2 ). Indulgence in such luxuries would be a token of prodigality and extravagance, which are the sure precursors of ruin; while, on the other hand, according to the trite proverb, Magnum vectigal est parsimonia. That fulness of meat and luxurious habits tend to spiritual poverty and the loss of grace, need not be insisted on. Septuagint, "A man in want ( ἐνδεὴς ) loveth mirth, loving wine and oil unto wealth ( εἰς πλοῦτον )." Some translate the last words, "in abundance," as if the meaning was that the poor endeavours to mitigate the severity of his lot by getting all the pleasure he can from creature comforts however procured. Others think that a negative has fallen out of the Greek, which should be, "not unto wealth," i.e. he shall not be enriched thereby.