Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 10:15
The rich man’s wealth [is] his strong city: the destruction of the poor [is] their poverty.
15. destruction ] The Heb. word is the same as in Pro 10:14. If we take it here, too, to denote a tottering building, ready to fall upon its tenant and bury him beneath its ruins, the parallelism is complete.
We have here an instance of the candour and sobriety of the moral teaching of this Book. Wealth has its advantages and poverty its drawbacks, and the fact is honestly stated. There is nothing of the unreality which represents poverty as in itself desirable, or wealth as in itself to be avoided. Comp. Pro 18:11.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Destruction – That which crushes, throws into ruins. Wealth secures its possessors against many dangers; poverty exposes men to worse evils than itself, meanness, servility, and cowardice. Below the surface there lies, it may be, a grave irony against the rich; see Pro 18:11.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Pro 10:15
The rich mans wealth is his strong city.
The money power
Here he is describing what is, rather than prescribing what ought to be. In all ages and in all lands money has been a mighty power, and its relative importance increases with the advance of civilisation. It does not reach the Divine purpose; but it controls human action. The Jews wield this money power in a greater degree than any other people. Over against this formidable power stands the counterpart weakness–the destruction of the poor is their poverty. This feebleness of the body politic is as difficult to deal with as its active diseases. If pauperism be not so acute an affection as crime it is more widely spread, and requires as much of the doctors care. Besides being an ailment itself, it is a predisposition to other and more dangerous evils. We are under law to God. The wheels of His providence are high and dreadful. If we presumptuously or ignorantly stand in their way, they will crush us by their mighty movements. We must set ourselves, by social arrangements, to diminish temptations, and by moral appliances to reclaim the vicious, if we expect to thrive or even to exist as a community. Money answereth all things in its own legitimate province of material supply, but when beyond its province you ask it to stop the gaps which vice is making, it is a dumb idol–it has no answer to give at all. A large proportion of the penniless are in a greater or less degree reckless. Partly their recklessness has made them poor, and partly their poverty has made them reckless. When a multitude who are all poor combine for united action, rash and regardless spirits gain influence and direct their course. Money, though a bad master, is a good servant. Money to the working man would answer all the ends which a strike contemplates, if each, by patient industry and temperance, would save a portion for himself. The whole community of rich and poor, linked together in their various relations, may be likened to a living body. The promiscuous mass of human beings that are welded together by their necessities and interests in this island is like a strong swimmer in the sea, and alas! it is too often like a strong swimmer in his agony. Two truths stand out conspicuously from all the confusion. The world has a righteous Ruler, and the Ruler has a dislocated world to deal with. (W. Arnot, D.D.)
The destruction of the poor is their poverty.—
The destruction of the poor
1. Poor people mostly remain poor, for want of the means of rising.
2. The poor are sometimes despised and downtrodden by the proud.
3. They are often reckless, spending their little foolishly. But for this numbers would be richer.
4. They are especially tempted to dishonesty. (Wesleyan S. S. Magazine.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 15. The rich man’s wealth is his strong city] Behold a mystery in providence; there is not a rich man on earth but becomes such by means of the poor! Property comes from the labour of the poor, and the king himself is served of the field. How unjust, diabolically so, is it to despise or oppress those by whose labour all property is acquired!
The destruction of the poor is their poverty.] A man in abject poverty never arises out of this pit. They have no nucleus about which property may aggregate. The poet spoke well: –
Haud facile emergunt, quorum virtutibus obstat
Res angusta domi.
“They rarely emerge from poverty, whose exertions
are cramped by want at home.”
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Is his strong city; either,
1. Really, as money is called a defence, Ecc 7:12, because it ofttimes redeems a man from dangers and calamities. Or,
2. In his own conceit, as it is explained, and fully expressed, Pro 18:11. It makes him secure and confident.
The destruction; it is the cause of their ruin. Or, the contrition, or the terror, or consternation, as others, both ancient and modern, render it. Their poverty takes away their spirit and courage, and fills them with fear and despair.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
15. Both by trusting in”uncertain riches” (1Ti6:17), or by the evils of poverty (Pr30:9), men, not fearing God, fall into dangers.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The rich man’s wealth [is] his strong city,…. What a fortified city is to persons in time of war, that is a rich man’s wealth to him; by it he can defend himself from the injuries of others, and support himself and family in times of public calamity; for money is a defence, and answers all things, Ec 7:12. Or his wealth is so in his own apprehension and conceit; he puts his trust and confidence in it, and thinks himself safe and secure by it; when he is trusting to uncertain riches, which will fail him; these may fly away from him in life, and leave him exposed to distress and danger; and, however, will not secure him at death from the wrath of God and everlasting destruction. Or he is lifted up with his riches, is in high spirits, and despises others; thinking himself safe, as in a strong castle, and fears nothing, distresses, diseases, or death;
the destruction of the poor [is] their poverty: or their poverty is their consternation, as the word h signifies, it frightens them; they, knowing their circumstances, are afraid of everybody and of every thing; not being able to defend themselves against their enemies, or support themselves in times of public calamity, as war, famine, or pestilence.
h “consternatio”, Mercerus, Gejerus, Michaelis.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
A pair of proverbs regarding possession and gain.
Regarding possession:
The rich man’s wealth is his strong city;
The destruction of the poor is their poverty.
The first line = Pro 18:11. One may render the idea according to that which is internal, and according to that which is external; and the proverb remains in both cases true. As may mean, of itself alone, power, as means of protection, or a bulwark (Psa 8:3), or the consciousness of power, high feeling, pride (Jdg 5:21); so may be rendered as an object of self-confidence, and , on the contrary, as an object of terror (Jer 48:39): the rich man, to whom his estate ( vid., on , p. 63) affords a sure reserve and an abundant source of help, can appear confident and go forth energetically; on the contrary, the poor man is timid and bashful, and is easily dejected and discouraged. Thus e.g., Oetinger and Hitzig. But the objective interpretation is allowable, and lies also much nearer: the rich man stands thus independent, changes and adversities cannot so easily overthrow him, he is also raised above many hazards and temptations; on the contrary, the poor man is overthrown by little misfortunes, and his despairing endeavours to save himself, when they fail, ruin him completely, and perhaps make him at the same time a moral outlaw. It is quite an experienced fact which this proverb expresses, but one from which the double doctrine is easily derived: (1) That it is not only advised, but also commanded, that man make the firm establishing of his external life-position the aim of his endeavour; (2) That one ought to treat with forbearance the humble man; and if he always sinks deeper and deeper, one ought not to judge him with unmerciful harshness and in proud self-exaltation.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
15 The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.
This may be taken two ways:– 1. As a reason why we should be diligent in our business, that we may avoid that sinking dispiriting uneasiness which attends poverty, and may enjoy the benefit and comfort which those have that are beforehand in the world. Taking pains is really the way to make ourselves and our families easy. Or, rather, 2. As a representation of the common mistakes both of rich and poor, concerning their outward condition. (1.) Rich people think themselves happy because they are rich; but it is their mistake: The rich man’s wealth is, in his own conceit, his strong city, whereas the worst of evils it is too weak and utterly insufficient to protect them from. It will prove that they are not so safe as they imagine; nay, their wealth may perhaps expose them. (2.) Poor people think themselves undone because they are poor; but it is their mistake: The destruction of the poor is their poverty; it sinks their spirits, and ruins all their comforts; whereas a man may live very comfortably, though he has but a little to live on, if he be but content, and keep a good conscience, and live by faith.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Poverty and Wealth
(Pro 10:15)
Verse 15 contrasts wealth, regarded by the rich as their strength, with the ills to which poverty exposes the poor (see Pro 14:20; Pro 19:7; Pro 22:7). Job said if he regarded riches as his hope, it was an iniquity for which he would be punished, Job 31:24; Job 31:18. David warned of God’s judgment on the man who made not God his strength, but trusted in his riches, Psa 52:5-7. Paul also urged Timothy to charge the rich to trust the living God rather than uncertain riches, 1Ti 6:17. The lesson here is that one should face the reality of the disadvantages of poverty with trust in the LORD. This, however, is not an excuse for laziness, Pro 6:6-11, nor despair, Psa 37:25.)
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
CRITICAL NOTES.
Pro. 10:16. Labour, i.e., the gain, the reward of labour. Fruit, gain, antithetical to the subject of the first clause.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPHPro. 10:15-16
A FALSE AND A TRUE ESTIMATE OF LIFE
I. A false estimate of life in its relation to riches. It is a mistake to look on wealth as a strong city in which we can be secure from the evils of life. A commander, who knows that there is behind him a fortress into which he can retire in case of need, may be brought to ruin by forming an over-estimate of its security. He may underrate the ability of the enemy to follow him thither. Strongholds have been undermined, and those who had trusted in their strength have been destroyed by that very confidence; or pestilence has broken out on account of the number who have taken refuge in the fortress, and so that which they deemed their strength has been their weakness. These events have proved that the estimate taken of their safety was a wrong onethat even the refuge itself might be a cause of destruction. So with a rich mans wealth. If he looks upon it as a resource under all emergenciesif he thinks it can purchase him immunity from all illshe is a terrible self-deceiver. Wealth cannot drive back disease; nothing can keep death from storming his stronghold; and sometimes a single day brings together such an army of adverse circumstances that the strong city goes down before it, and is never rebuilt, or the very refuge itself is the cause of moral ruin. Therefore Let not the rich man glory in his riches (Jer. 9:23).
II. A false estimate of life in relation to poverty. It is a mistake also to look on poverty as a destruction. If the rich man errs on the side of excessive confidence, the poor man errs on that of fearfulness. He should remember
1. That the blessedness of life here does not consist in what a man has, but in what he is. Wealth may be a curse to existence, and so may poverty, but a good conscience, a godly character, is a continual feast. And it is quite as easy, perhaps more so, to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God in poverty as in wealth. A mans life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth (Luk. 12:15). This is the declaration of Him who created man, and who, therefore, knows his needs. The poor are the objects of His special regard. Hath not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him? (Jas. 2:5).
2. He should keep in mind the day of levelling and compensation. Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things, but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented (Luk. 16:25).
III. A right estimate of that which constitutes life, viz., righteous labour. (Pro. 10:16.) The first clause of this verse suggests
(1) that there can be no true life without righteousness;
(2) that righteousness must show that it exists by honest labour;
(3) that the honest labour of a righteous man, whether of hand or brain, shall bless his existence. From the second clause we learn
(1) that godless men likewise labour for a harvest. There are as hard workers among the godless as among the good. They toil for earthly gain all the more earnestly because they have no other to possess: that which belongs to the present life is their all.
(2.) That there is no blessing in the gain of the ungodly. The gain of a sinner only tends to confirm him in his ungodlinessit tendeth to sin. If a tree is bad at the root the larger it grows the more bad fruit it will bear. The richer a bad man grows the worse he becomes, the greater are his facilities for sinning himself, and the more evil is his influence upon others. Sin being at the root of his actions, sin will be in the fruit. The whole subject teaches us not to make poverty and riches the standard by which to measure a mans blessedness or misfortune. Beecher says, We say a man is made. What do we mean? That he has got the control of his lower instincts, so that they are only fuel to his higher feelings, giving force to his nature? That his affections are like vines, sending out on all sides blossoms and clustering fruits? That his tastes are so cultivated that all beautiful things speak to him, and bring him their delights? That his understanding is opened, so that he walks through every hall of knowledge and gathers its treasures? That his moral feelings are so developed and quickened that he holds sweet communion with Heaven? O, no, none of these things. He is cold and dead in heart, and mind, and soul. Only his passions are alive; buthe is worth five hundred thousand dollars! And we say a man is ruined. Are his wife and children dead? O, no. Has he lost his reputation through crime? No. Is his reason gone? O, no; it is as sound as ever. Is he struck through with disease? No. He has lost his property, and he is ruined. The man ruined! When shall we learn that a mans life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth?
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
Pro. 10:15. It is not a strong city, but his strong city. You see how justly the worldling is called an idolater, for he makes not God his confidence, but trusts to a thing of nought; for his riches, if they are a city, are not a strong city, but a city broken down, and without walls. How hard is it for rich men to obtain an entrance into that city that hath foundations, when it is a miracle for a man that hath riches not to trust in them.Muffet.
The rich man stands independent, changes and adversities cannot so easily overthrow him; he is also raised above many hazards and temptations: on the contrary, the poor man is overthrown by little misfortunes, and his despairing endeavours to save himself, when they fail, ruin him completely, and perhaps make him at the same time a moral outlaw. It is quite an experienced fact which this proverb expresses, but one from which the double doctrine is easily derived:
(1) That it is not only advised, but commanded, that man make the firm establishing of his external life-position the aim of his endeavour.
(2) That one ought to treat with forbearance the humble man; and if he always sinks deeper and deeper, one ought not to judge him with unmerciful harshness, and in proud self-exaltation.Delitzsch.
As soldiers look upon a strong city as a good place which they may retire to for safety in times of flight, so worldly men, in their distress and danger, esteem their wealth the only means of relief and succour: or, as a marching army expects supply, if need be, from a well-manned and well-victualled city, so men in their fainting fits, and under dreadful crosses, expect to be revived by their earthly cordials.Swinnock.
The word destruction is capable of two meanings. First, there are temptations peculiar to poverty as well as to riches. Agur was aware of these when he prayed, Give me not poverty, lest I steal and take the name of my God in vain (chap. Pro. 30:7-9). He who gives way to such influences of poverty ensures destruction as much as he who is full and denies God, and says, Who is the Lord? Secondly, as we found the preceding clause to refer to the state of mindthe confidence of safety inspired by his wealth in the bosom of the rich, it seems fair and natural to understand the latter clause on a similar principle. The destruction of the poor will then mean, that which, in their own eyes, is their destruction; that which engenders their fears and apprehensionstheir constant dread of destruction. They are ever apt to contrast their circumstances with those of their wealthy neighbours, and to deplore their poverty, and fret at it as that which keeps them down, depriving them of all good, and exposing them to all evil. And, without doubt, it is the source of many and heavy sufferings, both in the way of privation and endurance. But the poor may indulge their fears, and make themselves unhappy without cause. Their forebodings may be more than groundless. If by their poverty they are exposed to some evils, they are exempted by it from others Let the poor seek the peace, and comfort, and safety which are imparted by the Gospel; and thus, possessing the true riches, they will not need to fear what man can do unto them. The worst of all destructions will be far from them.Wardlaw.
The wealth of the rich, even in this world, is their great capital. The destruction of the poor is the helplessness, and friendlessness, and creditlessness, and lack of instruments incident to poverty. In the spiritual world the distinction is entire. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer, and both by inviolable laws. All works for good for one, and all for evil for the other. The last Proverb explained it. Wisdom, by its very nature, grows, and so does folly. All other interests vibrate: sometimes worse, and sometimes better. But Wisdom, like the God that chose it has no shadow of turning. If it begins in the soul it grows for ever. If it does not begin it grows more distant. There is never rest. Wealth in the spiritual world, by the very covenant, must continually heap up; and poverty, by the very necessities of justice, must increase its helplessness.Miller.
Naturally the author is here thinking of wealth well earned by practical wisdom, and this is at the same time a means in the further effort of Wisdom; and, again, of a deserved poverty, which, while the consequence of foolish conduct, always causes one to sink deeper in folly and moral need. Compare the verse following.Langes Commentary.
Surely this should humble us, that riches,that should be our rises to raise us up to God, or glasses to see the love of God inour corrupt nature useth them as clouds, as clogs, etc., yea, sets them up in Gods place, and saith to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence (Job. 31:24). The destruction of the poor is their poverty. They are devoured by the richer cannibals (Psa. 14:4), as the lesser fish are by the greater. Men go over the hedge where it is lowest. Poor and afflicted are joined together (Zep. 3:12). So are to want and to be abased (Php. 4:12).Trapp.
Here he is describing what is, rather than prescribing what ought to be. The verse acknowledges and proclaims a prominent feature in the condition of the world. It is not a command from the law of God, but a fact from the history of men. In all ages and in all lands money has been a mighty power, and its relative importance increases with the advance of civilisation. Money is one of the principal instruments by which the affairs of the world are turned, and the man who holds that instrument in his grasp can make himself felt in his age and neighbourhood. It does not reach the Divine purpose, but it controls human action. It is constrained to become Gods servant, but it makes itself the master of man.Arnot.
The rich man often goes about his Sion, or rather his Jericho, and views the walls thereof; he marketh the bulwarks, and telleth the towers of it. He looks upon his wealth, he marks his bags, he tells his moneys, and therein is his confidence; thereby he thinketh to outstand any siege or assault, and, placing his security on it, dareth to oppose his strength to any right or reason; whereas God with a blast of rams horns is quickly able to throw down all his might and his greatness.Jermin.
Pro. 10:16. The labour of the righteous tendeth to life or serves as life.
1. Because it is a good thing in itself.
2. Because it procures good, each stroke earning its pay.
3. Because it increases, and that on for ever, making us holier and happier, and making others holier and happier through the endless ages. It serves pre-eminently as life, therefore, literally, is for life. But the fruit, or gains of the wicked (and we must not fail to note the crescendo in the second clause, The labour of a righteous manthe gains of a wicked man; the righteous still toiling, the wicked having made his harvest,) serve to sin or as a sinoffering. That is, they are all demanded by justice, and are all consumed for the expiation of his sins. Pious acts are a life. Wicked gains go to swell what our great creditor seizes.Miller.
Labour, not idleness, is the stamp of a servant of God; thus cheered by the glowing confidence, that it tendeth to life (Joh. 6:27). Occupy till I comeDo all to the glory of God (Luk. 19:13; 1Co. 10:31)this is the standard. Thus the duties even of our daily calling tend to life. God works in us, by us, with us, through us. We work in and through Him. Our labour, therefore, is His workwrought in dependence on Him; not for life, but to life (Rom. 8:13; 1Co. 15:10; Php. 2:12-13)Bridges.
The words are fitly chosen: labour in honest industry is the righteous mans ordinary way of living. Revenue (fruit) not gained by honest labour is frequently the wicked mans livelihood.Fausset.
It is not directly said, as the previous clause might lead us to expect, that the fruit of the wicked tendeth to death, but to sin. This, by the wise man, is considered as the same thing. It tendeth to sin, and consequently, to death. Thus it is said, When lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death (Jas. 1:15). Between the two there is an intimate and inseparable connection.Wardlaw.
The righteous are laborious, as knowing that to be the end of their life. For themselves they labour, to lead their lives with comfort here, to get the life of glory hereafter. For others they labour, to supply the wants of their disconsolate life on earth, and to help them forward to the blessed life of heaven. Wherefore St. Bernard saith well, When we read that Adam in the beginning was set in a place of pleasure to work in it, what man of sound understanding can think that his children should be set in a place of afflction for to play in it.Jermin.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(15) The rich mans wealth is his strong cityi.e., an actual protection to him against his enemies, for by it he can get aid; or (as Pro. 18:11) it gives him the consciousness of power, courage: whereas poverty drags a man down, and prevents his advance in life, or makes him timid, and unable to defend himself.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
15. Wealth poverty Riches, properly obtained, naturally secure their owner against many evils; whereas poverty exposes to injury and abuse. A simple statement of facts. Comp. Pro 18:11.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
v. 15. The rich man’s wealth is his strong city,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Pro 10:15 The rich man’s wealth [is] his strong city: the destruction of the poor [is] their poverty.
Ver. 15. The rich man’s wealth, &c.] Wealthy worldlings think themselves simply the better and the safer for their hoards and heaps of riches. The best of us are more ready to “trust in uncertain riches than in the living God, who giveth us all things richly to enjoy.” 1Ti 6:17 Surely this should humble us, that riches – that should be our rises to raise us up to God, or glasses to see the love of God in – our corrupt nature useth them as clouds, as clogs, &c., yea, sets them up in God’s place, and “saith to the fine gold, Thou art my confidence.” Job 31:24
The destruction of the poor is their poverty.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
his strong city. Hebrew city of his strength. Figure of speech Antimereia. App-6.
destruction = that which destroys them. Figure of speech Metonymy (of Effect).
poor = weak. Hebrew. dal. See note on Pro 6:11.
poverty = rush. See note on Pro 6:11.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 10:15
Pro 10:15
“The rich man’s wealth is his strong city: The destruction of the poor is their poverty.”
The grand emphasis throughout Proverbs is altogether worldly, material, and economic. Riches and poverty are viewed as the opposite poles of successful and unsuccessful lives. Practical and usable in the every-day affairs of life, these proverbs surely are; but they fall far short of the ideals of Him “Who for our sakes became poor” (2Co 8:9). Here and there in Proverbs there are fleeting glimpses of truth that points to the higher ideals of the New Testament. For example, Pro 18:11 has this, “The rich man’s wealth is his strong city … IN HIS OWN IMAGINATIONS”!
Pro 10:15. The opening statement is also in Pro 18:11. Strong city means that in which he trusts. There are those who trust in their riches (Psa 52:7). 1Ti 6:17 forbids it, and Jesus said such cannot enter heaven (Mar 10:24). Job recognized that to make riches ones confidence is to deny God (Job 31:24-28).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
rich: Pro 18:11, Job 31:24, Job 31:25, Psa 49:6, Psa 52:7, Ecc 7:12, Jer 9:23, Mar 10:24, Luk 12:19, 1Ti 6:17
the destruction: Pro 14:20, Pro 19:7, Pro 22:22, Pro 22:23, Mic 2:1, Mic 2:2
Reciprocal: Pro 11:28 – that Pro 12:12 – net Pro 19:4 – the poor Ecc 9:16 – the poor Jer 49:4 – trusted
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Pro 10:15. The rich mans wealth is his strong city It often redeems him from dangers and calamities: or it is such in his own imagination, as it is explained Pro 18:11. It makes him confident and secure. The destruction of the poor The cause of their destruction; is their poverty Which often renders them friendless, defenceless, and exposed to the injuries of the malicious and cruel. Or, as may be rendered, it is their terror, or consternation. It deprives them of courage and confidence, sinks their spirits, and fills them with fear and despair. Thus it destroys their comforts; whereas they might live very comfortably, although they had but little to live on, if they would but be content, keep a good conscience, and live by faith in the providence and promises of God.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
10:15 The rich man’s wealth [is] his {h} strong city: the destruction of the poor [is] their poverty.
(h) And so makes him bold to do evil, while poverty bridles the poor from many evil things.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
2. Things of true value 10:15-32
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Even though wealth is not most important, it still can result in security-and its absence can result in poverty, so people should not despise it.