Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 21:12
The righteous [man] wisely considereth the house of the wicked: [but God] overthroweth the wicked for [their] wickedness.
12. God overthroweth ] The difficulty of this proverb lies in the elliptical character of the second clause, which leaves a subject of necessity to be supplied. The A.V. makes man the subject of the first clause, and God of the second. But it is better to render, either with R.V. text:
The righteous man considereth the house of the wicked;
How the wicked are overthrown to their ruin;
or with Ewald and others, and R.V. marg., taking the Righteous One in the first clause to be God (Job 34:17), and retaining the same subject throughout.
One that is righteous considereth the house of the wicked;
He overthroweth the wicked to their ruin.
Both LXX. and Vulg., though differing from one another and from our present Heb. text, make “the righteous” the subject of both clauses.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Or, The Righteous One (Yahweh) regardeth well the house of the wicked, and maketh the wicked fall into mischief.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 12. The righteous man wisely considereth] This verse is understood as implying the pious concern of a righteous man, for a wicked family, whom he endeavours by his instructions to bring into the way of knowledge and peace.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Wisely considereth the house of the wicked; he looketh through its present power and glory (which dazzleth the eyes of others) unto that ruin to which it is designed. But, or now, or that, this being the thing which he wisely considereth,
God overthroweth, or will overthrow in his due time, though for a season he bear with them.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
12. (Compare Psa 37:35-38;Psa 73:17; Psa 73:20).
housefamily orinterests.
overthrowetheithersupply “God” (compare Pr10:24), or the word is used impersonally.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The righteous [man] wisely considereth the house of the wicked,…. Not so much the stately palace he lives in, and the furniture of it, as the glory, splendour, riches, and largeness of his family; the flourishing condition he and they are in: he considers how they came into it, the short continuance of it, and what the end will be, which in a short time wilt be ruin and destruction; and therefore be does not envy their present happiness, or fret at it. Gersom renders it,
“the righteous maketh the house of the wicked to prosper;”
as Joseph did Potiphar’s, and Jacob Laban’s; or rather the Lord made them to prosper for their sakes. Jarchi interprets the righteous of God himself; who gives his heart, or has it in his heart to cut off the house of the wicked, as follows;
[but God] overthroweth the wicked for [their] wickedness; or removes them into evil, as the Targum; into the evil of punishment, for the evil of sin. Aben Ezra supplies the word “God”, as we do; and understands it of God’s destroying wicked men for their sins, though they have flourished for a while in this world: but some interpret it of the righteous man, even of a righteous magistrate, who is prudent and diligent in his office; who looks into the houses of wicked men, and inquires who they are that are in them, and how they live; and what they have in their houses, whether stolen goods, the properties of others; or arms, either for treasonable practices or for robberies; and takes them and punishes them according to the laws of God and men.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
12 A righteous One marketh the house of the godless;
He hurleth the godless to destruction.
If we understand by the word a righteous man, then 12a would introduce the warning which he gives, and the unexpressed subject of 12b must be God (Umbreit). But after such an introitus, ought not to be wanting. If in 12a “the righteous man” is the subject, then it presents itself as such also for the second parallel part. But the thought that the righteous, when he takes notice of the house of the godless, shows attention which of itself hurls the godless into destruction (Lwenstein), would require the sing. in the conclusion; also, instead of the fut. would have been found; and besides, the judicial ( vid., regarding this word at Pro 11:3; Pro 19:3) would not be a suitable word for this confirmation in evil. Thus by the proverb means God, and has, as at Pro 22:12, Job 12:19, this word as its subject. “A righteous One” refers to the All-righteous, who is called, Job 34:17, “the All-just One,” and by Rashi, under the passage before us, . Only do not translate with Bertheau and Zckler: the Righteous One (All-righteous), for (1) this would require , and (2) is never by itself used as an attributive designation of God. Rightly, Fleischer and Ewald: a Righteous One, viz., God. It is the indetermination which seeks to present the idea of the great and dreadful: a Righteous One, and such a Righteous One!
(Note: The Arabs call this indetermination alnkrt lalt’zym wallthwyl . Vid., under Psa 2:12.)
with , Pro 16:20, or , Psa 41:2; Neh 8:13, here with , signifies to give attention to anything, to look attentively on it. The two participles stand in the same line: animum advertit … evertit . Hitzig changes into , and makes the subject of 12b; but the proverb as it lies before us is far more intelligible.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
12 The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked: but God overthroweth the wicked for their wickedness.
1. As we read this verse, it shows why good men, when they come to understand things aright, will not envy the prosperity of evil-doers. When they see the house of the wicked, how full it is perhaps of all the good things of this life, they are tempted to envy; but when they wisely consider it, when they look upon it with an eye of faith, when they see God overthrowing the wicked for their wickedness, that there is a curse upon their habitation which will certainly be the ruin of it ere long, they see more reason to despise them, or pity them, than to fear or envy them. 2. Some give another sense of it: The righteous man (the judge or magistrate, that is entrusted with the execution of justice, and the preservation of public peace) examines the house of the wicked, searches it for arms or for stolen goods, makes a diligent enquiry concerning his family and the characters of those about him, that he may by his power overthrow the wicked for their wickedness and prevent their doing any further mischief, that he may fire the nests where the birds of prey are harboured or the unclean birds.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Ruin of the Wicked
Verse 12 unquestionably declares the ruin of the wicked. The word “man” in the first line has been supplied and is questionable. It is the opinion of some that “righteous” should be capitalized and the verse read: “The Righteous one considers the house of the wicked and brings the wicked to ruin”; a teaching supported by much Scripture, Pro 3:33; Pro 6:12-15; Pro 14:11; Pro 24:19-20; Job 8:11-15.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
CRITICAL NOTES.
Pro. 21:12. The words man and God are both supplied by the translators. The verse should be The righteous considereth the house of the wicked (and) overthroweth, etc. Some understand it, therefore, to mean The righteous man gives instruction to the house of the wicked to turn them away from evil. But Stuart remarks that the verb of the second clause is a very strong word, to precipitate, to cast down headlong, and refers the righteous (one) of the first clause to God. This is Zcklers rendering also.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF Pro. 21:12
GODS SURVEILLANCE OF THE WICKED
We follow here the rendering now generally given of this verse. (See Critical Notes.)
I. We have a reference to a mystery in the government of God. It is mysterious that the wicked are permitted to live at largeto pursue their plans and carry on their iniquitous work. Under human governors, men who break the laws of the State and endanger life and property are not allowed to have liberty. If they are permitted to live, they live under restrainttheir activities are confined within narrow limits, and so their power to do mischief is taken from them. The prisons scattered throughout our land declare that our rulers only permit those who break our laws to have a very narrow sphere of action; they live where all their freedom is taken from them, and where their rule of life is not their own will but that of others. But God allows those who break His laws a larger amount of freedomHe permits them to mingle freely with righteous men, and to exercise their influence upon the world, and to carry out designs which are often in defiance of His commands. This has often perplexed the good in the world, and they have again and again asked the question, Wherefore do the wicked livebecome old; yea, are mighty in power? (Job. 21:7.)
II. The wicked living thus at large have God for a sentinel. There are many men living at large who are known to be dangerous characterswho, although they do not come within the reach of the law, are known to cherish feelings and intentions which are antagonistic to it. Such people need a more vigilant supervision than those in the prison cells, just because their freedom is greater. An ordinary man can watch a criminal who is secure in a prison, but much greater watchfulness and skill is needed to supervise the actions of one at liberty. Every house of the wicked contains a lawbreaker at liberty, and often one house contains many such who have a large amount of freedom in the execution of their wicked designs. God is the only Being capable of being the sentinel over such a house. They need one who knows the heart as only God knows itone who sees all their plans before they become actions. They need a sleepless sentinelone who can be awake at all hours, and so can never be taken by surprise. And this they have in God. None enters or departs from the house of the wicked, and no plot is concocted within it that is not marked by this everwakeful sentinel. The wicked have what it is indispensable they should havean omniscient and omnipresent eye ever upon them.
III. After the watch has been kept for a given time, the house is marked for falling. We know why God gives such men freedom, for He has told us. It is that they shall have opportunities of repentancethat they shall turn from their way and live (Eze. 33:11). He spares the house of the godless, for the same reason that the vine-dresser desired that the fruitless fig-tree should be spared (Luk. 13:6-9). He gives men time to bring forth fruits of holiness, to their own profit and to His glory. So He considered the house of the sinners, before the flood. His longsuffering waited while the ark was a preparing (1Pe. 3:20) for some tokens of a change of disposition towards Himself, and consequently towards His laws. But none came, and so the day came when the flood came, and swept away both the houses and their inhabitants. So He considered the house of the Jewish nation, after the death of Christ. In the days of John the Baptist, the axe was laid unto the root of the tree (Mat. 3:10), but the hand was not lifted to strike, until the rejection of the Messiah, and of the ministry of His apostles, had proved that there was no hope of a moral change. The wicked shall be overthrown, but God considereth their house long before He gives the final blow.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
(It will be seen that these read the verse as in our version.)
The punishment of the wicked reads a lesson not only of love and trembling, but of wise consideration. Yet many are the perplexing mysteries of Providence. The righteous man does not always see with his right eyes. The prosperity of the wicked staggers his faith, excites his envy, and induces hard thoughts of God. (Psa. 73:2-14.) But when he looks with the eye of faith, he sees far beyond the dazzling glory of the present moment. He wisely considereth their house; not its external splendour and appurtenances, but how it will end. He justifies God, and puts himself to shame, (Ib. Pro. 21:16-22.) Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right? (Gen. 18:25.) Here we rest, until He shall arise, and plead His own cause, and with the breath of His mouth, and the brightness of His coming, destroy the very existence of evil. Meanwhile, where the superficial eye sees nothing but confusion, let the righteous man wisely consider lessons of deep and practical profit. The shortness of the prosperity, and the certainty of the overthrow, of the wicked; the assurance of a day of recompense; the contrast of the substance of the godly for time and for eternitythese are the apprehensions of faith. Do they not marvellously set out the perfections of God, and call to each of His childrenMy son, give glory to God?Bridges.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(12) The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked.Rather, A Righteous one (God) marks the house of the wicked and overthroweth the wicked for (their) destruction. He watches the evil to see whether they will repent (Luk. 13:8), and if they will not, at last overthrows them when their iniquity has become full (Gen. 15:16).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. The righteous Either the “righteous” man, as our version, or the “righteous” God, as others interpret the passage. There is nothing in the original to determine the reading. “The Just One.” Conant. Patrick understands it of magistrates. There is a general consent of the critics on the sense thus: “The Righteous One considers the house of the wicked.” The Judge of all the earth is not unmindful of the evil doers.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
v. 12. The righteous man wisely considereth the house of the wicked,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Pro 21:12. The righteous The just [Judge] makes exact scrutiny into the house of the wicked, to bring the wicked to punishment. Dr. Grey would read, The righteous prospereth in his house, but wickedness overthroweth the wicked. We have the phrase of the first hemistich, in 1Sa 18:14 and the second is almost the same as ch. Pro 13:6.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Pro 21:12 The righteous [man] wisely considereth the house of the wicked: [but God] overthroweth the wicked for [their] wickedness.
Ver. 12. The righteous man wisely considereth, &c. ] He foreseeth its fearful fall, and is not offended at their present prosperity; for God, he knows, will shortly overturn it. This consideration cures him of the fret, as it did David Psa 37:1-2 It doth also instruct him in many points of heavenly wisdom, as it did the Church. Isa 26:11 1Co 10:11 The destruction of others should be an instruction to us, that we may wash our feet in the blood of the wicked. Psa 52:6
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
wickedness. Hebrew. ra a’. App-44. same as “evil” in Pro 21:10.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 21:12
Pro 21:12
“The righteous man considereth the house of the wicked, How the wicked are overthrown to their ruin.”
This proverb states that a wise man, living after God’s commandments, may, by his own personal observation of what happens all around him, be able to see all the proof he needs that wickedness is a tragic disaster to all who adopt it as their life-style. This writer knows many instances in which once-powerful but wicked families have been totally ruined and devastated.
Pro 21:12. In keeping with Pro 21:11 this verse shows that the righteous person is also a wise person who learns not only from instruction (Pro 21:11) but also from observation, not having to go through bitter experiences to learn (like Jonah). He notices what happens to the wicked, and he learns from it because he considers it or thinks upon it, Seeing what happens to the wicked is good reason not to choose their way!
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
wisely: Job 5:3, Job 8:15, Job 18:14-21, Job 21:28-30, Job 27:13-23, Psa 37:35, Psa 37:36, Psa 52:5, Psa 107:43, Hos 14:9, Hab 2:9-12
overthroweth: Pro 11:3-5, Pro 13:6, Pro 14:32, Gen 19:29, Amo 4:11, 1Co 10:5, 2Pe 2:4-9, 2Pe 3:6, 2Pe 3:7
Reciprocal: Deu 9:27 – look not 1Ki 1:52 – wickedness Pro 3:33 – curse Pro 14:11 – house Pro 21:15 – destruction
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
21:12 The righteous [man] wisely {f} considereth the house of the wicked: [but God] overthroweth the wicked for [their] wickedness.
(f) Though the godly admonish them both by words and example of life, yet the wicked will not amend, till God destroys them.