Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 12:6

The words of the wicked [are] to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.

6. to lie in wait ] So R.V. marg., a lying in wait; but R.V. text, of lying in wait, comp. Pro 1:11.

them ] This may mean either the righteous themselves, or those for whose blood the wicked lie in wait.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Shall deliver them – i. e., The righteous themselves.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Are to lie in wait for blood; are designed and ordered to entrap or deceive others, and to destroy them.

Shall deliver them, to wit, from those that lie in wait for them; which it doth, either,

1. By prayer to God for their deliverance; or,

2. By pacifying the wicked with soft and gentle answers, or by diverting them from their evil course by their good counsels and admonitions; or,

3. By pleading their righteous cause in a judicial or other way.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

6. The wordsor, “expresseddesigns” of the wicked are for evil purposes.

the mouthor, “words”of the righteous delivering instead of ensnaring men.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

The words of the wicked [are] to lie in wait for blood,…. Which some understand of perjury and false witness, as Jarchi, whereby the lives of innocent persons are taken away: or it may be interpreted either of the smooth words and fair speeches, and secret artifices, antichrist and his emissaries make use of to entrap the innocent, and draw them into their net, to their ruin; see Ps 10:7; as the Jews attempted to deal with Christ, Lu 20:20; or of the laws and edicts of the beast, that such should be killed who would not worship his image; and with the blood of these innocent ones the whore of Rome is said to be drunk, Re 13:15;

but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them: the innocent laid in wait for; either by their prayers to God, which are of great avail with him, and through whose importunity he will avenge his elect, and deliver them; or through their apologies for them, and defences of them, as in the times of Pagan persecution; or rather through the doctrines of the reformation, whereby many simple and unwary souls were delivered, who were in danger of being ensnared; and whereby the eyes of many princes were opened, and were stirred up to protect those innocent ones, and prevent their blood being shed.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

6 The word of the godless is to lie in wait for the blood of others,

But the mouth of the upright delivereth them.

Our editions have , but the right sequence of the accents (in Cod. 1294 and elsewhere) is ; the logical relation in this transformation, which is only rhythmically conditioned, remains the same. The vocalization wavers between , which would be imper., and , which is infin., like , Pro 25:7, , Pro 21:11, , Gen 3:11. However one punctuates it, the infin. is intended in any case, in which the expression always remains sketchy enough: the words of the godless are lying in wait for blood, i.e., they are calculated to bring others to this, into the danger of their lives, e.g., before the tribunal by false charges and false witness. is the accus. of the object; for instead of (Pro 1:11), to lurk for blood, a shorter expression, , is used (Ewald, 282a). The suffix of

(Note: Elias Levita, in his note to the root in Kimchi’s Wrterbuch, reads , and so also do 6 codd. in Kennicot. But is masculine.)

might appear, after Pro 11:6, to refer back to the ; but the thought that their mouth saves the upright, that they thus know to speak themselves out of the danger, is by far less appropriate ( vid., on the contrary, , Pro 11:9) than the thought that the mouth of the upright delivereth from danger those whose lives are threatened by the godless, as is rightly explained by Ewald, Bertheau, Elster. The personal subject or object is in the Mashal style often to be evolved from the connection, e.g., Pro 14:26; Pro 19:23.

Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament

      6 The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.

      In the foregoing verse the thoughts of the wicked and righteous were compared; here their words, and those are as the abundance of the heart is. 1. Wicked people speak mischief to their neighbours; and wicked indeed those are whose words are to lie in wait for blood; their tongues are swords to those that stand in their way, to good men whom they hate and persecute. See an instance, Luk 20:20; Luk 20:21. 2. Good men speak help to their neighbours: The mouth of the upright is ready to be opened in the cause of those that are oppressed (ch. xxxi. 8), to plead for them, to witness for them, and so to deliver them, particularly those whom the wicked lie in wait for. A man may sometimes do a very good work with one good word.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

The Power Of Words

Verse 6 emphasizes the power of words to help or harm. Words of the wicked, in the form of slander, suspicion, or gossip destroy as surely as the criminal who lies in wait to harm physically, Pro 11:9; Gen 39:14-20; Mic 2:1; Jas 3:6-8; Mat 15:18-19. In contrast is the power of words of the upright to comfort and guide, Pro 15:1; Pro 15:23; Pro 16:24; Pro 25:11; Pro 25:15; Isa 50:4.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

(6) The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for bloodi.e., are calculated for this end.

The mouth of the upright shall deliver themi.e., those for whom the wicked lie in wait.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

6. Are to lie in wait Are a lying in wait an ambush.

For blood That is, to shed blood, to take life. Compare Pro 1:11-18; Pro 11:9. Shall deliver them Namely, those whose blood is sought. It is implied that this shall be done by their counsels, advices, pleas, or prayers by what proceeds out of their mouth. “Men sincerely good give the best advice they can to deliver such innocent persons from their bloody snares.”

Patrick. But others understand that the upright shall deliver themselves.

The Speaker’s Commentary prefers the latter. Luk 20:3-7; Luk 20:19; Luk 20:41, seq.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments