Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 17:20
He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.
He that hath a froward heart, whose heart is not plain and upright, but false towards God or men,
findeth no good; shall not get that advantage by his dissimulation which he intends and expects, but shall fall into mischief, as is implied from the opposite clause.
He that hath a perverse tongue; that speaks deceitfully or wickedly. So here is a comparison between an evil heart and an evil tongue, and, the ill effects of both of them.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
20. The second clause advanceson the first. The ill-natured fail of good, and the cavilling andfault-finding incur evil.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
He that hath a froward heart findeth no good,…. Who is of a perverse spirit, meditates and devises evil things; is not ingenuous and sincere, but false and deceitful to God and men: such an one gets no good from either; he obtains not the favour of God, nor a good name, credit, and reputation among men;
and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief; or “that turns himself”, or “is turned in his tongue” w; whose tongue is changeable, as the Septuagint and Arabic versions; who sometimes says one thing, and sometimes another, and is not consistent with himself; as well as is contrary to all men: sooner or later he falls into mischief, into a pit, which he himself has dug for others; see Jas 3:6.
w “qui verterit se”, Pagninus; “et verteus se in lingua sua”, Montanus; “qui vertitur in lingua sua”. Mercerus, Gejerus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
20 He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.
Note, 1. Framing ill designs will be of no advantage to us; there is nothing got by them: He that has a froward heart, that sows discord and is full of resentment, cannot promise himself to get by it sufficient to counterbalance the loss of his repose and reputation, nor can he take any rational satisfaction in it; he finds no good. 2. Giving ill language will be a great disadvantage to us: He that has a perverse tongue, spiteful and abusive, scurrilous or backbiting, falls into one mischief or other, loses his friends, provokes his enemies, and pulls trouble upon his own head. Many a one has paid dearly for an unbridled tongue.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Abominations To the Lord
Verse 20 warns of the unhappy consequences of two related evils which are an abomination to the LORD (Pro 6:16; Pro 11:20).
1) He that hath a froward heart (a mind that devises evil) attains no good, accomplishes nothing worthwhile, Pro 6:14; Pro 6:16; Pro 6:18.
2) He that hath a perverse tongue (speaks evil, lies, sows discord) will experience trouble, Pro 6:15-17; Pro 6:19; note particularly Pro 6:15.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
CRITICAL NOTES.
Pro. 17:20. A froward heart, rather a false heart.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
TEXT Pro. 17:20-28
20.
He that hath a wayward heart findeth no good;
And he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.
21.
He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow;
And the father of a fool hath no joy.
22.
A cheerful heart is a good medicine;
But a broken spirit drieth up the bones.
23.
A wicked man receiveth a bribe out of the bosom,
To pervert the ways of justice.
24.
Wisdom is before the face of him that hath understanding;
But the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth.
25.
A foolish son is a grief to his father,
And bitterness to her that bare him.
26.
Also to punish the righteous is not good,
Nor to smite the noble for their uprightness.
27.
He that spareth his words hath knowledge;
And he that is of a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
28.
Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace is counted wise;
When he shutteth his lips, he is esteemed as prudent.
STUDY QUESTIONS OVER 17:20-28
1.
What is a wayward Heart in Pro. 17:20?
2.
What does fool mean in Pro. 17:21?
3.
How can ones attitude affect ones health (Pro. 17:22)?
4.
What is meant by out of the bosom (Pro. 17:23)?
5.
Apply the last statement of Pro. 17:24 to the Prodigal Son.
6.
A foolish son is what two things to his parents (Pro. 17:25)?
7.
Cite Bible instances of smiting the noble or punishing the righteous (Pro. 17:26).
8.
What does it mean to spare his words (Pro. 17:27)?
9.
What does holding ones peace mean (Pro. 17:28)?
PARAPHRASE OF 17:20-28
20.
An evil man is suspicious of everyone and tumbles into constant trouble.
21.
Its no fun to be a rebels father.
22.
A cheerful heart does good like medicine, but a broken spirit makes one sick.
23.
It is wrong to accept a bribe to twist justice.
24.
Wisdom is the main pursuit of sensible men, but a fools goals are at the end of the earth!
25.
A rebellious son is a grief to his father and bitter blow to his mother.
26.
How short-sighted to fine the godly for being good! And to punish nobles for being honest!
27, 28.
The man of few words and settled mind is wise; therefore, even a fool is thought to be wise when he is silent. It pays him to keep his mouth shut.
COMMENTS ON 17:20-28
Pro. 17:20. Another case of Hebrew parallelism in which the second statement is a restatement of the first, using different words. A wayward heart and a perverse tongue are two liabilities. The wayward heart is one that wandered out of the path that God has intended; it will find no good (no blessing from God), It is not pure so it will not see God (Mat. 5:8). It does not think upon the things listed in Php. 4:8 so it will not know the peace that Php. 4:7 mentions. Look at Jer. 17:9s description of the wayward heart. The perverse tongue is perverted; that is, it is speaking contrary to Gods intentions for it. Such will get itself and others into much mischief and wrong-doing, See Jas. 3:6; Jas. 3:8 for the evil that the perverse tongue can cause.
Pro. 17:21. The behavior of ones children can greatly affect his own future happiness or sorrow (Pro. 17:25; Pro. 10:1; Pro. 19:13). Think of the sorrow that Cain brought to Adam and Eve by killing Abel, that Absalom brought to his father David when he tried to steal his throne, and that Hophni and Phinehas brought to their priestly father Eli.
Pro. 17:22. Those who have cheerful hearts and bright outlooks upon life have a physical blessing of health that others do not know. On the other hand nothing has such a direct tendency to ruin health and waste out life as grief, anxiety, fretfulness, bad tempers, etc. All these work death (Clarke). Other passages: Pro. 12:25; Pro. 15:13; Pro. 15:15.
Pro. 17:23. Clarke: Above their girdles the Asiatics carry their purses. A wicked (not a righteous) man receives a bribe and perverts justice as a result. This was forbidden in Exo. 23:8. If officials are not to receive them, we should not give them in our desire to get some kind of preferential treatment.
Pro. 17:24. The contrast between the fool and the one with understanding in this verse is that the fools eyes are a long way off (to the ends of the earth), but the wise man sees wisdom right where he is. The fool misses the opportunities at hand and is always supposing that somewhere else, something else, is really better. An old saying: A rolling stone gathers no moss, meaning that one who is always moving about and not settled down will not accumulate much nor accomplish much. Remember the Prodigal Son in this connection (Luke 15)? See Pro. 6:11 also.
Pro. 17:25. Pro. 17:21 spoke of the sorrow that a fool brings to his father. This verse speaks of the grief and bitterness he brings to both his parents. It is a tragedy when a son brings grief instead of joy to his father, and when he brings bitterness instead of satisfaction to his mother. But children must be reared and trained, not merely begotten and born. Similar passages: Pro. 10:1; Pro. 15:20; Pro. 19:13.
Pro. 17:26. See Pro. 17:15, also Pro. 18:5. This represents corruption in government, a perversion of justice. God has ordained government, and He says, Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise from the same (Rom. 13:3). Both Jesus and Paul were smitten when innocent (Mat. 26:67; Act. 23:1-2).
Pro. 17:27. Pulpit Commentary: He shows his common sense, not by rash talk or saying all he knows, but by restraining his tongue. We are to be slow to speak (Jas. 1:19). In the multitude of words there wanteth not transgression; But he that refraineth his lips doeth wisely (Pro. 10:19). Cool spirit means not losing ones temper and is parallel to slow to wrath (Jas. 1:19) and is praised in Pro. 16:32 (He that ruleth his spirit). This verse teaches us the wisdom of both not being too talkative and not losing ones temper.
Pro. 17:28. This verse continues the thoughts begun in Pro. 17:27. Ecc. 5:3 connects a fools voice with the multitude of words. Job exclaimed to his rash critics, Oh that ye would altogether hold your peace! And it would be your wisdom (Job. 13:5). An old saying: Be silent, and they will think you are a fool; speak, and they will know it. Occasionally you will get acquainted with a fool who does not advertise it with his speech; it was his lack of talkativeness that caused you to think of him as a normal person until you got better acquainted with him.
TEST QUESTIONS OVER 17:20-28
1.
What two things are condemned in Pro. 17:20?
2.
How do they get their owner into trouble (Pro. 17:20)?
3.
Cite some Bible examples of sons who brought grief to their parents (Pro. 17:21).
4.
What is said to be a good medicine that does not come from the store (Pro. 17:22)?
5.
What two people sin when a bribe is given (Pro. 17:23)?
6.
What is the contrast in Pro. 17:24?
7.
Give another passage that tells of the grief that children can bring to their parents (Pro. 17:25).
8.
Cite a Bible example of one being smitten who was upright (Pro. 17:26).
9.
Does the Bible commend or condemn talkativeness (Pro. 17:27)?
10.
What does Pro. 17:27 say about one who has a cool spirit?
11.
By what means is a fool sometimes counted among the wise (Pro. 17:28)?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(20) He that hath a froward heart, findeth no good.For he is an abomination to God (Pro. 11:20), and so gains no blessing from Him.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
20. A froward heart A perverse, crooked disposition, which hinders his finding good.
A perverse tongue Literally, he whose tongue is turned; hence an untruthful tongue.
Falleth into mischief Trouble. Truly such a tongue is “an unruly member.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
v. 20. He that hath a froward heart,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Pro 17:20 He that hath a froward heart findeth no good: and he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.
Ver. 20. He that hath a froward heart findeth no good. ] Who this is that hath a froward heart and a perverse tongue, Solomon shows, Pro 11:20 viz., the hypocrite, the “double minded man,” Jam 1:8 that hath “a heart and a heart,” Psa 12:2 , mart. one for God, and another for him that would have it, as that desperate Neapolitan boasted of himself. And as he hath two hearts, so two tongues too, 1Ti 3:8 wherewith he can both “bless and curse,” talk religiously or profanely, according to the company, Jam 3:10-11 speak Hebrew and Ashdod, the language of Canaan and the language of hell, like those in an island beyond Arabia, of whom Diodorus Siculus a saith, that they have cloven tongues, so that therewith they can alter their speech at their pleasure, and perfectly speak to two persons, and to two purposes, at once. Now how can these monsters of men expect either to find good, or not to fall into mischief? How can they escape the damnation of hell, whereof hypocrites are the chief inhabitants, yea, the freeholders, as it were? for other sinners shall have “their part” , Mat 24:51 with the devil and hypocrites.
a Antiq., lib. iii.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Pro 17:20
Pro 17:20
“He that hath a wayward heart findeth no good; And he that hath a perverse tongue falleth into mischief.”
The first clause here speaks of a certain type of cynical, bitter men who cannot see good in anything or any one. “The literal Hebrew regarding the `perverse tongue’ in the second clause is, `He who turns himself about with his tongue’; that is, he says one thing at one time, and something quite contrary at another.
Pro 17:20. Another case of Hebrew parallelism in which the second statement is a restatement of the first, using different words. A wayward heart and a perverse tongue are two liabilities. The wayward heart is one that wandered out of the path that God has intended; it will find no good (no blessing from God), It is not pure so it will not see God (Mat 5:8). It does not think upon the things listed in Php 4:8 so it will not know the peace that Php 4:7 mentions. Look at Jer 17:9s description of the wayward heart. The perverse tongue is perverted; that is, it is speaking contrary to Gods intentions for it. Such will get itself and others into much mischief and wrong-doing, See Jas 3:6; Jas 3:8 for the evil that the perverse tongue can cause.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
He that hath a froward heart: Heb. The froward of heart, Pro 3:32, Pro 6:12-15, Pro 8:13, Psa 18:26
and he: Pro 10:10, Pro 10:14, Pro 10:31, Pro 18:6, Pro 18:7, Ecc 10:12, Jam 3:6-8
Reciprocal: Job 9:20 – it shall Psa 140:11 – an evil speaker Pro 4:24 – a Pro 10:9 – but Jer 23:36 – for every