Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 23:17
Let not thine heart envy sinners: but [be thou] in the fear of the LORD all the day long.
17. Let not thine heart envy ] Comp. Psa 37:1.
be thou] Or, let it (thy heart) be. Some scholars repeat envy from the former clause: but let it envy with a nobler emulation (the Heb. word is frequently used in a good sense) the fear of the Lord.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Pro 23:17
Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.
Envy of sinners forbidden, and the fear of God enjoined
I. Some of the reasons why men very frequently are induced to envy sinners.
1. They perhaps see them possessed of wealth, in the enjoyment of many outward comforts, and encircled with the means of gratification; and these are things after which human nature hankers. The idea of happiness is commonly connected with the possession of them. But, surely, to envy these fleeting possessions little becomes a wise man. Surely his lot is not to be desired who lives here under the Divine displeasure, and who must very shortly endure the righteous judgment of a justly offended God.
2. But we find men sometimes disposed to envy sinners on account of the apparent freedom from care and anxiety in which they live. But that gay unconcern about eternal things which is attributed to them we ought to commiserate rather than envy.
3. But whatever circumstances in the condition of the sinner men may admire, unbelief is the source from which all envy of his lot must proceed.
II. The nature and effects of the fear of the Lord.
1. It is not a fear of Him as an irresistible and implacable enemy; but it is a fear grounded on a just perception of the excellency of the Divine character, connected with love to Him, and with an expectation of the largest blessings from His hand.
2. But what are the effects which the fear of God will produce?
(1) In the first place, it will lead to repentance for sin, accompanied by an earnest desire of reconciliation to God, and of the restoration of His favour.
(2) But again, the fear of God is the only principle which can lead a man to an universal and unreserved obedience to His commands. (B. Scott, M.A.)
The cure for envy
The cure for envy lies in living under a constant sense of the Divine presence, worshipping God and communing with Him all the day long, however long the day may seem. True religion lifts the soul into a higher region, where the judgment becomes more clear, and the desires are more elevated. The more of heaven there is in our lives, the less of earth we shall covet. The fear of God casts out the envy of men. The death-blow of envy is a calm consideration of the future. The wealth and glory of the ungodly are a vain show. This pompous appearance flashes out for an hour, and then is extinguished. What is the prosperous sinner the better for his prosperity when judgment overtakes him? As for the godly man, his end is peace and blessedness, and none can rob him of his joy; wherefore, let him forego envy, and be filled with sweet content. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The nature and advantages of the fear of the Lord
Scarcely anything has a more immediate influence upon our duty or comfort than the due government of our passions. Hence the wise and virtuous, in all ages, have employed themselves in forming rules for their regulation. But it is found more easy to prescribe, than to reduce these rules to practice. The religion of Jesus provides the assistance requisite to enable us to comply with rules.
I. What is it to be in the fear of the Lord all the day long? Fear is a passion of the human mind, and stands opposed to hope. It always has for its object some evil, real or supposed. Here its object is the evil and danger of sinning against God, and the just displeasure of God, in consequence of offending Him. To fear these is to fear the Lord in the best sense of the phrase. We should live under the habitual influence of this holy temper, and carry it with us into all the duties of the religious and social life.
II. Why should we study to be in the fear of the Lord all the day long?
1. It is an excellent guard against the commission of sin. The man cannot knowingly and deliberately sin against God who has a suitable sense of His being, perfections, character and government.
2. It really assists us in the right performance of duty. It greatly tends to invigorate the graces of the Spirit in the soul, and to call them forth into lively exercise.
3. It excites us to the important duty of watchfulness, and greatly assists us therein.
4. God recommends this duty to our study and practice, by His Divine authority. Then if you would be in the fear of the Lord–
(1) Study to acquire more and more of the knowledge of God: the knowledge of His perfections, character, and government; especially as they are manifested in and through His Son Jesus Christ.
(2) Be much frequent in meditating upon the Divine perfections.
(3) Be much in the great duties of prayer and watchfulness. (John Rodgers, D.D.)
Of the duty of fearing God
The fear of the Lord is sometimes the whole duty of man; sometimes the devotional duties of religion.
I. The true notion of fearing God.
1. It must be such a fear as includes in it a high degree of love. Then we shall make a difficulty of nothing He commands. Then our service of Him will be rendered more acceptable.
2. It includes it in a generous hope and confidence. Hope is the spring of industry.
II. The influence this fear has to suppress in us all envious and disquieting thoughts. By a holy fear we secure to ourselves an interest in His special providence and protection and grace here, and in the promises of glory and eternal life hereafter.
III. Proper motives and arguments to enforce this duty of fearing God.
1. From the consideration of His infinite power and majesty.
2. From His intimate knowledge of all our thoughts, words, and actions, and of the secret springs of them.
3. The consideration of Gods justice. He hath appointed a day wherein He will judge the world in righteousness. This is an irresistible argument to excite us to the practice of piety. (R. Fiddes, D.D.)
The principle by which each person is to be perpetually governed
Many mistake by viewing religion as separate from common life, and as hardly to be made to accord with it.
I. The principle which is to actuate us. The fear of the Lord. The fear attends the whole of religion.
1. As a quality, to temper the whole; to bind doctrine and knowledge; to keep confidence from growing up into rank presumption, and liberty from degenerating into licentiousness.
2. As a quickener, to excite and to enliven the whole.
II. The extensiveness of its influence. To be in the fear shows the frequency of its exercise, and of its invariable constancy. See the attributes of this fear as regards–
1. Devotions, regular and ejaculatory.
2. The business of the day.
3. The trials of the day.
4. Its relaxation, recreation, and refreshment.
5. The company of the day.
6. The opportunities and occasions of the day.
III. The advantage of its habitualness.
1. It will render religion more easy and pleasant.
2. It will render your religion more obvious and certain. It furnishes the best evidences of its reality. Then be concerned to exercise diligence.
(1) All the day long you are in danger.
(2) God is all day long doing you good.
(3) All the day long you are observed, even by your fellow-creatures, much more than you are aware of.
(4) You are accountable all the day long. (W. Jay.)
The wicked not to be envied
I. What is it in sinners that we are apt to envy?
1. Many sinners have much money. Riches are not necessary to any man. Still, human nature is so weak and so corrupt that but few men can look at the wealthy without envying them.
2. Sometimes the wicked seem to have a great deal of pleasure. Take their word for it, and no people are so happy. Those who have not health, or money, or time thus to live at ease, are very apt to envy these lovers of pleasure.
3. Some sinners seem to get many of the honours of life. They seek the honour that cometh from man, and they have their reward. Silly people stand off and admire and envy.
4. Some envy the wicked for their apparent freedom from restraint. The law of God does not bind them any further than suits themselves. To a carnal mind this looks like a fine way of getting through the world, and the foolish envy these lawless ones.
5. Sometimes sinners seem to be, and for a long time are, free from afflictions, which so much distress the righteous.
II. There is no good ground fob preferring the state of sinners. There is really no Divine blessing permanently resting on the wicked, as there is on the righteous. There is also a sad amount of alloy mixed up with all that sinners have. The passions of sinners are at war with each other and with mankind. The devices of the wicked will ruin them. The wicked are not without smitings of conscience. All nature is armed against the wicked. Instead of envying sinners, pity them and pray for them. Let the righteous show that they are pleased with the choice which they have made. (W. S. Plumer, D.D.)
Divine providence
The text is a persuasive to contentment and satisfaction with Divine providence, which permits wicked men to flourish for awhile, enforced with this reason, that there is a reward laid up for all such as trust in God and meekly submit to His will.
1. Let the times be never so perilous and dangerous, yet Gods providence ought not to be questioned by us, whatever its unequal distributions be. Answering the objection that, if Gods providence governs all the issues and events of things, virtue should never go unrewarded, plead that there is no man but has grievously sinned against the Lord. Therefore they can have no cause to question His justice in their suffering. Besides this, it may be urged that affliction is a proof of Gods tender love and kindness; that the prosperity of the wicked often turns to their hurt and disadvantage; and that the day of judgment will set all things right.
2. Show how we are to demean ourselves under the actual oppressions of prosperous wickedness. The best course for a man to take is to hold himself to God, to trust in Him, and order himself according to His will.
3. We must not go out of the road of duty, and do as the wicked do, because we see them prosper.
4. The flourishing condition of the wicked is but short-lived, and therefore not to be envied.
5. There is an assured reward, if ye have patience awhile, and meekly submit to the will of God in His providential administrations. Then seek to live so that God may bless you with the continuance of His blessings. (T. Knaggs, M.A.)
All the day long
I. The prescribed course of the believer Be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long. We must be in the fear of the Lord before we can remain in it. The fear is for all the day, and for every clay. Some have a religion of show, others a religion of spasms. Ours must never be a religion that is periodic in its flow, like certain intermittent springs. Beware of the godliness which varies with the calendar. Note the details which are comprised in this exhortation. Remember not merely to associate religion with the routine of life, but also with special occasions. There are excellent reasons for being in the fear of the Lord all the day long. He sees us all the day long. Sin is equally evil all the day long. You always belong to Christ. You can never tell when or how Satan will attack you. Your Lord may come at any hour.
II. The probable interruption. It has happened to godly men in all ages to see the wicked prosper, and they have been staggered by the sight. There is no real cause for envying the wicked; and envying them will do you serious harm. Envy helps in no way, and hinders in many ways.
III. The helpful consideration.
1. There is an end of this life.
2. There is an end of the worldlings prosperity.
3. God has an end in your present trouble and exercise.
4. There will be no failure to your expectation. The promise of God is in itself a possession, and our expectation of it is in itself an enjoyment. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
A caution against envy and a call to piety
I. A serious caution. This should be regarded–
1. Because envy is a disposition of mind whose influence can never be justified.
2. Because to envy sinners is absurd.
II. The admonitory precept. This implies–
1. To be in possession of correct and spiritual ideas of His holy and exalted character.
2. To cultivate suitable dispositions of heart towards Him.
III. An encouraging assertion. For surely there is an end, etc.
1. There is an end to that prosperity with which the efforts of sinners are crowned.
2. There is an end to the tribulation of the saints.
3. The expectation of those who continue in the fear of the Lord shall not be cut off. Human expectations are cut off by slothful and indolent habits, and by unforeseen occurrences. Instead of envying sinners, saints should pity them, pray for them, set them good examples, and try to save them. (Sketches of Four Hundred Sermons.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Let not thine heart envy sinners; let not the consideration of their present impunity and prosperity stir thee up, either to envy them, or to approve and imitate their evil courses.
Be thou in the fear of the Lord; reverence the presence of the Divine Majesty, and dread his power and justice, and those judgments which he hath prepared for sinners, and thou wilt see no cause to envy, but rather to pity them.
All the day long; not only when thou art in trouble, but in all times and conditions.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
17, 18. (Compare Margin).The prosperity of the wicked is short.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Let not thine heart envy sinners,…. Their present prosperity and happiness, the pleasure, profit, and honour, they seem to enjoy; all which is but a shadow, fading had temporary; and yet good men are apt to envy it in their hearts, if they do not express it with their lips; and are ready to murmur and think it hard that they should be in straitened circumstances while the wicked are in flourishing ones; and inwardly fret and are uneasy at it, which they should not,
Ps 37:1; or do not “emulate” or “imitate” z them, or do as they do, thinking thereby to enjoy the same prosperity and happiness; choose not their ways, nor desire to be with them, to have their company, or be ranked among them, Pr 3:31;
but [be thou] in the fear of the Lord all the day long; let the fear of God be always before thine eyes and in thine heart; be continually in the exercise of fear, which is attended with faith and trust in the Lord; with love and affection to him, and joy and delight in him; be constantly employed in the duties of religion, private and public, which the fear of God includes; and this will be a preservative from envying, murmuring, and fretting at the outward happiness of wicked men; and from joining with them in their evil ways. Aben Ezra, and who is followed by some others, render it, “but [emulate or imitate] the men that fear the Lord all the day long” a; be followers of them, and do as they do; let their constant piety and devotion stir up a holy emulation in thee to copy after them and exceed them; but the former sense is best.
z “ne aemuletur”, Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Junius et Tremellius, Piscator, Mercerus, Cocceius, Gejerus, Michaelis. a “Aemulare virum timentem, Jehovam”, Vatablus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The poet now shows how one attains unto wisdom – the beginning of wisdom is the fear of God:
17 Let not thine heart strive after sinners,
But after the fear of Jahve all the day.
18 Truly there is a future,
And thy hope shall not come to naught.
The lxx, Jerome, the Venet., and Luther, and the Arab. interpreters, render 17b as an independent clause: “but be daily in the fear of the Lord.” That is not a substantival clause (cf. Pro 22:7), nor can it be an interjectional clause, but it may be an elliptical clause (Fleischer: from the prohibitive is to be taken for the second parallel member the v. subst. lying at the foundation of all verbs); but why had the author omitted dettim ? Besides, one uses the expressions, to act ( ), and to walk ( ) in the fear of God, but not the expression to be ( ) in the fear of God. Thus , like , is dependent on ; and Jerome, who translates: Non aemuletur cor tuum peccatores, sed in timore Domini esto tota die , ought to have continued: sed timorem Domini tota die ; for, as one may say in Latin: aemulari virtutes , as well as aemulari aliquem , so also in Heb. , of the envying of those persons whose fortune excites to dissatisfaction, because one has not the same, and might yet have it, Pro 3:31; Pro 24:1, Pro 24:19, as well as of emulation for a thing in which one might not stand behind others: envy not sinners, envy much rather the fear of God, i.e., let thyself be moved with eager desire after it when its appearance is presented to thee. There is no O.T. parallel for this, but the Syr. tan and the Greek are used in this double sense. Thus Hitzig rightly, and, among the moderns, Malbim; with Aben Ezra, it is necessary to take for , this proverb itself declares the fear of God to be of all things the most worthy of being coveted.
In Pro 23:18, Umbreit, Elster, Zckler, and others interpret the as assigning a reason, and the as conditioning: for when the end (the hour of the righteous judgment) has come; Bertheau better, because more suitable to the and the : when an end (an end adjusting the contradictions of the present time) comes, as no doubt it will come, then thy hope will not be destroyed; but, on the other hand, the succession of words in the conclusion ( vid., at Pro 3:34) opposes this; also one does not see why the author does not say directly , but expresses himself thus conditionally.
(Note: The form does not contradict the connection of the two particles. This use of the Makkeph is general, except in these three instances: Gen 15:4; Num 35:33; Neh 2:2.)
If is meant hypothetically, then, with the lxx , we should supply after it , that had fallen out. Ewald’s: much rather there is yet a future (Dchsel: much rather be happy there is…), is also impossible; for the preceding clause is positive, not negative. The particles , connected thus, mean: for if ( e.g., Lam 3:32); or also relatively: that if ( e.g., Jer 26:15). After a negative clause they have the meaning of “unless,” which is acquired by means of an ellipsis; e.g., Isa 55:10, it turns not back thither, unless it has watered the earth (it returns back not before then, not unless this is done). This “unless” is, however, used like the Lat. nisi , also without the conditioning clause following, e.g., Gen 28:17, hic locus non est nisi domus Dei . And hence the expression , after the negation going before, acquires the meaning of “but,” e.g., 17b: let not thy heart be covetous after sinners, for thou canst always be zealous for the fear of God, i.e., much rather for this, but for this. This pleonasm of sometimes occurs where is not used confirmatively, but affirmatively: the “certainly if” forms the transition, e.g., 1Ki 20:6 ( vid., Keil’s Comm. l.c.), whose “if” is not seldom omitted, so that has only the meaning of an affirmative “certainly,” not “truly no,” which it may also have, 1Sa 25:34, but “truly yes.” Thus is used Jdg 15:7; 2Sa 15:21 (where is omitted by the Ker ); 2Ki 5:20; Jer 51:14; and thus it is also meant here, 18a, notwithstanding that , in its more usual signification, “besides only, but, nisi ,” precedes, as at 1Sa 21:6, cf. 5. The objection by Hitzig, that with this explanation: “certainly there is a future,” Pro 23:18 and Pro 23:17 are at variance, falls to the ground, if one reflects on the Heb. idiom, in which the affirmative signification of is interpenetrated by the confirmative. used thus pregnantly, as here (Pro 24:14), is the glorious final issue; the word in itself designates the end into which human life issues (cf. Psa 37:37.); here, the end crowning the preceding course. Jeremiah (Jer 29:11) in this sense connects [end and expectation]. And what is here denied of the , the hope (not as certain Jewish interpreters dream, the thread of life) of him who zealously strives after the fear of God, is affirmed, at Psa 37:38, of the godless: the latter have no continuance, but the former have such as is the fulfilling of his hope.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
17 Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long. 18 For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
Here is, 1. A necessary caution against entertaining any favourable thoughts of prospering profaneness: “Let not thy heart envy sinners; do not grudge them either the liberty they take to sin or the success they are to be pitied rather than envied. Their prosperity is their portion (Ps. xii. 14), nay, it is their poison,” Prov. i. 32. We must not harbour in our hearts any secret discontent at the providence of God, though it seem to smile upon them, nor wish ourselves in their condition. “Let not thy heart imitate sinners” (so some read it); do not as they do; walk not in the way with them; use not the methods they take to enrich themselves, though they thrive by them. 2. An excellent direction to maintain high thoughts of God in our minds at all times: Be thou in the fear of the Lord every day and all the day long. We must be in the fear of the Lord as in our employment, exercising ourselves in holy adorings of God, in subjection to his precepts, submission to his providences, and a constant care to please him; we must be in it as in our element, taking a pleasure in contemplating God’s glory and complying with his will. We must be devoted to his fear (Ps. cxix. 38); and governed by it as our commanding principle in all we say and do. All the days of our life we must constantly keep up an awe of God upon our spirits, must pay a deference to his authority, and have a dread of his wrath. We must be always so in his fear as never to be out of it. 3. A good reason for both of these (v. 18): Surely there is an end, an end and expectation, as Jer. xxix. 11. There will be an end of the prosperity of the wicked, therefore do not envy them (Ps. lxxiii. 17); there will be an end of thy afflictions, therefore be not weary of them, an end of thy services, thy work and warfare will be accomplished, perfect love will shortly cast out fear, and thy expectation of the reward not only will be not cut off, or disappointed, but it will be infinitely outdone. The consideration of the end will help to reconcile us to all the difficulties and discouragements of the way.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
Beware of Envy of Sinners
Verses 17-18-Comment included in comment on Pro 24:19-20.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
17. Let not thine heart envy sinners Neither their freedom from restraint, enjoyment in sinful pleasures, nor their seeming prosperity. Comp. Psa 37:1; Psa 73:3; Psa 24:1.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Thirteenth Saying (Tetrastitch) Pro 23:17-18 forms a single proverbial thought using four lines. This proverb warns us not to envy the sinner because God is faithful to reward His children. We will again be warned about envying the wicked in Pro 24:1-2.
Pro 24:1-2, “Be not thou envious against evil men, neither desire to be with them. For their heart studieth destruction, and their lips talk of mischief.”
Illustration – We also find an example of this proverb in Psalms 73, a psalm of Asaph, of how he envied the wicked until he went into the sanctuary of God and his mind became clear enough to reflect upon their end.
Psa 73:3, “For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”
David also warned against this type of envy in Psalms 37 by reminding us that he will soon be cut off.
Psa 37:1-2, “Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.”
Pro 23:18 For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
Pro 23:18
Fuente: Everett’s Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures
v. 17. Let not thine heart envy sinners,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
DISCOURSE: 804
THE FEAR OF GOD ALL THE DAY
Pro 23:17-18. Be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long: for surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
THE men of this world, feeling but little restraint from the voice of conscience or the fear of God, gratify, each in his own way, their natural inclinations; and therefore they appear happy: and the people of God, especially under troubles and persecutions for righteousness sake, are almost ready to look upon them with an eye of envy: and, if this world only were considered, and temporal enjoyments were the proper standard of happiness, perhaps they might on the whole be congratulated as possessing a happy and an enviable lot [Note: Psa 63:3-5.]. But the righteous, under whatever disadvantages they may lie, have no just cause to envy sinners; seeing that nothing but disappointment awaits the children of this world; whilst the servants of God, who look forward to heavenly bliss, can never be disappointed of their hope. On this assurance the exhortation in my text is founded; and for the fuller elucidation of the subject, I will set before you,
I.
The duty inculcated
The fear of the Lord is, especially in the Old Testament, a common expression, comprehending in its import the whole of practical religion. And when we are bidden to live under its influence all the day long, we must understand the precept as enjoining us to maintain, throughout the whole course of our lives,
1.
A sense of love to God, as our Father
[Jehovah, as reconciled to us through the Son of his love, stands in the relation of a Father to us; for all, the very instant they believe in Christ, have the privilege of becoming the Sons of God [Note: Joh 1:12.]. Till we come to God by Christ, we have no filial fear of him in our hearts. A slavish fear of him we may have; but we neither have, nor can have, a Spirit of adoption, emboldening us to call him Father: for the Holy Spirit can never bear witness with our spirit, that we are the Lords [Note: Rom 8:15-16.], till we are made his by faith in Christ Jesus [Note: Gal 3:26.]. But when we are become his children, then we must go in and out before him with holy confidence, exactly as duteous children before a loving parent To walk thus before him was the perfection of Abrahams attainments [Note: Gen 17:1.]; and it is that which is held forth to us also as the summit of a Christians duty and privilege [Note: Eph 5:1.] ]
2.
A sense of duty to him, as our Master
[This is united with the former by God himself: A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if, then, I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear [Note: Mal 1:6.] Now, what is the conduct of a good servant? When he rises in the morning, he asks himself, What have I to do for my master? and through every part of the day, even to the close of it, the same question recurs to his mind, and calls forth suitable exertions for the discharge of the duties required of him. And if, when engaged in executing his masters commands, he were solicited by any one to embark in some other pursuit, he would immediately reply, as our blessed Saviour did, I must be about my Fathers business: nor could any consideration tempt him to neglect his duty. He would, under all circumstances, regard his masters work as claiming a just preference at his hands, and his masters approbation as that which, above all, he was anxious to obtain. Let it be thus, then, with you in every situation of life; and make it your one business to approve yourselves good servants of Jesus Christ.]
3.
A sense of responsibility to him as our Judge
[Never are you to lose a sense of this. It is quite a mistake to call this legal. St. Paul, and all the Apostles, acted with a direct reference to the future judgment; and sought so to demean themselves that they might welcome the second coming of their Lord, and stand with boldness before him at that awful day [Note: 1Co 9:26-27. 2Co 5:9-10. Jam 5:8-9. 1Pe 5:1-4.]. This will secure the obedience of the heart: for in that day shall the secrets of mens hearts be disclosed, and, their inmost counsels be made manifest: and, to secure his approbation then, you must be upright, and without any allowed guile. Let every place then bear, as it were, this inscription, Thou, God, seest me; and take heed to your thoughts, no less than to your actions, that so you may be found sincere and without offence until the day of Christ [Note: Php 1:10.].]
And, lest such a constant attention to duty should appear irksome to you, let me shew you,
II.
The encouragement given us to the performance of it
The whole Scripture declares, that, verily, there is a reward for the righteous [Note: Psa 58:11.]; and this, I conceive, is the true import of my text [Note: See the marginal reading, and compare it with ch. 24:14.]. The ungodly expect to find happiness in their ways of sin; but they pursue a phantom, and embrace a shadow. But not so they who fear the Lord: they shall have a sure reward; as God hath said, The hope of the righteous shall be gladness; but the expectation of the wicked shall perish [Note: Pro 10:28. with 11:18.]. What, then, my Brethren, do ye expect? Do you expect pardon of sin?
[This shall surely be accorded to you: for in the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence; and his children shall have a place of refuge [Note: Pro 14:26.]. Yes, verily, however numerous your sins may have been, they shall all be blotted out, even as a morning cloud. Will God cast out one who comes to him in his Sons name? Will he spurn from his footstool one humble suppliant? No: to this man will he look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and that trembleth at his word [Note: Isa 66:2.]; and to him will he give beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness [Note: Psa 61:1-3.].]
Peace of conscience?
[This also shall you possess. Hear what David says: What man is he that feareth the Lord? Him shall the Lord teach in the way that he shall choose; and his soul shall dwell at ease [Note: Psa 25:12-13.]. Peace is the legacy which Jesus has bequeathed to all his redeemed people, saying, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you [Note: Joh 14:27.]. To the wicked there is no peace [Note: Isa 57:21.]: but for you is there a peace that passeth all understanding.]
Strength for duty?
[Doubtless you may have many difficulties to encounter: but God himself promises that your strength shall be according to your day. His very covenant with his people is, He will put his fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from him [Note: Jer 32:40.]. This is a principle which cannot but operate, and cannot but be effectual for the mortification of all sin, and for the performance of all duty. See its operation in the Apostle Paul. Under trials as severe as man could well be called to endure, he said, I know that this shall turn to my salvation, through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also, Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death [Note: Php 1:19-20.]. Thus you may encounter all difficulties without fear; and, knowing in whom you have believed, may assure yourselves that no enemy whatever shall be able to prevail against you [Note: Rom 8:35-39.].]
Comfort in death?
[This also is secured to you: Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright; for the end of that man is peace [Note: Psa 37:37.]. I say not that you shall have joy: for there may be in the very nature of your disorder much to prevent that buoyancy of mind which is a necessary attendant on joy: but peace shall assuredly he your portion, if only you trust in God: for God has said, I will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on me, because he trusteth in me [Note: Isa 26:3.]. ]
Glory in eternity?
[This also shall be yours. Your expectations cannot be too enlarged, if you walk in the fear of God as you are here enjoined: I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord; thoughts of good, and not of evil, to give you an expected end [Note: Jer 29:11.]. And in this you differ widely from the sinner, who casts off the fear of God. To persons of this latter description God says, What fruit had ye then of those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now, being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness and your end everlasting life [Note: Rom 6:21-22.].
Tell me now, Brethren, whether ye have not encouragement to fear the Lord? and whether there be any sinner in the universe whose portion can be compared with yours? ]
Application
[As for you who fear not God, whatever ye may possess of this world, or whatever gratifications ye may enjoy, ye have a miserable portion indeed: and though ye abounded with every thing, like the Rich Man in the Gospel, yet were a pious Lazarus, that was destitute of all things, or even a martyr at the stake, in a preferable state to yours: and well may ye envy the poorest, the meanest saint on earth. Where will ye look for pardon, for peace, for strength, for comfort in a dying hour, and for glory in eternity? Think ye of your misery ere it be too late; and beg of God to implant in your hearts that fear of his name, which is the certain and the only prelude to his final approbation.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the LORD all the day long. For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
Nothing can be more conclusive; by way of strengthening the faith of the believer, than what is contained in these verses. When we consider the transitory triumph of bad men, and the sure expectation of the just; this becomes enough to prop up the soul under all exercises. I pray the Reader to turn to a most delightful passage to this effect. Psa 37:35 to the end.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Pro 23:17 Let not thine heart envy sinners: but [be thou] in the fear of the LORD all the day long.
Ver. 17. Let not thine heart envy sinners. ] Who, have they never so much here, they have but a pension, an annuity; a state of life granted them in the utmost and most remote part of our inheritance.
But be thou in the fear of the Lord all day long.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Proverbs
A CONDENSED GUIDE FOR LIFE
THE AFTERWARDS AND OUR HOPE
Pro 23:17 – Pro 23:18
The Book of Proverbs seldom looks beyond the limits of the temporal, but now and then the mists lift and a wider horizon is disclosed. Our text is one of these exceptional instances, and is remarkable, not only as expressing confidence in the future, but as expressing it in a very striking way. ‘Surely there is an end,’ says our Authorised Version, substituting in the margin, for end, ‘reward.’ The latter word is placed in the text of the Revised Version. But neither ‘end’ nor ‘reward’ conveys the precise idea. The word so translated literally means ‘something that comes after.’ So it is the very opposite of ‘end’, it is really that which lies beyond the end-the ‘sequel,’ or the ‘future’-as the margin of the Revised Version gives alternatively, or, more simply still, the afterwards. Surely there is an afterwards behind the end. And then the proverb goes on to specify one aspect of that afterwards: ‘Thine expectation’-or, better, because more simply, thy hope-shall not be cut off. And then, upon these two convictions that there is, if I might so say, an afterclap, and that it is the time and the sphere in which the fairest hopes that a man can paint to himself shall be surpassed by the reality, it builds the plain partial exhortation: ‘Be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.’
So then, we have three things here, the certainty of the afterwards, the immortality of hope consequent thereon, and the bearing of these facts on the present.
I. The certainty of the hereafter.
Now, the question comes to be, where did the coiners of Proverbs, whose main interest was in the obvious maxims of a prudential morality, get this conviction? They did not get it from any lofty experience of communion with God, like that which in the seventy-third Psalm marks the very high-water mark of Old Testament faith in regard to a future life, where the Psalmist finds himself so completely blessed and well in present fellowship with God, that he must needs postulate its eternal continuance, and just because he has made God the portion of his heart, and is holding fellowship with Him, is sure that nothing can intervene to break that sweet communion. They did not get it from any clear definite revelation, such as we have in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which has made that future life far more than an inference for us, but they got it from thinking over the facts of this present life as they appeared to them, looked at from the standpoint of a belief in God, and in righteousness. And so they represent to us the impression that is made upon a man’s mind, if he has the ‘eye that hath kept watch o’er man’s mortality,’ that is made by the facts of this earthly life-viz. that it is so full of onward-looking, prophetic aspect, so manifestly and tragically, and yet wonderfully and hopefully. Incomplete and fragmentary in itself, that there must be something beyond in order to explain, in order to vindicate, the life that now is. And that aspect of fragmentary incompleteness is what I would insist upon for a moment now.
You sometimes see a row of houses, the end one of them has, in its outer gable wall, bricks protruding here and there, and holes for chimney-pieces that are yet to be put in. And just as surely as that external wall says that the row is half built, and there are some more tenements to be added to it, so surely does the life that we now live here, in all its aspects almost, bear upon itself the stamp that it, too, is but initial and preparatory. You sometimes see, in the bookseller’s catalogue, a book put down ‘volume one; all that is published.’ That is our present life-volume one, all that is published. Surely there is going to be a sequel, volume two. Volume two is due, and will come, and it will be the continuation of volume one.
What is the meaning of the fact that of all the creatures on the face of the earth only you and I, and our brethren and sisters, do not find in our environment enough for our powers? What is the meaning of the fact that, whilst ‘foxes have holes’ where they curl themselves up, and they are at rest, ‘and the birds of the air have roosting-places,’ where they tuck their heads beneath their wings and sleep, the ‘son of man’ hath not where to lay his head, but looks round upon the earth and says, ‘The earth, O Lord, is full of Thy mercy. I am a stranger on the earth.’ What is the meaning of it? Here is the meaning of it: ‘Surely there is a hereafter.’
What is the meaning of the fact that lodged in men’s natures there lies that strange power of painting to themselves things that are not as though they were? So that minds and hearts go out wandering through Eternity, and having longings and possibilities which nothing beneath the stars can satisfy, or can develop? The meaning of it is this: Surely there is a hereafter. The man that wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, in his sceptical moment ere he had attained to his last conclusion, says, in a verse that is mistranslated in our rendering, ‘He hath set Eternity in their hearts, therefore the misery of man is great upon him.’ That is true, because the root of all our unrest and dissatisfaction is that we need God, and God in Eternity, in order that we may be at rest. But whilst on the one hand ‘therefore the misery of man is great upon him,’ on the other hand, because Eternity is in our hearts, therefore there is the answer to the longings, the adequate sphere for the capacities in that great future, and in the God that fills it. You go into the quarries left by reason of some great convulsion or disaster, by forgotten races, and you will find there half excavated and rounded pillars still adhering to the matrix of the rock from which they were being hewn. Such unfinished abortions are all human lives if, when Death drops its curtain, there is an end.
But, brethren, God does not so clumsily disproportion His creatures and their place. God does not so cruelly put into men longings that have no satisfaction, and desires which never can be filled, as that there should not be, beyond the gulf, the fair land of the hereafter. Every human life obviously has in it, up to the very end, the capacity for progress. Every human life, up to the very end, has been educated and trained, and that, surely, for something. There may be masters in workshops who take apprentices, and teach them their trade during the years that are needed, and then turn round and say, ‘I have no work for you, so you must go and look for it somewhere else.’ That is not how God does. When He has trained His apprentices He gives them work to do. Surely there is a hereafter, But that is only part of what is involved in this thought. It is not only a state subsequent to the present, but it is a state consequent on the present, and the outcome of it. The analogy of our earthly life avails here. To-day is the child of all the yesterdays, and the yesterdays and to-day are the parent of tomorrow. The past, our past, has made us what we are in the present, and what we are in the present is making us what we shall be in the future. And when we pass out of this life we pass out, notwithstanding all changes, the same men as we were. There may be much on the surface changed, there will be much taken away, thank God! dropped, necessarily, by the cessation of the corporeal frame, and the connection into which it brings us with things of sense. There will be much added, God only knows how much, but the core of the man will remain untouched. ‘We all are changed by still degrees,’ and suddenly at last ‘All but the basis of the evil.’ And so we carry ourselves with us into that future life, and, ‘what a man soweth, that shall he also reap.’ Oh that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their afterward!
II. Now, secondly, my text suggests the immortality of hope.
But, further, that conviction of the afterward opens up for us a condition in which imagination is surpassed by the wondrous reality. Here, I suppose, nobody ever had all the satisfaction out of a fulfilled hope that he expected. The fish is always a great deal larger and heavier when we see it in the water than when it is lifted out and scaled. And I suppose that, on the whole, perhaps as much pain as pleasure comes from the hopes which are illusions far more often than they are realities. They serve their purpose in whirling us along the path of life and in stimulating effort, but they do not do much more.
But there does come a time, if you believe that there is an afterwards, when all we desired and painted to ourselves of possible good for our craving spirits shall be felt to be but a pale reflex of the reality, like the light of some unrisen sun on the snowfields, and we shall have to say ‘the half was not told to us.’
And, further, if that afterwards is of the sort that we, through Jesus Christ and His resurrection and glory, know to be, then all through the timeless eternity hope will be our guide. For after each fresh influx of blessedness and knowledge we shall have to say ‘it doth not yet appear what we shall be.’ ‘Thus now abideth’-and not only now, but then and eternally-’these three-faith, hope, and charity,’ and hope will never be cut off through all the stretch of that great afterwards.
III. And now, finally, notice the bearing of all this on the daily present.
Surely, surely the very climax and bad eminence of folly is shutting the eyes to that future that we all have to face; and to live here, as some of you are doing, ignoring it and God, and cribbing, cabining, and confining all our thoughts within the narrow limits of the things present and visible. For to live so, as our text enjoins, is the sure way, and the only way, to make these great hopes realities for ourselves.
Brethren, that afterwards has two sides to it. The prophet Malachi, in almost his last words, has a magnificent apocalypse of what he calls ‘the day of the Lord,’ which he sets forth as having a double aspect. On the one hand, it is lurid as a furnace, and burns up the wicked root and branch. I saw a forest fire this last autumn, and the great pine-trees stood there for a moment pyramids of flame, and then came down with a crash. So that hereafter will be to godless men. And on the other side, that ‘day of the Lord’ in the prophet’s vision was radiant with the freshness and dew and beauty of morning, and the Sun of Righteousness arose with healing in his wings. Which of the two is it going to be to us? We have all to face it. We cannot alter that fact, but we can settle how we shall face it. It will be to either the fulfilment of blessed hope, the ‘appearance of the glory of the great God and our Saviour,’ or else, as is said in this same Book of Proverbs: ‘The hope of the godless’ shall be like one of those water plants, the papyrus or the flag, which, when the water is taken away, ‘withereth up before any other herb.’ It is for us to determine whether the afterwards that we must enter upon shall be the land in which our hopes shall blossom and fruit, and blossom again immortally, or whether we shall leave behind us, with all the rest that we would fain keep, the possibility of anticipating any good. ‘Surely there is an afterwards,’ and if thou wilt ‘be in the fear of the Lord all the day long,’ then for evermore ‘thy hope shall not be cut off.’
Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren
sinners. Hebrew. chata’. App-44.
the fear of the LORD. See note on Pro 1:7.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 23:17-18
Pro 23:17-18
“Let not thy heart envy sinners; But be thou in the fear of Jehovah all the day long: For surely there is a reward; And thy hope shall not be cut off.”
Concerning the blessed hope of holy religious faith, mortals need all the encouragement they can find; and here the sacred text thunders the message, “Surely there is a reward.” The hope of heaven is a reality. Christ said, “In my Father’s house, there are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you.” (Joh 14:2). This being true, why then, should any Christian envy the ephemeral joys of sinners, purchased by them at the price of eternal death?
Pro 23:17. To envy sinners is not to be fearing Jehovah properly. Other passages that warn against envying sinners: Psa 37:1; Pro 3:31; Pro 24:1; Pro 24:19. Yet people at times do envy sinners (Psa 73:3-7). But if one truly fears Jehovah, he will have no temptation to envy His enemies (sinners) upon whom Gods wrath will ultimately fall.
Pro 23:18. Yes, a godly persons reward is coming, and how great it will be! Suchs hope will be fulfilled and not cut off: 1Pe 1:3-5; Psa 37:37. Pulpit Commentary: The writer has a firm belief in the moral government of God and in a future life which shall rectify all anomalies. If the poor man of Luke 16 were tempted to envy the rich man, it would have been a mistake because he himself ended up so much better off (Luk 16:25).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
fear
(See Scofield “Psa 19:9”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
not: Pro 3:31, Pro 24:1, Psa 37:1-3, Psa 73:3-7
be thou: Pro 15:16, Pro 28:14, Psa 111:10, Psa 112:1, Ecc 5:7, Ecc 12:13, Ecc 12:14, Act 9:31, 2Co 7:1, 1Pe 1:17
Reciprocal: Psa 25:5 – on thee Pro 3:6 – In Pro 24:19 – neither Jer 32:39 – they may Dan 6:20 – servest Rom 3:18 – General 1Pe 2:17 – Fear
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
LIFE IS FOR GOD
Let not thine heart envy sinners: but be thou in the fear of the Lord all the day long.
Pro 23:17
I. Holy Scripture is full of warnings against this fatal form of envy, for indeed in this form came the first temptation to our mother Eve.
II. Gods Holy Spirit, thus proclaiming the mischief, in His love proclaims also the remedy.The way not to let ones heart envy sinners is to be in fear of the Lord all the day long.
III. We are almost sure to begin to wish ourselves like the wicked if we willingly abide in their company.Therefore doth the wise man especially caution us that if we would not be envious towards evil men, we must not desire to be with them. Remember the end of these men, then you will leave off envying them, and you will begin to pity them and pray for them.
Rev. J. Keble.
Illustration
We must not think that the ground of these prohibitions is an unreasoning caprice. They are founded in the love of God. It is because He loves us so much that He puts us on our guard against things which are really detrimental, and which we should be the first to forgo, if we loved ourselves with as real and deep a love as His. God knows that yielding to the imperious dictates of passion ruins the moral life, the peace of the heart, the strength and energy of the soul, and He warns us against them for our own sake. Oh! do not look on God as delighting in depriving you of things you like for arbitrary reasons, but for the deepest reasons, the cogency of which you would be the first to acknowledge if you knew all.
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
Pro 23:17-18. Let not thy heart envy sinners Let not the consideration of their present impunity and prosperity excite thee either to envy them, or to approve and imitate their evil courses; but be thou in the fear of the Lord Reverence the presence of the Divine Majesty, and dread his power and justice, and those judgments which he hath prepared for sinners, and thou wilt see no cause to envy, but rather to pity them; all the day long Not only when thou art in trouble, but in all times and conditions. For surely there is an end An expected and happy end for such as fear God; or, a reward, as the word , here used, is rendered, Pro 24:20. And thine expectation shall not be cut off Thou shalt certainly enjoy that good which thou expectest, as the wicked shall lose that happiness which they enjoy.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The long view-even beyond death-is essential in order to avoid envying the wicked, who frequently prosper in this life. We should always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. Looking up (Pro 23:17) and looking ahead (Pro 23:18) can help us avoid envying sinners. [Note: Kidner, p. 152.]