Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 24:9
The thought of foolishness [is] sin: and the scorner [is] an abomination to men.
9. foolishness ] i.e. fools: abstract for concrete.
and ] “Or, but the scorner. Perhaps the meaning is that the very purpose of evil is sinful in the sight of God; but the bold and insolent transgressor is not only offensive to God but odious to men.” Rel. Tr. Soc. Commentary.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Pro 24:9
The thought of foolishness is sin.
The nature of evil thoughts
I. What is meant by the thought of foolishness? Folly and sin signify the same thing in Scripture. We are not to understand thoughts of pure speculation as simple acts of the understanding; nor even a thought of sudden and transient inclination towards sin, which arises in our minds before we are aware and which we endeavour to stifle. Though such thoughts are sinful in their first rise and tendency, when the imagination has been long heated or their hearts corrupted by any criminal excess or disorder. We are to understand by a thought of foolishness one of complacency. Such a thought as the will not only consents to entertain, but which the mind delights to dwell and dilate itself upon. These evil thoughts proceed from some vicious reigning passion, or perhaps presumptuous sin. To give way to such vain and foolish thoughts is an argument of a mind very much turned and estranged from God. Such impure and loose thoughts are directly contrary to the fruits of the Spirit, and to those precepts of Holy Scripture which require us to be spiritually-minded. Many mistakenly think there is no sin in dwelling on evil thoughts, so long as they abstain from gross external acts of sin.
II. Rules and directions for the better regulation of our thoughts.
1. Take care to be always usefully or at least innocently employed.
2. Carefully examine what those things are which have been most apt to excite evil thoughts in us. And refrain from company, books, and circumstances which influence us for evil.
3. Evil thoughts frequently arise from prevailing natural temper.
4. Live under a constant sense of Gods presence and inspection over us.
5. All rules and directions will avail but little toward the better government of our thoughts without the illuminating and sanctifying graces of the Spirit of God. (R. Fiddes, D.D.)
And the scorner is an abomination to men.
The scorner
I. A description of the scorner.
1. He is one who runs counter to the general reason and maxims whereby the rest of mankind govern themselves. He places his greatest glory in those disorders which the rest of mankind are most ashamed of.
2. He is one who delights to walk in the way of sinners.
3. He would be thought of as believing that there is no God.
4. He delights in ridiculing those persons or things which have a more immediate relation to God.
5. The greatest effort of the scorner is against that order of men whose peculiar office it is to minister in things pertaining to God.
6. He makes it his business to confound the distinction of virtue and vice, to call evil good and good evil.
II. His rendering himself an abomination to men. This he does by–
1. His common swearing.
2. His profaneness.
3. His confounding the distinction of virtue and vice.
III. Useful improvements.
1. Men generally entertain a secret esteem and veneration for religion.
2. Take care to keep ourselves at as far a distance as possible from the profane temper of mind of the scorner. Never think of God, or speak of Him, save with reverence. Be careful not to obstruct the influence of religious considerations on our hearts. (R. Fiddes, D.D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 9. The thought of foolishness is sin] zimmath ivveleth chattath. “The device of folly is transgression;” or, “an evil purpose is sinful;” or, perhaps more literally, “the device of the foolish is sin.” It has been variously understood by the versions.
“The cunning: of the fool is sin.” – Targum.
“The imprudent man (or fool, ) shall die in sins.” – Septuagint.
So the Arabic.
The thinkynge of the fool is synne. – Old MS. Bible.
Fool is here taken for a wicked man, who is not only evil in his actions, but every thought of his heart is evil, and that continually. A simple thought about foolishness, or about sin itself, is not sinful; it is the purpose or device, the harbouring evil thoughts, and devising how to sin, that is criminal.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The thought of foolishness is sin; the very inward thought or contrivance of evil, of which he spake Pro 24:8, even before it break forth into action, it is a sin in Gods sight, and it is hateful to God. Or
foolishness is put for foolish or wicked men, by comparing this with the next clause where the scorner is opposed to it. So the sense is, All the thoughts of wicked men are only evil, and that continually, as is said of man in his corrupt estate, Gen 6:5, and therefore abominable to God.
The scorner; he who not only deviseth and practiseth wickedness, but obstinately persists in it, and rejects all admonitions against it.
Is an abomination to men; is abominable not only to God, as all sinners are, but to all sober men.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. Same thought varied.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The thoughts of foolishness [is] sin,…. The thought of sin is sin e, before it comes into action; the motions of sin in the mind, the workings of corrupt nature in the heart, the sinful desires of the flesh and of the mind: these are forbidden and condemned by the law of God as sin, which says, “Thou shall not covet”, Ex 20:17, and stand in need of pardoning grace and mercy; see Ro 7:5. Or, “the thoughts of a foolish man are sin” f; that is, of a wicked man; in all whose thoughts God is not, but sin is; the imagination of the thoughts of his heart is evil, and that continually; he thinks of nothing else but sin, Ge 6:5;
and the scorner [is] an abomination to men; who not only thinks ill of divine things, and despises them in his heart, which is only known to God; but scoffs at them with his lips, makes a jest of all that is good, derides religion and religious men; and to such he is an abomination: and indeed one that is proud and haughty, scorner is his name, and that deals in proud wrath, and scorns all around him, in whatsoever company he comes, and that ridicules every person, and every thing that is said in conversation, is usually hated and abhorred by all sorts of men.
e “Nam scelus intra se tacitum qui cogitat ullum, facti crimen habet”, Juvenal. Satyr. 13. v. 209, 210. f “stulti”, Pagninus, Junius & Tremellius, Mercerus, Piscator, Gejerus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
This proverb is connected by with Pro 24:8, and by with Pro 24:7; it places the fool and the mocker over against one another.
The undertaking of folly is sin;
And an abomination to men is the scorner.
Since it is certain that for 9b the subject is “the scorner,” so also “sin” is to be regarded as the subject of 9a. The special meaning flagitium , as Pro 21:27, will then not have here, but it derives it from the root-idea “to contrive, imagine,” and signifies first only the collection and forthputting of the thoughts towards a definite end (Job 17:11), particularly the refined preparation, the contrivance of a sinful act. In a similar way we speak of a sinful beginning or undertaking. But if one regards sin in itself, or in its consequences, it is always a contrivance or desire of folly ( gen. subjecti), or: one that bears on itself ( gen. qualitatis) the character of folly; for it disturbs and destroys the relation of man to God and man, and rests, as Socrates in Plato says, on a false calculation. And the mocker (the mocker at religion and virtue) is . The form of combination stands here before a word with , as at Job 18:2; Job 24:5, and frequently. but why does not the poet say directly ? Perhaps to leave room for the double sense, that the mocker is not only an abomination to men, viz., to the better disposed; but also, for he makes others err as to their faith, and draws them into his frivolous thoughts, becomes to them a cause of abomination, i.e., of such conduct and of such thoughts as are an abomination before God (Pro 15:9, Pro 15:26).
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(9) The thought of foolishness is sin.Rather, Sin is the contrivance (plotting) of self-will. Sin is the transgression of the law of God (1Jn. 3:4), when we desert the plain rule of duty, and plot how we can indulge our own self-will.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
9. The thought (device or purpose) of foolishness is sin A wicked device is sinful. A man is accountable for his thoughts, plans, purposes, as well as for his deeds. “Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts,” etc.
Mat 15:19; Mar 7:21. The scorner Or scoffer.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
v. 9. The thought of foolishness,
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Pro 24:9 The thought of foolishness [is] sin: and the scorner [is] an abomination to men.
Ver. 9. The thought of foolishness is sin. ] The schools do well observe, that outward sins are maioris infamiae, of greater infamy; but inward heart sins are maioris reatus, of greater guilt, as we see in devils. See Trapp on “ Pro 14:22 “
And the scorner is an abomination to men.
“ Iupiter hunc coeli dignatus honore fuisset,
Censorem linguae sed timet ipse suae. ” – Trithem.
But what an odious scorner was Quintinus the libertine, of whom Calvin complains, that he scoffed at every one of the holy apostles? Paul he called a broken vessel, John a foolish youth, Peter a denier of God, Matthew a usurer, En quomodo ille faetoris gurges putido ore suo blasphemare audebat! saith Calvin. a See how this stinking elf doth bark and blaspheme the saints. The basest can mock, as the abjects did David, Psa 35:15 and Tobiah the servant did Nehemiah. Neh 2:19 Scorners are the most base spirits. The Septuagint call them pests, Psa 1:1 incorrigible, Pro 21:1 proud persons, Pro 3:34 naught, Pro 9:12 &c.
a Calv., Inst. Advers. Libert, cap. 9.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
thought, &c. Compare Pro 4:23. Job 1:5. Jer 4:14. Mat 9:3, Mat 9:4; Mat 15:19, Mat 15:20.
foolishness = the foolish. Hebrew. ‘evil (Pro 24:7).
sin. Hebrew. chata’. App-44.
scorner = scoffer.
men. Hebrew. ‘adam. App-14. Same word as in verses: Pro 24:12, Pro 24:30.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
thought: Pro 24:8, Pro 23:7, Gen 6:5, Gen 8:21, Psa 119:113, Isa 55:7, Jer 4:14, Mat 5:28, Mat 9:4, Mat 15:19, Act 8:22, 2Co 10:5
the scorner: Pro 22:10, Pro 29:8
Reciprocal: Deu 15:9 – thine eye Pro 12:5 – thoughts Pro 15:26 – thoughts Pro 29:27 – General Isa 59:7 – their thoughts Mar 2:8 – Why Mar 7:22 – foolishness