Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 27:21
[As] the refining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so [is] a man to his praise.
21. to his praise ] The meaning is brought out more clearly in R.V. text:
The fining pot is for silver, and the furnace for gold,
And a man is tried by his praise:
i.e. by the manner in which he bears the praise bestowed upon him.
Two alternatives are given in R.V. marg.: that which he praiseth, or, that whereof he boasteth: i.e. you may test a man’s character by observing what it is that he praises in others, or that he is proud of in himself.
Another plausible rendering has found considerable favour: What the fining pot and the furnace are to the precious metals, that should a man be to the mouth which praises him; lit. to the mouth of his praise. He should purge away from what it utters, before he accepts it, the dross of flattery and exaggeration.
The first clause of this verse is identical with that of Pro 17:3.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
So is … – Better, So let a man be to his praise, let him purify it from all the alloy of flattery and baseness with which it is too probably mixed up.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Pro 27:21
So is a man to his praise.
The influence of applause
The various passions implanted in human nature are necessary to animate the soul in the service of God and our generation. The poet sung, Love of fame, the universal passion. The wise man beheld this principle in human nature; he saw the effect of praise upon mankind. The text is a rule, grounded upon the observable effect of it upon man; a refined rule for trial of our true moral character or religious state. It is, literally, A fining-pot for silver and a furnace for gold; and a man to the mouth of his praise. The conduct of men, in regard to their praise, may be as sure a trial of their moral and religious character as the fining-pot is of silver and the furnace of gold. By praise we should understand, not the plaudit of individuals or of the multitude, spoken in a tone of sarcastic irony; nor that given by mistake, as when anothers conduct is innocently ascribed to us, with the praise of his commendable behaviour. By a mans praise we understand real, unfeigned praise, bestowed for actions or conduct commendable in the sight of men, useful to the community. Such praise answers valuable purposes. To observe how a man is to his praise is a matter of serious importance to every soul of man. His praise refines one man, renders him thankful to God for a good name among men. Praise to a righteous soul renders it seriously inquisitive, whether its conduct really deserves praise–the praise not of men, but of God also. Praise renders the righteous respectful to those who bestow it; and they become more diligent to improve in well-doing. Praise to a righteous man is a fiery trial, where he needs humility and sober thoughts. Praise bestowed on the ungodly man renders him vain, self-confident, and self-conceited. He becomes haughty and insolent. Jealous of his honour, he is impatient to hear another praised. Persons of this character become careless–regardless of the praise of God. The reason of the different effects of praise is the different state in the inner man of the heart. The reason of the different effects of the fining-pot and furnace upon metals is the different nature and quality of the metals cast into them. The natural improvement of this subject is to determine our moral and religious character by the effect which the praise of men has upon us. (John Devotion, M.A.)
Popularity the most trying test of character
Men, in ancient times as well as in modern, submit precious metals, such as silver and gold, to the test of the fire. Fire revealed their impurity, and made them appear in their true character. What fire is to these metals, Solomon says, popularity or applause is to mans character–it tests him.
I. Popularity reveals the vanity of the proud man. How did Absolom appear in the blaze of popularity? (2Sa 25:22). How did Herod appear? Amidst the shouts of his flatterers he assumed to be a god.
II. Popularity reveals the humility of a true man. A true man shrinks from popular applause, and feels humbled amidst its shouts. Dr. Payson, a careful self-observer, mentions among his trials well-meant but injudicious commendations. Every one here, he writes to his mother, whether friends or enemies, are conspiring to ruin me. Satan and my own heart, of course, will lend a hand, and if you join too, I fear all the cold water which Christ can throw upon my pride will not prevent it from breaking out in a destructive flame. As certainly as anybody flatters and caresses me, my Father has to scourge me for it, and an unspeakable mercy it is that He condescends to do it. Popularity is indeed to character what the fining-pot is for silver and the furnace for gold. Few things in life show us the stuff of which men are made more than this. Little men court this fire, but cannot stand it. (Homilist.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 21. As the fining pot for silver] As silver and gold are tried by the art of the refiner, so is a man’s heart by the praise he receives. If he feel it not, he deserves it; if he be puffed up by it, he is worthless.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
As the fining pot for silver; is appointed and used for the trial of silver, and the detection and separation of the dross from it.
So is a man to his praise; or, according to his praise. The sense is, So a man is known by his praises; either,
1. By the quality of those who praise and applaud him; and as they are good or bad, so is he thought to be. Or,
2. By his carriage under praises; as he carries himself either humbly and modestly with thankfulness to God, and a due sense of his own infirmities, which is the case and temper of a good man; or ambitiously and vain-gloriously, taking to himself the honour which he should give to God, as ungodly men generally do in that case.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
21. Praise tests character.
a man to his praiseaccordingto his praise, as he bears it. Thus vain men seek it, weak men areinflated by it, wise men disregard it, &c.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
[As] the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold,…. For the trying, proving, and purifying these metals; see Pr 17:3;
so [is] a man to his praise; or “according to the mouth of his praise” p; if his own mouth praises him, as in Pr 27:2;, he is known to be what he is, a foolish and vainglorious person: or “so a man is proved by the mouth of him that praises him”, as the Vulgate Latin version; or “of them that praise him”, as the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions; and so the Targum: the meaning is, either a man is known by the persons that praise him, according to what their characters are; if he is praised by good and virtuous men, he may be thought to be so himself; and if by wicked men, he may be concluded to be so likewise; see Pr 28:4; or he is known by the effect that praise has upon him; if it swells him with pride, and makes him haughty, conceited, and overbearing, he will appear to be a weak and foolish man; but if he continues modest and humble, and studious and diligent to answer his character, thankful to God for what he has, and to whom he gives all the glory, he will approve himself a wise and good man.
p “ad os laudis suae”, Gejerus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
There follow here two proverbs which have in common with each other the figures of the crucible and the mortar:
21 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold,
And a man according to the measure of his praise;
i.e., silver and gold one values according to the result of the smelting crucible and the smelting furnace; but a man, according to the measure of public opinion, which presupposes that which is said in Pro 12:8, “according to the measure of his wisdom is a man praised.” is not a like our Leumund [renown], but it is a graduated idea which denotes fame down to evil Lob [fame], which is only Lob [praise] per antiphrasin . Ewald otherwise: “according to the measure of his glorying;” or Hitzig better: “according to the measure with which he praises himself,” with the remark: “ is not the act, the glorifying of self, but the object of the glorying (cf. , ), i.e., that in which he places his glory.” Bttcher something further: “one recognises him by that which he is generally wont to praise in himself and others, persons and things.” Thus the proverb is to be understood; but in connection with Pro 12:8 it seems to us more probable that is thought of as going forth from others, and not as from himself. In line first, Pro 17:3 is repeated; the second line there is conformable to the first, according to which it should be here said that the praise of a man is for him what the crucible and the furnace is for metal. The lxx, Syr., Targ., Jerome, and the Venet. read , and thereby obtain more concinnity. Luther accordingly translates:
A man is tried by the mouth of his praise,
As silver in the crucible and gold in the furnace.
Others even think to interpret man as the subject examining, and so they vocalize the words. Thus e.g., Fleischer: Qualis est catinus argento et fornax auro, talis sit homo ori a quo laudatur , so that “mouth of his praise” is equivalent to the man who praises him with his mouth. But where, as here, the language relates to relative worth, the supposition for , that it denotes, as at Pro 12:8, pro ratione , is tenable. And that the mouth of him who praises is a smelting crucible for him who is praised, or that the praised shall be a crucible for the mouth of him who praises, would be a wonderful comparison. The lxx has here also an additional distich which has no place in the Heb. text.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
21 As the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so is a man to his praise.
This gives us a touchstone by which we may try ourselves. Silver and gold are tried by putting them into the furnace and fining-pot; so is man tried by praising him. Let him be extolled and preferred, and then he will show himself what he is. 1. If a man be made, by the applause that is given him, proud, conceited, and scornful,–if he take the glory to himself which he should transmit to God, as Herod did,–if, the more he is praised, the more careless he is of what he says and does,–if he lie in bed till noon because his name is up, thereby it will appear that he is a vain foolish man, and a man who, though he be praised, has nothing in him truly praise-worthy. 2. If, on the contrary, a man is made by his praise more thankful to God, more respectful to his friends, more watchful against every thing that may blemish his reputation, more diligent to improve himself, and do good to others, that he may answer the expectations of his friends from him, by this it will appear that he is a wise and good man. He has a good temper of mind who knows how to pass by evil report and good report, and is still the same, 2 Cor. vi. 8.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
The Lord’s Trial of Hearts
Verse 21 reveals that one of the ways the LORD tries man (see comment on Pro 17:3) is to test how man reacts to praise. Saul was much displeased because David received greater praise than he, 1Sa 18:6-9. The chief rulers loved the praise of men more than the praise of God, Joh 12:42-43. The recording of such incidents as these shows that the LORD takes such into account, Psa 17:3.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
CRITICAL NOTES.
Pro. 27:21. A man to his praise. Delitzsch understands the meaning to be that a man is valued according to the measure of public opinion. Ewald, Hitzig, and others, coincide with Zcklers rendering, A man according to his glorying, i.e., One is judged according to the standard of that which he makes his boast.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF Pro. 27:21
A CRUCIBLE FOR CHARACTER
Although the second interpretation of this proverb given in the Critical Notes is very generally adopted, it will very well bear the other construction given below, which is indeed adopted by many expositors.
I. Praise received is a test of character. Many moralists think that it is more difficult to pass uninjured through good report than through evil report. Dr. Payson reckons well meant but injudicious commendations a source of temptation to him, and we do certainly often meet men possessing many good qualities whom popularity seems to have injured. But all men who have any striking intellectual gifts or moral excellencies will be subject to this refiners fire, and if they pass through it uninjured they will prove that they are made of very pure metal. As we remarked on page 725, merit will win praise, and therefore every deserving man will be more or less subject to this test, and his conduct and bearing under it will reveal the real character of his motives and the strength of his principles. In proportion as his actions have been disinterested and his aims pure and unselfish, in the same proportion will he be able to bear praise. If he is a truly humble manif he has a right sense of his dependence on God and a consciousness of his own shortcomingsthe praise of his fellow-creatures will only make him strive to be more deserving of it; but if there is any alloy of baser metal mixed with the gold and silver of his character, such an ordeal will be very likely to reveal it.
II. Praise given is a test of character. That upon which a man bestows praise reveals the standard by which he rules his life. Men praise that which they value, and there cannot therefore be a better revelation of their moral condition. A man who praises the action of another, irrespective of its moral character, shows that he attaches little value to goodness, while he who praises a bad action proclaims himself a lover of sin. On the other hand, commendation bestowed upon good deeds and godly men at least indicates a preference for what is good, which one may hope will be manifested not only in word but also in deed.
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
1. It may express what every man, with reference to the praise bestowed upon him, ought to do:that is, he ought to do with it what the fining-pot does to the silver, and the furnace to the gold. He should try it well. There is a deal of dross frequently in it; and men are apt to be fonder of the dross, in some of its appearances, than of the sterling metal. The process of refining should in this case be very cautiously pursued: just as a chemist, if anxious for the correct result of an experiment with the crucible, will be the more careful in making it, in proportion as he is conscious of any leaning towards a particular theory,lest this should bias his mind and put him off his guard.
2. A man is to his praise what the fining pot is to silver, aud the furnace is to gold, because a mans conduct actually does put to the test the commendation bestowed upon him. That conduct is like the fining-pot and the furnace to it, in regard to the estimate formed of it by others. His behaviour detects whether it be or be not just and merited. Commendation naturally excites notice. All eyes are on the man who elicits applause, to ascertain if the applause be well-founded. In this way the commendation is put to the test; and the man himself is the tester;proving or disproving the justice of the character given him.Wardlaw.
As praise is due to worth, so it is the tryer and refiner of worth. For as silver is melted in the fining pot, and gold in the furnace; so is the heart of man even melted with joy in the furnace of praise. And as those metals which have least solidity are soonest melted, so where there is least of the solidity of worth, there the heart is soonest melted with praise. And as in the furnace the light matter is blown away into smoke and vapour; so by praise a light heart is quickly blown up, and vainly transported and carried away with it. But as the silver and the gold are made the finer and the purer by the furnace, so true worth is ennobled and made the richer by just praise ascribed to it. For he that hath worth in him, the more he is praised the more will he endeavour to deserve it, and by praise seeing what is dross in himself, will by his care purge it out, and cast it away.Jermin.
The thought in Pro. 27:22 is but a repetition of a thought which has often occurred before, as for instance in chaps. Pro. 17:10 and Pro. 19:29. See pages 509 and 510, also page 581.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
(21) So is a man to his praisei.e., as the fining-pot and furnace test the metals put into them, so does that on which a man prides or boasts himself. Observe what this ise.g., wealth, or show, or popularity, or dutyand you will see what sort of a man he is. Or it may mean, praisei.e., popularity, is as great a trial to a man as the fining-pot to silver; he must be of good metal if he comes unhurt out of this. Or, again, it may signify, let a man test his praisei.e., examine by whom and for what he is praised, and be sure it is genuine and well deserved
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
21. Fining pot A crucible.
So is a man to his praise Or in respect to the praise bestowed upon him. Praise develops his true character. Many men cannot bear it. “They are puffed up,” and shown to be drossy or impure. Zockler gives the latter clause thus: “But a man according to his glorying;” that is, if he glories in praiseworthy things, he is praiseworthy, but if in base things, he is base. A good sense, which is also that of some others. “The meaning is, a man’s taste, or, as that is an inactive term, his praisings, work back upon him as thoroughly as a fining pot upon ore of silver.” Miller. Compare Pro 19:3; Pro 12:8, in the Hebrew. The Septuagint has, for the latter clause: “A man is tried by the mouth of them that praise him.”
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Pro 27:21. So is a man to his praise The LXX read, And a man is tried by the mouth of those who praise him; and so Houbigant renders it. The meaning is, “That the mind of man is as easily discovered and tried by praises and encomiums, as gold or silver is by fire.” The poet says well,
Cum quis te laudat, judex tuus esse memento. Plus aliis de te, quam tu tibi credere noli.*
[* When others praise thee, remember thou art the best judge of thyself. Be on thy guard, not to believe more in praise of thyself from the commendations of others, than thy own heart testifies to be true.]
Some would connect this verse with the following: The fining-pot purifies silver, and the furnace gold, and a man is purified by affliction: Pro 27:22. But a fool is incorrigible: though you should put him into a mortar, and bruise him like a grain of wheat, you will not make him more wise. See Calmet.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Pro 27:21 [As] the fining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so [is] a man to his praise.
Ver. 21. As the fining pot for silver, &c. ] Man is naturally apt to be much taken, and even tickled, with his own commendation, a as Felix was with Tertullus’s flatteries, as was Demosthenes when they pointed at him as he passed by, and said, This is that famous orator. b But “let every man prove his own works,” saith Paul, Gal 6:4 and testimonium tibi perhibeat conscientia propria, non lingua aliena, saith Augustine: Let thine own conscience, and not another man’s tongue praise thee. Or if needlessly they will do it, let it refine us, as here, to more humility, and more care of sound holiness; let it, by the refining pot, melt us and make us better. This is the right use of it.
a . – Xenophon.
b D .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
for . . . for = trieth . . . trieth.
So is, &c. = So doth a man put his praise to the test.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 27:21
Pro 27:21
“The refining-pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; And a man is tried by his praise.”
This verse is very similar to Pro 17:3, with this difference: there Jehovah is the tester of men, and here it is the public, or the community. Toy rendered the passage, “The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, and a man is to be estimated according to his reputation.
Pro 27:21. As silver and gold are tried by the art of the refiner, so is a mans heart by the praise he receives. If he feel it not, he deserves it; if he be puffed up by it, he is worthless (Clarke). Pulpit Commentary: As the processes of metallurgy test the precious metals, so a mans public reputation shows what he is really worth…As the crucible brings all impurities to the surface, so public opinion drags for all that is bad in a man, and he who stands this test is generally esteemed.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
the fining: Pro 17:3, Psa 12:6, Psa 66:10, Zec 13:9, Mal 3:3, 1Pe 1:7, 1Pe 4:12
so: 1Sa 18:7, 1Sa 18:8, 1Sa 18:15, 1Sa 18:16, 1Sa 18:30, 2Sa 14:25, 2Sa 15:6-12
Reciprocal: 1Sa 25:33 – blessed 2Sa 14:17 – as an angel Job 28:1 – where they fine it
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Pro 27:21. As the fining-pot for silver Is appointed and used for the trial of silver, and the detection and separation of the dross from it; so is a man to his praise Or, according to his praise: that is, he is known by his praises; either, 1st, By the quality of those who praise and applaud him; and, as they are good or bad, so is he thought to be: or, rather, 2d, By his behaviour under praises, according as he conducts himself either humbly and modestly, with thankfulness to God, and a due sense of his own infirmities, which is the case and temper of a good man; or ambitiously and vain-gloriously, taking to himself the honour which he should give to God, as ungodly men generally do in such a case. Thus Bishop Patrick: A man is discovered what he is, by trying how he can bear praises, commendations, and great applauses; which will presently show either the virtue or the vanity of his mind. In this sense the LXX. seem to have understood the clause, reading , a man is tried by the mouth of those who praise him.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
27:21 [As] the refining pot for silver, and the furnace for gold; so [is] a man to his {i} praise.
(i) That is, he is either known to be ambitious and glorious, or humble and modest.