Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 2:9
Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; [yea], every good path.
Verse 9. Then shalt thou understand] He who is taught of God understands the whole law of justice, mercy, righteousness, and truth; God has written this on his heart. He who understands these things by books only is never likely to practise or profit by them.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Then; when thou hast done thy part, expressed Pro 2:1-3, &c., and God in answer to thy desires hath given thee wisdom, Pro 2:6; or when it is with thee, as it follows, Pro 2:10. Righteousness, and judgment, and equity; all the parts of thy duty to man, as well as the fear of God, Pro 2:5, which contains all duties to God. These three words are used here, as also Pro 1:3, to signify the same thing. Every good path; the practice of all virtues and graces.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
9. Thenemphatic, in such acase.
righteousness . . . pathallparts of duty to God and man.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Then shalt thou understand righteousness and judgment,…. This is another fruit and effect of the Gospel, and of a spiritual understanding of it; that besides the knowledge of God, and how to behave with reverence towards him, Pr 2:5; it leads men into a notion of doing that which is right and just among men; it gives them not only a theoretic but a practical understanding of justice, and a true judgment of what is right and wrong; or gives such an understanding thereof as that they practise it; for it teaches men to live soberly, righteously, and godly, Tit 2:11. It is not only a revelation and ministration of the righteousness of Christ as the only matter of a sinner’s justification before God; and informs a man’s judgment so that he can distinguish between truth and error, right and wrong, good and bad notions and practices; but it influences his actions, life, and conversation, and engages him to do works of righteousness from the best principles, upon the best motives, and with the best views;
and equity; [yea], every good path; that is, so to understand equity, as to do that which is equitable between man and man; and to understand every good path which the word of God directs to, even all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord, so as to walk in them; these things the Gospel acquaints men with, and urges them to observe: or the words may be rendered, either “the rectitude” or “equity of fall good paths”, as the Syriac version; how just, and right, and plain, and equitable, everyone is, and therefore ought to be walked in; or “plainnesses”, or “most plain”, is or shall be “every good path” r, to them that have a spiritual and experimental knowledge of the Gospel; and by it an understanding of their duty. One word signifies “plain” and “straight”, and another “round” s, and both are true of the path of righteousness; for though it is a circle of duty saints walk in, yet straight and plain.
r So Schmidt. s “complanationes”, Schultens; “orbitam”, Montanus; “ab rotundus”, Gejerus.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
With the repeated, the promises encouraging to the endeavour after wisdom take a new departure:
9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and justice,
And uprightness; every way of good.
10 For wisdom will enter into thine heart,
And knowledge will do good to thy soul;
11 Discretion will keep watch over thee,
Understanding will keep thee.
Regarding the ethical triad [righteousness, rightness], [judgment], and [rectitude], vid., Pro 1:3. Seb. Schmid is wrong in his rendering, et omnis via qua bonum aditur erit tibi plana , which in comparison with Isa 26:7 would be feebly expressed. J. H. Michaelis rightly interprets all these four conceptions as object-accusatives; the fourth is the summarizing asyndeton (cf. Psa 8:7) breaking off the enumeration: omnem denique orbitam boni ; Jerome, bonam : in this case, however, would be genitive ( vid., Pro 17:2). is the way in which the chariot rolls along; in there are united the root-conceptions of that which is found ( ) and rolling ( ). Whether , Pro 2:10, is the argumentative “because” (according to the versions and most interpreters) or “for” (“ denn ,” J. H. Michaelis, Ewald, and others), is a question. That with = “for” the subject would precede the verb, as at Pro 2:6, Pro 2:21, and Pro 1:32 (Hitzig), determines nothing, as Pro 2:18 shows. On the one hand, the opinion that = “because” is opposed by the analogy of the , Pro 2:6, following , Pro 2:5; the inequality between Pro 2:5-8 and Pro 2:9. if the new commencement, Pro 2:9, at once gives place to another, Pro 2:10; the relationship of the subject ideas in Pro 2:10, Pro 2:11, which makes Pro 2:11 unsuitable to be a conclusion from Pro 2:10. On the contrary, the promise not only of intellectual, but at the same time also of practical, insight into the right and the good, according to their whole compass and in their manifoldness, can be established or explained quite well as we thus read Pro 2:10, Pro 2:11: For wisdom will enter (namely, to make it a dwelling-place, Pro 14:33; cf. Joh 14:23) into thine heart, and knowledge will do good to thy soul (namely, by the enjoyment which arises from the possession of knowledge, and the rest which its certainty yields). , , is elsewhere fem. (Psa 139:6), but here, as at Pro 8:10; Pro 14:6, in the sense of , is masc. In Pro 2:11 the contents of the (Pro 2:9) are further explained. , of watching (for Job 16:16 is to be interpreted differently), is used only by our poet (here and at Pro 6:22). Discretion, i.e., the capacity of well-considered action, will hold watch over thee, take thee under protection; understanding, i.e., the capacity in the case of opposing rules to make the right choice, and in the matter of extremes to choose the right medium, will be bestowed upon thee. In , as in Psa 61:8; Psa 140:2, Psa 140:5; Deu 33:9, etc., the first stem letter is not assimilated, in order that the word may have a fuller sound; the writing for is meant to affect the eye.
(Note: For the right succession of the accents here, see Torath Emeth, p. 49, 5; Accentuationssystem, xviii. 3.)
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
9. Then Referring back to Pro 2:1-4, from which the instructor started out with the same particle as at Pro 2:5. This verse is a summing up of vs.
5-8, and connects with Pro 1:3, where he states the object of his work to be, to impart clear, discriminating instructions in righteousness, judgment, and equities. (See note on Pro 1:3.)
Every good path The practice of every virtue and grace. “The whole good track.” Miller. The teacher has thus made a circle, so to speak, by which he has come around to his starting point.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Pro 2:9. Then shall thou understand, &c. “When you shall seriously have inclined yourself to the study of wisdom, and God shall have given it you; then shall you know in what true judgment, or righteousness, consists. You shall know your duty towards God, towards your neighbour, and towards yourselves. Wisdom shall enlighten you to penetrate into its whole extent; it shall aid you to practice all its duty.” Calmet.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path. When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;
How beautiful, if explained upon gospel terms, and with an eye to Christ, as wisdom, are these verses! If Christ be indeed formed in the heart, the hope of glory, then will all gracious principles be the fruit thereof. And this blessed effect differs wholly from all assumed wisdom, as much as the spring and source differs from all outward motives. Jesus becomes then in the heart the well of water, springing up to everlasting life. Well may every heart made sensible of these things, cry out with the poor Samaritan woman, Lord, give me this water, that I thirst not, neither seek elsewhere to draw. Joh 4:14-15 .
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Pro 2:9 Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; [yea], every good path.
Ver. 9. Then shalt thou understand righteousness. ] Not as cognoscitiva, standing in speculation; but as directiva vitae, a rule of life. Knowledge is either apprehensive only, or affective also. This differs from that, as much as the light of the sun, wherein is the influence of an enlivening power, from the light of torches.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Then, &c. Another conclusion, as in Pro 2:2 and Pro 2:5.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Pro 2:9-11
Pro 2:9-11
MANY RICH REWARDS BESTOWED BY WISDOM
“Then shalt thou understand righteousness and justice,
And equity, yea, every good path.
For wisdom shall enter into thy heart,
And knowledge shall be pleasant unto thy soul;
Discretion shall watch over thee;
Understanding shall keep thee:”
“Many men in high office who are guiding the destiny of our nation today are not being guided by the Lord. The righteousness, justice and equity needed in a well-ordered society are available only in God’s Word. The tragic word in the sacred Scriptures is that, “It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps” (Jer 10:23). Every generation of mankind has repeatedly proved this to be the truth.
“Knowledge shall be pleasant unto thy soul” (Pro 2:10). Men must appreciate wisdom in order to profit by it. “It is one thing to be acquainted with wisdom, and quite another for wisdom to be welcomed as a ‘pleasant’ guest.
“Understanding shall keep thee” (Pro 2:11). These words introduce another facet of the benefits of wisdom and the knowledge of God to which it leads; and that is, “It is not only that to which wisdom leads a man, but it is that from which it saves him, or keeps him, that eternally blesses him.” The following verses will provide examples of this.
Pro 2:9. Here are things that every person should understand and not be confused about. If one so applies himself to get wisdom, God will bless him with it, and that will include an understanding of these basic things.
Pro 2:10. Shall enter in the sense of permanent residence in the heart (Pulpit Commentary). Col 3:15 uses the same figure of speech concerning the Word of Christ and our hearts: Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. Dwell in this verse means to make a home for. The heart that has made wisdom its permanent inhabitant will be a soul blessed with pleasantness and satisfaction.
Pro 2:11. When blessed with wisdom, discretion will be there to guard what we say, what we do, the policies we adopt, etc., and understanding will be there to keep us from small embarrassments and costly mistakes. Pro 6:22 similarly says, When thou wakest, it shall lead thee; When thou sleepest, it shall watch over thee.
STUDY QUESTIONS – Pro 2:9-11
1. How different would the world be if everybody understood these things (Pro 2:9)?
2. Knowledge should be ……………. (Pro 2:10).
3. What is discretion (Pro 2:11)?
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Pro 1:2-6, Psa 25:8, Psa 25:9, Psa 32:8, Psa 119:99, Psa 119:105, Psa 143:8-10, Isa 35:8, Isa 48:17, Jer 6:16, Mat 7:13, Mat 7:14, Joh 14:6
Reciprocal: Psa 14:2 – any Pro 14:8 – wisdom Isa 11:3 – shall make him