Commentary
Old Testament : Genesis
Exodus
Leviticus
Numbers
Deuteronomy
Joshua
Judges
Ruth
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
1 Kings
2 Kings
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Ezra
Nehemiah
Esther
Job
Psalms
Proverbs
Ecclesiastes
The Song of Songs
Isaiah
Jeremiah
Lamentations
Ezekiel
Daniel
Hosea
Joel
Amos
Obadiah
Jonah
Micah
Nahum
Habakkuk
Zephaniah
Haggai
Zechariah
Malachi
![](images/minus.gif)
Text -- Proverbs 16:10-33 (NET)
![](images/arrow_open.gif)
Strongs On/Off
Context
16:10 The divine verdict is in the words of the king , his pronouncements must not act treacherously against justice .
16:11 Honest scales and balances are from the Lord ; all the weights in the bag are his handiwork .
16:12 Doing wickedness is an abomination to kings , because a throne is established in righteousness .
16:13 The delight of kings is righteous counsel , and they love the one who speaks uprightly .
16:14 A king’s wrath is like a messenger of death , but a wise person appeases it.
16:15 In the light of the king’s face there is life , and his favor is like the clouds of the spring rain .
16:16 How much better it is to acquire wisdom than gold ; to acquire understanding is more desirable than silver .
16:17 The highway of the upright is to turn away from evil ; the one who guards his way safeguards his life .
16:18 Pride goes before destruction , and a haughty spirit before a fall .
16:19 It is better to be lowly in spirit with the afflicted than to share the spoils with the proud .
16:20 The one who deals wisely in a matter will find success , and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord .
16:21 The one who is wise in heart is called discerning , and kind speech increases persuasiveness .
16:22 Insight is like a life-giving fountain to the one who possesses it, but folly leads to the discipline of fools .
16:23 A wise person’s heart makes his speech wise and it adds persuasiveness to his words .
16:24 Pleasant words are like a honeycomb , sweet to the soul and healing to the bones .
16:25 There is a way that seems right to a person , but its end is the way that leads to death .
16:26 A laborer’s appetite works on his behalf, for his hunger urges him to work.
16:27 A wicked scoundrel digs up evil , and his slander is like a scorching fire .
16:28 A perverse person spreads dissension , and a gossip separates the closest friends .
16:29 A violent person entices his neighbor , and leads him down a path that is terrible .
16:30 The one who winks his eyes devises perverse things , and one who compresses his lips brings about evil .
16:31 Gray hair is like a crown of glory ; it is attained in the path of righteousness .
16:32 Better to be slow to anger than to be a mighty warrior , and one who controls his temper is better than one who captures a city .
16:33 The dice are thrown into the lap , but their every decision is from the Lord .
![](images/advanced.gif)
![](images/advanced.gif)
![](images/advanced.gif)
Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
![](images/arrow_open.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus_head.gif)
expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Pro 16:10; Pro 16:10; Pro 16:10; Pro 16:10; Pro 16:11; Pro 16:11; Pro 16:12; Pro 16:12; Pro 16:13; Pro 16:13; Pro 16:13; Pro 16:13; Pro 16:14; Pro 16:14; Pro 16:14; Pro 16:14; Pro 16:15; Pro 16:15; Pro 16:15; Pro 16:15; Pro 16:16; Pro 16:16; Pro 16:17; Pro 16:17; Pro 16:17; Pro 16:17; Pro 16:18; Pro 16:18; Pro 16:18; Pro 16:19; Pro 16:19; Pro 16:20; Pro 16:20; Pro 16:20; Pro 16:20; Pro 16:20; Pro 16:21; Pro 16:21; Pro 16:21; Pro 16:21; Pro 16:22; Pro 16:22; Pro 16:22; Pro 16:22; Pro 16:23; Pro 16:23; Pro 16:23; Pro 16:23; Pro 16:24; Pro 16:24; Pro 16:24; Pro 16:25; Pro 16:25; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:26; Pro 16:27; Pro 16:27; Pro 16:27; Pro 16:27; Pro 16:28; Pro 16:28; Pro 16:29; Pro 16:29; Pro 16:29; Pro 16:30; Pro 16:30; Pro 16:30; Pro 16:30; Pro 16:31; Pro 16:31; Pro 16:31; Pro 16:31; Pro 16:32; Pro 16:32; Pro 16:32; Pro 16:32; Pro 16:33; Pro 16:33; Pro 16:33; Pro 16:33
NET Notes: Pro 16:10 The second line gives the effect of the first: If the king delivers such oracular sayings (קֶסֶם, qesem, translated R...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:12 The “throne” represents the administration, or the decisions made from the throne by the king, and so the word is a metonymy of adjunct (c...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:13 The verse is talking about righteous kings, of course – they love righteousness and not flattery. In this proverb “righteous” and ...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:14 The verb is כָּפַּר (kapar), which means “to pacify; to appease” and “to atone; to expiate...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:15 Heb “latter rain” (so KJV, ASV). The favor that this expression represents is now compared to the cloud of rain that comes with the “...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:16 The form is a Niphal participle, masculine singular. If it is modifying “understanding” it should be a feminine form. If it is to be trans...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:17 The LXX adds three lines after 17a and one after 17b: “The paths of life turn aside from evils, and the ways of righteousness are length of life...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:18 Many proverbs have been written in a similar way to warn against the inevitable disintegration and downfall of pride. W. McKane records an Arabic prov...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:19 Heb “than to divide plunder.” The word “plunder” implies that the wealth taken by the proud was taken violently and wrongfully...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:22 Heb “the discipline of fools [is] folly.” The “discipline” (מוּסָר, musar) in this proverb...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:23 Heb “to his lips.” The term “lips” functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said.
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:24 Two predicates are added to qualify the metaphor: The pleasant words are “sweet” and “healing.” “Soul” includes in...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:25 Heb “the ways of death” (so KJV, ASV). This construct phrase features a genitive of destiny: “ways that lead to [or, end in] death.&...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:26 This theme is taught elsewhere (e.g., Eccl 6:7; Eph 4:28; 6:7; 2 Thess 3:10-12).
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:27 The simile stresses the devastating way that slander hurts people. W. McKane says that this one “digs for scandal and…propagates it with w...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:28 The term אַלּוּף (’aluf) refers to a “friend” or “an intimate associate.” The ...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:29 Heb “not good” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “a harmful path.” The expression “a way that is not good” is an...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:30 The verb is a Piel perfect; it means “complete, finish, bring to an end.” The two cola may form the whole process: The first line has R...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:31 While the proverb presents a general observation, there is a commendable lesson about old people who can look back on a long walk with God through lif...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)
NET Notes: Pro 16:32 The saying would have had greater impact when military prowess was held in high regard. It is harder, and therefore better, to control one’s pas...
![](images/cmt_minus.gif)