The Pulpit Commentary — Proverbs — Section 513

to listen to hie o.<lmoniLions. 'fhey therefore v~r. 18.-WhOIO walketh uprightly shall render thus: "0 prince, void of unclersto.nd- beaaved. "Uprightly" (tamim); innocently, ing, but rich in oppression!" The wording blamelessly (Ps. xv. 2). Vulg,,te, ,impliciter; o.nJ o.ccentuation of the passage confirm this Septuagint, 311<a/a,s; Aquila, Symmachus, -rl- view. Caber renders, "A prince that wo.n ts ~•••s. "He is helped (fJ•fJor,9-rjTCJ,)," Septua- underslanding increases his exactions.'' The gint. Things shall prosper with him; God want of intelligence makes 11, prince cruel will work with him, o.nd save him in dangers and tyrannical and callous to suffering; not temporal and spiritual. But he that is per- possessing the wisdom and prudence neces- verse in his ways shall fall at once. " He sary for right government, he defrauds his that is perverse of two ways," or "in a subjects, treats them unjustly, and causes double wo.y," as ver. 6. The man who is great misery. See the prophet's denuncia- not straightforward, but vacillates between tion of Shellum and Jehoiakim for these right and wrong, or pretends to be pursuing Vljry crimes (Jer. xxii. 13-19). Septuagint., one path while he is really taking another, "A king wanting revenues is e. gree.t op- shall fall suddenly and without warning. pressor (<Tv1<o~dv'TT)s)." Hs that he.teth ny~~ means " all at once," or " once for al~" covetousness shall prolong his days (eh. xv. and so that nothing else is po;sible, equiva- 27). The priuce addressed is thus warned lent to penitua. Schultens q uotcs Virgil, that his oppressive acts will be visited upon 'lEneid,' xi. 418- him judicially; the.t only a. ruler who deals with his subjects liberally e.nd equitably can "Procubuit moriens et hum um semcl ore attain to old age, and that his conduct will momordit." shorten his life. An early death is reckoned Septuagint, " He that we.lketh in crooked as e. token of God's indignation. The second ways will be entangled." hcmistich Ca.her translates, "But he who Ver. 19.-A variation of eh. xii. 11. Shall hates lucre shall reign long." Septuagint, have poverty enough. The new clause marka "He who he.teth iniquity shall live e. long the antithesis more clearly thun that above. time." {For" covetousness" (belsa), see Oil Ver. 20.-A faithful man shall abound eh. i. 19.) with blessings. "Fo.ithful," ~ in eh. xx. Ver. 17.-A man that doeth violence to 6, one on whom one can depend, honest the blood of nny person shall flee to the pit. and upright. Septuagint, ci(,61r1cr-ror. The This should be, a man opprused (Isa. blessings signified are such as come from x.xxviii. 14), burdened, with the blood of any God and me.n. Men will utter his name one. The wilful murderer, with his guilt with praise e.nd benediction (comp. Job :nix. upon bis soul, flies in vain from remorse ; 8, etc.), nnd God will show his o.pprovo.l hy his crime pursues him even to the gre.ve. sending material prosperity. He that maketh For ino.dvertent manslaughter the cities of hute to be rioh shall not be innocent (comp. refuge offered an e.sylum, but for deliberate ver. 22, Bild note there; eh. xiii. 11 ; xx. 21 ; murder there wo.s no safe refuge, either from x1i. 5). One who is only e.nxious to become the stings of conscience or from the o.venger quickly rich, and is unscrupulous as to mcu.ns, of blood, but dee.th. The homicide, like cannot be " a faithful man," and therefore Cain (Gon. iv. H), must be e. fugitive and e. co.nnot be blessed. Iustead of " innocent,'' vo.gnbond in the earth. "Pit" (bor), some many expositors render "unpunished" (as to.ke to meo.n o.ny hiding-place, "e. co.vo, or eh. xvii. 5), which better contmst~ with the well;" but it is very commonly found in the blessings mentioned in the first hemislich, sense of" sepulchre" (Ps. xxviii. 1; Isa. xiv. though the two ideas are co-ordinate. On 19, etc.), o.nd is so explained here by most this haste of oovetou~ness, Juvenal writes commentators. Let no man stay him. We (' S11t.,' xiv. 173)- had in eh. xxiv. 11, etc., an injunction to " Incle fore scelerum causm; nee plure. save human life; but the case was quite venena differcllt from this of wilful murder. Here Miscuit 11.ut ferro grass11tur smpius ullum it is directed that no one attempt to se.ve Humanm mentis vitium, quam smvo. cu- him from the punishment whioh he has in- pido curred, or to comfort him under the remorse Immodici census; nnm dives qni fieri vult, which he suffers. Let him be left alone to Et cito vult fieri. Sed qum roverelltia. meet the fate which he has merited. The legum, LXX. gives a different idea to the gnome, Quis metus aut pudor 8Bt unquam proper- "He who becomes bail for a man charged antis avari? " with murder shall be banished e.nd sho.11 not be iu safety." They add e. verse which we The Septuagint waters down the gnome sho.Il meet again, almost in the same words "But the wicked sho.11 not be unpuuished.'1 (oh. xxix. 17, 18)," Chasten thy son, and he Ver. 21.-Tho first hemistich occul'8 a will love thee, o.ud will give honour to thy little fuller in eh. xxi v. 23, referring there, soul; he sho.11 llot. obey a sinful nation." as here, to the o.dmiuistro.tion of jw,tioe, 538 THE PROVERBS. [ea. xxvm. 1-28.