926 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Bread of deceit [is] sweet to a man,.... Which may be understood of sin in general, which is bread to the sinner, he eats it: it is called "the bread of wickedness", Proverbs 4:17; but it is but poor bread, no other than ashes Isaiah 44:20; it is "bread of deceit"; there is a deceitfulness in all sin; it is in appearance fair and pleasant to the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
[Every] purpose is established by counsel,.... Or "the thought" (f) of a man, everyone of them, what he has thought to do, formed a scheme of in his mind, and resolved upon, by taking advice of his friends, and especially by asking counsel of God, who gives, wisdom liberally, and upbraids not; he is confirmed in his good designs; and he cheerfully...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
He that goeth about [as] a talebearer revealeth secrets,.... Or, "he that revealeth secrets goeth about as a talebearer"; a man that has really got the secrets of others out of them respecting themselves and families, and the affairs of them, or however pretends he master of them; goes about telling his tales from house to house, to the great...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Whoso curseth his father or his mother,.... This is dreadful indeed! a person must be got to a great pitch of wickedness to do this; to curse his parents, one or other of them, that have been the instruments of his being, and by whom he has been brought up and put out into the world; to slight them, despise them, and mock at them, is highly base...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
An inheritance [may be] gotten hastily at the beginning,.... Of a man's setting out in the world in trade and business; and which sometimes is got lawfully, and this must be excepted from this proverb; but generally what is got hastily and in a short time is got unlawfully, and so does not prosper. Some Jewish interpreters, as Gersom, understand...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Say not thou, I will recompense evil,.... With evil; do an injury to one that has done one to you; private revenge is not to be taken, but should be left to God, to whom vengeance belongs, Deuteronomy 32:35; [but] wait on the Lord, and he shall save thee; commit thyself and cause to God; leave it with him to avenge thy wrongs; wait upon him in the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Divers weights [are] an abomination unto the Lord,.... [See comments on Proverbs 20:10]; which is here repeated for the further confirmation of it, and that it might be taken notice of and avoided; and perhaps this sin of using false weights and measures was common with the Jews; and a false balance [is] not good; in the sight of God; but an...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Man's goings [are] of the Lord,.... In a natural and literal sense, the instruments of going are of the Lord; the act of motion from place to place is not without the concourse of his providence; as in him we live, and move, and have our being, so "in and by him we move"; he preserves our going out and coming in; and as the preservation, so the...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
[It is] a snare to the man [who] devoureth [that which is] holy,.... Which is separated to sacred uses, is devoted to the Lord, as firstfruits, tithes, offerings, c. which if a man converts to his own use is sacrilege, and this is a sin and a snare, and brings ruin on him see Malachi 3:8; and after vows to make inquiry: that is a sin and a snare...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
A wise king scattereth the wicked,.... Or "fans [them] away" (i); separates them from his good counsellors, courtiers, and subjects; scatters them from his presence and court, and breaks their counsels and confederacies one with another; he discovers, discountenances, and discourages them; [See comments on Proverbs 20:8]; and bringeth the wheel...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The spirit of man [is] the candle of the Lord,.... The rational soul of man is a light set up in him; this is what is commonly called the light of nature; it was a bright and burning light at first, but through sin is become a very feeble one; by which men have only a glimmering view of divine things, of God and his worship, and of what he would...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Mercy and truth preserve the king,.... Which are two good qualifications in a prince; not ruling his subjects with rigour and cruelty, but with tenderness and clemency; easing them as much as he can of burdens and pressures; showing compassion to the distressed, and pardoning delinquents when the case will admit of it; as also being faithful to...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The glory of young men [is] their strength,.... That is the excellent thing in them, and it is to their honour when it is employed in the service of their king and country, and especially in the service of God and religion; though it does not become them to glory in it, Jeremiah 9:23; and the beauty of old men [is] the gray head; an index of...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil,.... Rubs it off and scours it away, as the word (m) signifies, or is a clearing and rubbing it off; some men must be beaten black and blue, or must have very sore correction, before they can be reclaimed and reformed from their evil ways; so some interpret it of the evil man (n): sanctified afflictions...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The king's heart [is] in the hand of the Lord, [as] the rivers of water,.... The heart of every king, and all that is in it, his thoughts, counsels, purposes, and designs; the hearts of bad kings, as Pharaoh, whom the Lord hardened and softened at pleasure; the antichristian kings, into whose hearts he put it to give their kingdoms to the beast,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Every way of a man [is] right in his own eyes,.... This is repeated, from Proverbs 16:2; for the confirmation of it; and that it might be observed and taken notice of, and men be brought under a conviction of it; which is not easily done, it being what affects all men: every man is conceited of himself and his own way, and is not easily persuaded...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
To do justice and judgment,.... The moral duties of religion, what is holy, just, and good, which the law requires; what is agreeably to both tables, piety towards God, and justice to men; that which is just and right between man and man; which, especially if done from right principles and with right views, [is] more acceptable to the Lord than...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
An high look, and a proud heart,.... The former is a sign of the latter, and commonly go together, and are both abominable to the Lord; see Psalms 101:5. A man that looks above others, and with disdain upon them, shows that pride reigns in him, and swells his mind with a vain opinion of himself; this may be observed in every self-righteous man;...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The thoughts of the diligent [tend] only to plenteousness,.... A man that is thoughtful and studious, and wisely forms schemes in his mind, and diligently pursues them; the issue of it is, generally speaking, prosperity and plenty: such a man is usually thriving and flourishing; and this holds good in things spiritual, as well as in things...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The getting of treasures by a lying tongue,.... By telling lies in trade; by bearing false witness in a court of judicature; or by preaching false doctrines in the church of God: [is] a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death: such treasures, though ever so great, are like any light thing, smoke or vapour, straw, stubble, chaff, or a...