Pro 13:1 A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, but a mocker does not respond to rebukes.
Solomon had seen the teachings of this verse clearly and tragically demonstrated in his father’s household. Several of his brothers scorned the rebuke of David and went on in their evil way until overtaken by the consequences (2 Sam. 13–19; 1 Kings 1; 1 Kings 2), but Solomon listened and learned and became the wisest man who ever lived.
Pro 13:2 From the fruit of their lips people enjoy good things, but the unfaithful have an appetite for violence.
Solomon repeats many times the importance of keeping a guard upon the lips (see ch. 12:13, 14, 22, 23; etc.). Although such counsel has been repeatedly proclaimed and clearly demonstrated throughout human history, there are still only a few who succeed in keeping a constant watch upon their lips. Much misery could be avoided if men would heed this wise admonition, but it seems that men must learn the truth of it by bitter experience. Unfortunately, many never seem to learn to it.
Pro 13:3 Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.
Pro 13:4 A sluggard’s appetite is never filled, but the desires of the diligent are fully satisfied.
Here used of the individual himself. Thus the “soul” is spoken of as being fat or lean. Striving after material or intellectual riches to the almost complete exclusion of spiritual food, leaves areas of leanness in the soul (see Ps. 106:13–15; Matt. 6:2; Luke 10:38–42).
Pro 13:5 The righteous hate what is false, but the wicked make themselves a stench and bring shame on themselves.
Lying breaks down confidence and destroys friendship; yet many people will use a falsehood when they deem it necessary to get themselves out of some difficulty or to escape more serious trouble.
Man works up a bulwark against this evil only by developing a strong loathing for sin of every kind. Such loathing is developed by the presence of the Holy Spirit in the heart. The man who indulges in lying identifies himself with sin, and thus himself becomes loathsome and a thing of shame (see Ps. 101:7, 8; John 8:44; Rev. 21:27).
Pro 13:6 Righteousness guards the person of integrity, but wickedness overthrows the sinner.
Pro 13:7 One person pretends to be rich, yet has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth.
Both men are hypocrites—one pretending to be rich when he is poor, the other to be poor when he is rich. Our Saviour speaks of those who gain the world yet lose their souls, and the wiser ones who use their means to build up an eternal treasure in heaven (see Mark 8:36; Luke 12:15–21, 33).
Pro 13:8 A person’s riches may ransom their life, but the poor cannot respond to threatening rebukes.
The first clause may be understood as stating that the rich man is able to use his wealth to buy himself out of trouble, especially the kind of trouble caused by false charges made by oppressive rulers in the hope of gain. By contrast, the poor man does not get into these difficulties, nor does he hear these false accusations, because he is so poor that no money can be made by troubling him.
Another interpretation of the verse is that, while riches are so valuable in getting a man out of various kinds of difficulties, the poor man refuses to heed the advice and counsel that would aid him in earning for himself such riches.
Pro 13:9 The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is snuffed out.
There may be an intended contrast here between the “light” and the “lamp.” The good man glows with divine light from the Source of all light and life, while the bad man is forced to devise a lamp by whose glimmering and smoky light he hopes to see a way through to a good end despite his rejection of the true Light. The light is eternal, but the lamps will all die out (see Job 18:5; John 1:8).
Pro 13:10 Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.
Heb. zadon, “insolence,” “presumptuousness.” The contrast here is between the one who is too proud to take advice and who feel insulted if anyone suggests that he needs it, and the wise man who listens to the advice of men of experience. Not only does the proud man quarrel with those who would instruct him, but he gets into other disputes of various kinds because of following his own ill-advised ways (see chs. 11:2; 12:15).
Pro 13:11 Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.
Wealth gained without real effort is soon dissipated. What a man has toiled to earn he will usually spend with care, and, gradually, he will build up a reserve (see chs. 20:21; 21:5). Pro 13:12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
There is a vivid contrast implied here. The sick heart has lost hope. The springs of energy and ambition have been sapped, leaving the man truly forlorn. But when a good hope is realized, life is renewed, strength and happiness are multiplied, as by the fruit of the tree of life (see ch. 11:30).
It may be that to some the long delay in the coming of the Lord has seemed like a deferred hope. But one who is ready for that coming and prays that it may be ushered in speedily has so close a walk with God that he is constantly experiencing the fulfillment of desires and the renewing of his confidence (see Gen. 5:22).
Pro 13:13 Whoever scorns instruction will pay for it, but whoever respects a command is rewarded.
Pro 13:14 The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, turning a person from the snares of death.
The instruction of the wise guides those who heed it over the uneven pathway of life, preventing them from falling into the pitfalls of sin and death that beset the path of life on every hand.
Pro 13:15 Good judgment wins favor, but the way of the unfaithful leads to their destruction.
While a child of God travels the path of life with very little friction, the sinner finds the going hard, because his own obduracy is reflected from those he meets (Matt. 7:2).
Pro 13:16 All who are prudent act with knowledge, but fools expose their folly.
That is, “act understandingly.” The fool flaunts his foolishness in public, either because he does not realize that it is folly, or because he does not care (see ch. 15:2).
Pro 13:17 A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a trustworthy envoy brings healing.
Pro 13:18 Whoever disregards discipline comes to poverty and shame, but whoever heeds correction is honored.
Solomon returns to the often-repeated assertion that the only way to success is to listen to the instruction of the wise (see chs. 1–5).
Pro 13:19 A longing fulfilled is sweet to the soul, but fools detest turning from evil.
The true desire of the soul is for salvation from sinfulness and its dreadful consequences; yet the fool, because he is a fool, hates to leave his evil ways even at the cost of eternal life.
Pro 13:20 Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.
A man may be known by the company he keeps. A “companion of fools” becomes more like his associates. The choice of companions has an important bearing on the development of the young. An old proverb says: “He that lives with a cripple learns to limp.” The man who becomes like his evil companions, must also be willing to share their fate.
Pro 13:21 Trouble pursues the sinner, but the righteous are rewarded with good things.
Or, “He [God] will repay good.” While the evil man is permitted to reap results of his selfish choices, the good man is given an equally sure reward (see Ps. 11:5–7; Eccl. 2:26; Rev. 2:23; Rev. 22:12).
Pro 13:22 A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.
The good man considers others and builds up a good inheritance to pass on to his children, but the sinner spends on himself that which he should preserve. The evil man may defraud the righteous of his wealth and property; but it returns, sooner or later, to the family of the good man (see Ex. 12:35, 36; Job 27:16, 17; Prov. 28:8).
Pro 13:23 An unploughed field produces food for the poor, but injustice sweeps it away.
Or, “fallow ground,” as in Jer. 4:3 and Hosea 10:12.
The poor fritter away, through a lack of judgment, their hard-won gains.
Compare chs. 19:18; 22:15; 23:13, 14; 29:15, 17.
Pro 13:24 Whoever spares the rod hates their children, but the one who loves their children is careful to discipline them. The rod may be considered a symbol of disciplinary action of many kinds. Suitable corporal punishment may be particularly helpful when a child is very young. Later, it tends to produce undesirable reactions, and other forms of punishment are preferable. The righteous eat to their hearts’ content, but the stomach of the wicked goes hungry.
The term must be understood relatively in the sense of loving someone else or something else more. Compare this use of “hate” in Luke 14:26. He who neglects to discipline his children because he is indolent, or because he has a distaste for the task, puts self before his children, and so may be said to “hate” them.
This is a translation of a Hebrew idiom that refers to diligence in terms of early rising. Some have interpreted the idiom to mean that a child should be disciplined early in his life.
Pro 13:25 The righteous eat to their hearts’ content, but the stomach of the wicked goes hungry.
The wants of the good man are moderate, and he has the promise of God that these simple wants will be satisfied (see Isa. 33:16). The desires of the sinful man are often intemperate.
However much he gets, he wants more. For him there are no promises of the miraculous supply of his needs. His master is a cruel one. It is only by the goodness of God that springtime and harvest, sunshine and rain, give him a share of the bounties of the earth (see Gen. 8:22; Prov. 10:3; Matt. 5:45).