The Bible Says Commentary on Proverbs 21

The king's heart is water in the LORD's hand, redirected wherever He wishes; this is comfort to those under unjust rulers and warning to kings.

A man's own way looks right to him, but the LORD applies a true measure to the heart he would prefer to evaluate himself.

Righteousness and justice in daily life are desired by the LORD more than the most lavish religious offering.

Haughty eyes and a proud heart make up the lamp by which the wicked man navigates, and that lamp is itself his sin.

The plans of the diligent advance steadily, while the plans of the hasty drive a man toward poverty.

Treasure gained by lying is vapor in cold air, and what looks like a pursuit of wealth is in fact the pursuit of death.

The violence of the wicked finally drags them off, because they refused the justice that would have held them up.

The guilty walk a crooked path that constantly doubles back, while the pure walk straight and at peace.

A corner of the roof is better than a comfortable house full of unending contention.

The wicked man's problem is not occasional behavior but a soul whose appetite is set on evil, leaving no kindness for his neighbor.

The naive learn wisdom by seeing the scoffer punished; the wise learn wisdom by being instructed.

The man who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will himself one day cry and not be answered.

A private gift can quiet anger and even strong wrath; the wise reader notices the mechanism without endorsing the bribery it can become.

When justice is done, the righteous rejoice and the wicked dread; how a man feels about justice exposes his heart.

Drift, not rebellion, is sufficient to land a man in the assembly of the dead.

Loving pleasure—organizing life around wine and oil—is one of the surest predictors of long-term poverty.

In God's providential ordering, the wicked end up bearing the weight that judgment had assembled.

A desert is more livable than a house with a contentious and vexing companion.

Treasure gathers in the wise man's house and disappears in the fool's, because the fool eliminates margin the moment it appears.

Pursuing righteousness and loyalty produces life, righteousness, and honor, all moving in the same direction.

A wise man takes a fortified city because he sees the weakness the mighty cannot see in their own walls.

The man who guards his mouth and tongue guards his soul from the trouble that speech most often brings.

Pride wears three names at once—proud, haughty, scoffer—and the wise will recognize the cluster when it appears.

The sluggard is killed by an appetite his hands refuse to work for, while the righteous lives oriented outward in steady giving.

A wicked man's sacrifice is already abomination; sacrifice offered as cover for further evil is worse still.

A false witness's voice is silenced, while the man who listens to the truth has a voice that endures.

The wicked man covers uncertainty with a bold face; the upright does not need bravado because his way is genuinely sure.

No wisdom, understanding, or counsel can be turned against the LORD; wisdom is the right response to His world, not a tool against Him.

The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the LORD; the wise do their part and acknowledge the outcome is not theirs to deliver.