The plans of the diligent advance steadily, while the plans of the hasty drive a man toward poverty.
The contrast between two kinds of plans appears in Proverbs 21:5: The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, But everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty (v. 5). The contrast is not between planning and a lack thereof. Both the diligent and the hasty have plans.
The contrast is between the type and execution of the plans of the diligent, that are steady, considered, executed with patience, and the plans of the hasty, who chase short-cuts and quick returns. Proverbs has been consistent on this throughout: wealth gathered slowly through honest labor tends to last; wealth chased hurriedly tends to evaporate (Proverbs 13:11; 20:21; 28:20).
The verse is a reminder that diligence is not just a virtue but a strategy.
Proverbs 21:5
5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage,
But everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty.
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Proverbs 21:5 meaning
The contrast between two kinds of plans appears in Proverbs 21:5: The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, But everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty (v. 5). The contrast is not between planning and a lack thereof. Both the diligent and the hasty have plans.
The contrast is between the type and execution of the plans of the diligent, that are steady, considered, executed with patience, and the plans of the hasty, who chase short-cuts and quick returns. Proverbs has been consistent on this throughout: wealth gathered slowly through honest labor tends to last; wealth chased hurriedly tends to evaporate (Proverbs 13:11; 20:21; 28:20).
The verse is a reminder that diligence is not just a virtue but a strategy.