The Ruin of the King
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Introduction
Introduction
v.28
28 In a multitude of people is a king’s glory,
But in the dearth of people is a prince’s ruin.
28 בְּרָב־עָ֥ם הַדְרַת־מֶ֑לֶךְ וּבְאֶ֥פֶס לְ֝אֹ֗ם מְחִתַּ֥ת רָזֽוֹן׃
Proverbs 14:28 (BHW 4.18)
28בְּרָב־עָ֥ם הַדְרַת־מֶ֑לֶךְ וּבְאֶ֥פֶס לְ֝אֹ֗ם מְחִתַּ֥ת רָזֽוֹן׃
“In many people/nations (is) the grandeur of the king, and in the extremity to the people is the ruin/destruction of the dignitary.”
II רָזוֹן: dignitary Pr 14:28. †1
1 Holladay, William Lee, and Ludwig Köhler. 2000. In A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 336. Leiden: Brill.
Proverbs 10:14
הֲדָרָה: cs. הַדְרַת:—1. attire, hadrat qōdeš Ps 29:2;—2. grandeur of king Pr 14:281
1 Holladay, William Lee, and Ludwig Köhler. 2000. In A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 77. Leiden: Brill.
: אָֽפֶס; cs. אַפְסִי (see 2 below) Is 47:8, 10; Zp 2:15; pl. cs. אַפְסַי: extremity, end:—1. ʾafsêʾereṣ ends of the earth Dt 33:17;—2. end, nothing (ness) hāyâ (ke)ʾefes be at an end Is 34:12; 41:12; ʾefes it is all over with 2 K 14:26; weʾafsîʿôd and no one else (oth.: sf.: except) Is 47:8, 10; Zp 2:15;—3. only Nu 22:35; 23:13;—4. ʾefes kî: limiting, only that Nu 13:28.1
1 Holladay, William Lee, and Ludwig Köhler. 2000. In A Concise Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament, 25. Leiden: Brill.
Type: Inclusio (14:28–35)
14:28–35 The health and well-being of a nation depends upon both the ruler and the governed. A ruler must be fair and above all must respect the rights of his people. The people, on the other hand, must have virtue in their lives or they will bring society into chaos. No government can succeed without the people, and no people can thrive if corruption and evil abound.
The inclusio here is formed by v. 28, which describes a king’s need for a sizable populace, and v. 35, which obliquely asserts a king’s need for capable servants.1
1 Garrett, Duane A. 1993. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Vol. 14. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
28. Population the measure of strength
A numerous people secures the king’s glory,
But lack of people entails his destruction.
Antithetic, ternary (or, binary). Lit.: in the multitude of people is … but in the lack … is the destruction of the prince (De., unnecessarily and improbably, the destruction of his glory). This political observation, which suits any time, refers to industrial activity and international wars, and declares that wealth and military strength are the decisive factors in national political life—a purely human point of view, standing in contrast with that of the prophets and psalmists; see Isa. 7:11; 10:15; 37:20; 14:22; 49:7; Ez. 39:28; Joel 3(4):12–16; ψ 33:16. Cf. v. 34.1
1 Toy, Crawford Howell. 1899. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Proverbs. International Critical Commentary. New York: C. Scribner’s Sons.
28 In the multitude of the people lies the king’s honour;
And when the population diminishes, it is the downfall of his glory.
Prov. 14:28. The honour or the ornament (vid., regarding הָדַר, tumere, ampliari, the root-word of הָדָר and הֲדָרָה at Isa. 63:1) of a king consists in this, that he rules over a great people, and that they increase and prosper; on the other hand, it is the ruin of princely greatness when the people decline in number and in wealth. Regarding מְחִתָּה, vid., at 10:14. בְּאֶפֶס signifies prepositionally “without” (properly, by non-existence), e.g., 26:20, or adverbially “groundless” (properly, for nothing), Isa. 52:4; here it is to be understood after its contrast בְּרָב־: in the non-existence, but which is here equivalent to in the ruin (cf. אָפֵס, the form of which in conjunction is אֶפֶס, Gen. 47:15), lies the misfortune, decay, ruin of the princedom. The LXX ἐν δὲ ἐκλείψει λαοῦ συντριβὴ δυνάστου. Certainly רָזֹון (from רָזַן, Arab. razuna, to be powerful) is to be interpreted personally, whether it be after the form בָּגֹוד with a fixed, or after the form יָקֹושׁ with a changeable Kametz; but it may also be an abstract like שָׁלֹום (= Arab. selâm), and this we prefer, because in the personal signification רֹזֵן, 8:15; 31:4, is used. We have not here to think of רָזֹון (from רָזָה), consumption (the Venet. against Kimchi, πενίας); the choice of the word also is not determined by an intended amphibology (Hitzig), for this would be meaningless.1
1 Keil, Carl Friedrich, and Franz Delitzsch. 1996. Commentary on the Old Testament. Vol. 6. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.
14:28. People are a king’s greatest resource. But having no one over whom to rule would make his high title and position worthless. A pompous title with no meaningful responsibilities draws little respect.1
1 Buzzell, Sid S. 1985. “Proverbs.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, 1:936. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
v.29
29 He who is slow to anger has great understanding,
But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly.
29 אֶ֣רֶךְ אַ֭פַּיִם רַב־תְּבוּנָ֑ה וּקְצַר־ר֝֗וּחַ מֵרִ֥ים אִוֶּֽלֶת׃
Proverbs 14:29 (BHW 4.18)
29אֶ֣רֶךְ אַ֭פַּיִם רַב־תְּבוּנָ֑ה וּקְצַר־ר֝֗וּחַ מֵרִ֥ים אִוֶּֽלֶת׃
Verse 29 stresses the importance of patience. In this context an impatient king may lose his following (v. 28), and a headstrong courtier may lose his place before the king (v. 35), although the proverb naturally applies equally well to nonpolitical situations. Verse 30 looks at patience from a different perspective: it is essential for a healthy life. Verse 31 stands in the ancient Near Eastern tradition of warning rulers not to trample upon the rights of the poor; the king who ignores this advice will soon find himself without a nation.1
1 Garrett, Duane A. 1993. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Vol. 14. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
29. Antithetic, ternary. Wisdom is, more exactly, good sense; the irascible man is characterized as a fool on general principles of personal and social well-being. In second line the verb of our Heb. text is lit. lifts up, exalts, which (if the text be retained) is best understood as = increases (= is full of, brings to a high pitch), or† as = proclaims aloud; in any case the sense is that hasty temper is a sign of lack of sense; the renderings: takes folly up (as it lies before his feet) and carries folly away (receives it as his portion in life), while they give the same general meaning, are not favored by the parallelism. The text should probably be changed so as to read increases.—1
1 Toy, Crawford Howell. 1899. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Proverbs. International Critical Commentary. New York: C. Scribner’s Sons.
14:29. Being patient (cf. 16:32; 19:11) under trying circumstances evidences wisdom, but an impatient person who loses control of his temper (cf. 14:16–17) reveals folly. The Hebrew rûm (displays) means “to exalt or lift up for show.” Controlling one’s temper is always wise, and losing it is never wise!1
1 Buzzell, Sid S. 1985. “Proverbs.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, 1:936. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
v.30
29 He who is slow to anger has great understanding,
But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly.
29 אֶ֣רֶךְ אַ֭פַּיִם רַב־תְּבוּנָ֑ה וּקְצַר־ר֝֗וּחַ מֵרִ֥ים אִוֶּֽלֶת׃
Proverbs 14:30 (BHW 4.18)
30חַיֵּ֣י בְ֭שָׂרִים לֵ֣ב מַרְפֵּ֑א וּרְקַ֖ב עֲצָמ֣וֹת קִנְאָֽה׃
14:30. A person’s emotions affect his physical condition, as it is well known today (cf. 15:13, 30; 17:22; 18:14). A heart at peace (or, “a mind of health,” i.e., a healthy disposition) helps produce a healthy body, but envy, an ardent agitating desire to have or achieve what one sees in others, produces adverse effects physically (on bones, see comments on 3:8).1
1 Buzzell, Sid S. 1985. “Proverbs.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, 1:936. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Verse 29 stresses the importance of patience. In this context an impatient king may lose his following (v. 28), and a headstrong courtier may lose his place before the king (v. 35), although the proverb naturally applies equally well to nonpolitical situations. Verse 30 looks at patience from a different perspective: it is essential for a healthy life. Verse 31 stands in the ancient Near Eastern tradition of warning rulers not to trample upon the rights of the poor; the king who ignores this advice will soon find himself without a nation.1
1 Garrett, Duane A. 1993. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Vol. 14. The New American Commentary. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.