TRV
Bede
Late Patristic · AD 500–800 · 6,271 passages across 45 books
On Proverbs
Proverbs 10:3
The LORD will not suffer the soul of the righteous to famish: but he casteth away the substance of the wicked.
The Lord will not let the soul of the righteous be famished, etc. And if at any time the unjust afflict or even kill the righteous with famine, they will not hurt his soul, whom the Lord will comfort in the future life with the glory of His visitation, who also rightly turns the same traps of the wicked back upon them by judgment.
Proverbs 10:4
He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand: but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.
Lazy hands lead to poverty, etc. Whoever lives negligently in this world will suffer lack of good things in the future; but whoever fights bravely for the Lord is rewarded with the riches of eternal blessedness.
Proverbs 10:5
He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.
He who gathers in summer is a wise son, etc. He who gathers to Christ the souls of the faithful is a wise son. And indeed, this harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few (Luke 10). But he who in this acceptable time is sluggish in caring for his own salvation will be ashamed in the day of tribulation.
Proverbs 10:6
Blessings are upon the head of the just: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
The blessing of the Lord is upon the head of the righteous, etc. The righteous will be told in judgment: Come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom (Matt. 25). The mouths of the wicked, which served for revelry, drunkenness, and evil gossip, will be condemned by the wickedness they practiced. Indeed, the mouth of him who sought to cool his tongue in torment, on account of the many crimes for which he was punished more severely, was covered by wickedness (Luke 16).
Proverbs 10:7
The memory of the just is blessed: but the name of the wicked shall rot.
The memory of the righteous is a blessing, etc. And in this life, the good praise the good, whether living or dead; but they detest the actions and name of the wicked. In the future life, the righteous live in God's praises, but the honor, name, and praises of the reprobate are changed into putrid torments of hell, where their worm does not die, and their fire is not quenched (Isaiah 66).
Proverbs 10:9
He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.
Whoever walks uprightly, walks securely, etc. He who knows he lives uprightly, easily disregards all adverse things, because he trusts he will come to joy through them, saying with the prophet: The Lord is the protector of my life; whom shall I fear? and the rest (Psalm 26). But he who walks in crooked paths, though unwilling, becomes exposed and receives due recompense. For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed (Luke 12).
Proverbs 10:10
· 2 passages
He that winketh with the eye causeth sorrow: but a prating fool shall fall.
A fool’s lips bring him strife. It is either from his own, by whom he deserved to be condemned, because death and life are in the power of the tongue (Prov. XVIII), or from those by whom, because he could not be corrected, he received the sentence of condemnation; as the Psalmist says, "Lord, deliver my soul from lying lips and a deceitful tongue" (Psal. CXIX), he asks this from the Lord, so that he himself neither possesses lying lips and a deceitful tongue, nor can he be deceived by the iniquity and deceit of others.
He who winks with the eye causes trouble. Whoever mockingly winks at someone will not escape without the pain of torment and regret. Of such people the Psalmist says, Those who hate me without cause and wink maliciously with the eye (Psalm 35); or certainly, he who winks with the eye causes trouble because a foolish son is a grief to his mother.
Proverbs 10:11
· 2 passages
The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
The mouth of the righteous is a well of life. And the Lord speaks of teachers, "He who believes in me, as the Scripture says, rivers of living water will flow from his heart" (John VII).
And the mouth of the wicked covers iniquity. The wicked are those who conceal their own or their neighbor's faults, defending them so that they do not reach health. The prophet, detesting this, prays to the Lord that his heart might not incline to an evil word, to excuse excuses in sins (Psal. CXL).
Proverbs 10:13
In the lips of him that hath understanding wisdom is found: but a rod is for the back of him that is void of understanding.
In the lips of the wise is found wisdom, etc. The rod on the back is vengeance on the posterior, that is, in the following life; well expressed by that famous plague by which the Philistines were struck on their buttocks (1 Sam. V). Therefore, whoever does not want to carry the rod on their back, let them carry wisdom in their lips. I will speak the praises of Christ and preach His commandments. However, because it is always suitable to praise God but not always to teach, it is fitting that the wise do not teach everything they know to everyone, rightly adding:
Proverbs 10:14
· 2 passages
Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.
The wise hide knowledge. Knowing indeed, that there is a time to be silent and a time to speak (Eccl. III). Hence the prophet says, "While the sinner stood against me, I was mute and humbled and silent from good things" (Psal. XXXVIII). And the Apostle, "I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (1 Cor. II).
But the mouth of the fool is near to confusion. Because either he will speak good things inordinately, or openly speak evil things.
Proverbs 10:15
The rich man's wealth is his strong city: the destruction of the poor is their poverty.
The wealth of the rich is his strong city, etc. The rich trust in their wealth as in a fortified city; the poor therefore tremble, fearing they may lack because they know they are needy. Spiritually, he who is rich in God trusts in Him through good works, as in an impregnable city that no enemy can overcome; but those who are afflicted by a lack of virtues are therefore in need of heavenly riches because they fear with harmful dread to endure harsh labors for the Lord.
Proverbs 10:18
He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool.
Lying lips hide hatred, etc. Therefore, if you desire to be truthful and wise, neither conceal hatred in the secret of the heart, nor express slander through the mouth; but let your heart be filled with love and your mouth with truth.
Proverbs 10:23
It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.
As if through laughter a fool works mischief, etc. Prudence takes its name from providence. Therefore, it is foolish to rejoice in mischief (Proverb. XIV). However, it is wise and worthy of a man to foresee that laughter will be mixed with pain, and the joy of sinning will be followed by the penalty of retribution.
Proverbs 10:24
The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.
What the wicked fears shall come upon him, etc. He speaks of that wicked one who sins knowingly. Therefore, the wicked fear to see the strict judge; the righteous desire to be dissolved and be with Christ: he, lest he be deprived of earthly joys and punished with eternal vengeance; they, lest their pilgrimage be prolonged and they receive the rewards for which they have strived. But to both, what they fear in their heart will come upon them.
Proverbs 10:25
As the whirlwind passeth, so is the wicked no more: but the righteous is an everlasting foundation.
As a passing storm, the wicked shall not be, etc. He speaks of the persecutors of the Church, who seek to overthrow the house of faith. But that house, having been set upon the true foundation, that is, in Christ, remains, while they immediately perish.
Proverbs 10:26
As vinegar to the teeth, and as smoke to the eyes, so is the sluggard to them that send him.
Just as vinegar to the teeth, etc. Just as the treachery of heretics generates trouble and tears for good teachers, so a Catholic living badly is a burden through laziness to those who have been commanded to show their faith through works. For the eyes and teeth are the preachers of the holy Church, who are accustomed to foresee right ways for her and to supply spiritual nourishment. But vinegar, which degenerates from wine, and smoke, which rises from fire and vanishes, figuratively denote those who, withdrawing from ecclesiastical sweetness and charity through pride or sloth, also attack it with words. Of such, John says, "They went out from us, but they were not of us," and so on (1 John II).
Proverbs 10:27
The fear of the LORD prolongeth days: but the years of the wicked shall be shortened.
Fear of the Lord will prolong days, etc. Those who serve God faithfully will be gifted with eternal light; but those who are devoted to impiety lose the goods they loved along with this life.