CHAPTER 28
1The wicked man flees with no pursuer,
but the righteous are bold as a lion.
2Through the crime of a land, its princes are many,
but through a discerning man it is long-lasting.
3A poor man oppressing the lowly—
4Those who forsake teaching praise the wicked,
but those who keep the teaching confront them.
5Evil men do not understand justice,
but the LORD’s seekers understand all.
6Better a destitute man walking blameless
than one stubborn in his ways though rich.
7A discerning son keeps the teaching,
but one who consorts with gluttons shames his father.
8Who increases his wealth through interest and usury
will amass it for one kind to the poor.
9Who turns his ear from heeding instruction,
his very prayer is loathsomeness.
10Who misleads the upright to an evil way,
in his own pit he will fall,
and the blameless will inherit good.
11Wise in his own eyes is the rich man,
but the discerning poor will find him out.
12When the righteous rejoice, grand is the splendor,
but when the wicked rise up, man dons disguise.
13Who covers his crimes will not prosper,
but who admits and leaves off will be granted mercy.
14Happy the man who fears at all times,
but who hardens his heart will fall into harm.
15A growling lion and a famished bear—
a wicked ruler over a poor people,
16aa prince lacking discernment and great in oppression.
16bWho hates ill-gotten gains
will have length of days.
17A man oppressing by blood-guilt
flees to a pit.
Let none hold on to him.
18Who walks in blamelessness will be rescued,
but the crooked of ways will fall in a ditch.
19Who tills his soil is sated with bread,
but who pursues empty things is sated with poverty.
20A trustworthy man abounds in blessings,
but who to enrich himself rushes will not go scot-free.
21Favoritism is not good,
and for a crust of bread a man may do wrong.
22The miserly man rushes off after wealth,
unaware that want will befall him.
23Who rebukes another man will find more favor
than a smooth talker.
24Who robs his father and mother saying “It is no crime”
is a friend to a man who brings ruin.
25The greedy man stirs up strife,
but who trusts in the LORD flourishes.
26Who trusts in his own heart, he is a fool,
but who walks in wisdom, he will escape.
27Who gives to the destitute knows not want,
but who averts his eyes abounds in curses.
28When the wicked rise up, man hides,
and when they perish, the righteous are many.
CHAPTER 28 NOTES
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1. The wicked man flees . . . / the righteous are bold. The wicked, plagued by a guilty conscience, live in constant fear of divine retribution or legal punishment, whereas the righteous live in confidence.
2. Through the crime of a land, its princes are many. The possible but by no means certain meaning is that when a country is lawless, it produces many different contenders for power.
but through a discerning man it is long-lasting. As the translation reflects, the Hebrew text that has come down to us makes virtually no sense. Here is a more literal rendering: and through a discerning knowing man thus he (it?) is long-lasting. In the translation, “knowing” has been dropped as an apparent scribal doublet for “discerning.” Some interpreters claim that ken, “thus,” means “honesty,” which would then be the subject of “is long-lasting,” but when ken does not mean “thus,” it is an adjective, “honest,” not a noun. Emendations of this line have been unavailing.
3. A poor man oppressing the lowly. In an unjust economic hierarchy, even a poor person can exploit other disadvantaged people, or perhaps be used as a tool by the powerful to exploit them. This is a rare proverb in which the riddle image (“pounding [more literally, sweeping] rain without bread”) appears in the second verset—perhaps because there is also something of a riddle or at least a paradox in this first verset.
pounding rain without bread. Rain as a rule waters the soil, enabling the growth of grain. A torrential rain washes away the soil, making the growth of grain impossible. The poor man’s oppression of the lowly is purely destructive, and, in a kind of pun, he himself is without bread.
8. interest and usury. Though attempts have been made to discriminate between the two Hebrew terms, the distinction remains uncertain. The first of the terms, neshekh, etymo-logically means “bite” and so probably suggests excessive interest.
will amass it for one kind to the poor. This notion that ill-gotten gains will end up in the hands of the charitable is clearly wishful thinking.
10. and the blameless will inherit good. This third verset looks suspiciously like an addition to the original line.
12. man dons disguise. The verb yeḥupas can mean either “will be sought for”—yielding the sense that under the regime of the wicked decent people are hard to find, perhaps have to hide—or “is disguised,” that is, forced self-protectively to dissemble. Since the grand splendor of the first verset implies public display, the antithetical sense of disguise may be somewhat more likely.
14. fears. In context, this would be fear of doing evil or fear of retribution if evil is done.
16a. a prince lacking discernment and great in oppression. Despite the conventional verse break, influenced by the brevity of 16b, this verset, as Michael V. Fox notes, is clearly the third element of a triadic line characterizing the unjust ruler that begins in verse 15.
16b. Who hates ill-gotten gains / will have length of days. This proverb is scanned here as an abbreviated line with two versets, each having two beats in the Hebrew. But it is equally possible to represent it as a one-verset truncated line of poetry.
17. oppressing. The translation assumes ʿosheq, an active verb, instead of the passive ʿashuq, “oppressed,” of the Masoretic Text.
18. in a ditch. The received text reads beʾeḥat (“all at once”?), but the Syriac, more plausibly, reflects beshaḥat, “in a ditch.”
21. for a crust of bread a man may do wrong. If the first verset suggests that in justice—that is what the term for “favoritism” generally implies—one should not show partiality to the rich and powerful, then this clause probably means that a judge should also have compassion for the poor man who may have stolen out of sheer desperate hunger.
23. another man. The translation emends ʾadam aḥaray, “a man after me,” in the received text to ʾadam ʾaḥeir, “another man.”
26. he is a fool. This is an instance of what Fox calls a “gapped”—that is, elliptical—proverb. The wise man will escape from trouble, but the fool will not escape.