Exegesis of Proverbs 29
A man who guarantees a murderer will be a fugitive and will not be in safety. He who guarantees Satan guarantees injustice, promising to pay him the fruits of injustice. Concerning this, the Gospel also says that one defiled through murder and strife is put into prison.
Bring up a son and he will love you and give wealth to your soul (Proverbs 28:17); he will not obey a lawless nation. A lawless nation is the order of demons, which the brought-up son does not obey.
He who works his own land will be filled with bread; but he who pursues leisure will be filled with want (Proverbs 28:19). He who purifies himself will be filled with knowledge; but the unclean will be filled with ignorance.
He who is not ashamed before the faces of the righteous is not good; such a man will be given a crust of bread instead of a man (Proverbs 28:21). If the virtues are the faces of the righteous, he is not good who is not ashamed of the virtues. And if the vices are the faces of the sinners, he is good who is not ashamed of the vices.
A wealthy man hastens to be rich, and does not know that mercy will rule him (Proverbs 28:22). Those who are now merciful will, in the age to come, be shown mercy by God and, having become angels, will rule over the ungodly. Such a status was also promised to his disciples, that the Lord would give them to sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28). And a throne is that in which the mind sits, a spiritual knowledge gathering together those who have wandered from godliness. And to judge here means to teach, as also 'open your mouth with the word of God and judge all healthily,' instead of teaching. It is also to be understood that the merciful one, having conquered the ruler, himself will not become a ruler, but will rather make the ruler merciful.
The righteous stand in the places of the ungodly; and in their destruction the righteous will be multiplied (Proverbs 28:28). If the ungodly abandon the...
They being impious, they shall become righteous; for the destruction now signifies the removal of impiety. Thus also Matthew, having lost the tax collector, the Lord granted righteousness to him (Matt 9:13).
A man rebuking a stubborn man is better (Prov 29:1); for when he is burning, there will be no healing. He did not say that when the flame has ceased there is no healing, but that while he is burning there will be no healing, as one having wood, grass, or reed still present, even if health happens to come to those being burned after the ember.
When a righteous man is praised, peoples will rejoice; but when impious rulers rule, men groan (Prov 29:2). All those who are under the authorities and the powers and the cosmic rulers of this darkness, these certainly also groan.
A man loving wisdom, his father rejoices; but he who pastures prostitutes will lose wealth (Prov 29:3). And he who nurtures wickedness will lose knowledge. Alternatively: A good mind is a shepherd having possessed passionless thoughts, and an evil mind is a shepherd having possessed passionate thoughts. And if this is so, is not a passionate thought a goat, and is not a passionless thought a sheep? Therefore also the Lord sets the goats on the left and the sheep on the right; and he says 'goats and sheep' regarding those possessing goats and sheep, that is, those having passionate and passionless thoughts. In the same way, regarding those having the weeds, he commanded 'weeds', and regarding those having the grain, 'grain', naming them from the most inferior and most excellent state. Such is also what is said by Paul, 'love does not wander' (1 Cor 13:7), instead of 'he who has love'.
A righteous king lifts up a land; but an unlawful man overthrows it (Prov 29:4). Christ lifts up the rational nature; but the antichrist overthrows it.
A righteous man knows how to judge the poor; but the impious will not understand (Prov 29:7).
Greek
28 ἄνδρα τὸν ἐν αἰτίᾳ φόνου ὁ ἐγγυώμενος φυγὰς ἔσται καὶ οὐκ ἐν ἀσφαλείᾳ Ὁ ἐγγυώμενος τὸν σατανᾶν ἐγγυᾶται τὴν ἀδικίαν, ὑπισχνούμενος αὐτῷ τοὺς τῆς ἀδικίας ἀποδώσειν καρπούς. Περὶ τούτου δὲ καὶ τὸ εὐαγγέλιον λέγει ὡς διὰ φόνον καὶ στάσιν βεβλημένου εἰς φυλακήν. 351 28, 17α παίδευε υἱὸν καὶ ἀγαπήσει σε καὶ δώσει κόσμον τῇ σῇ ψυχῇ· οὐ μὴ ὑπακούσῃ ἔθνει παρανόμῳ Ἔθνος παράνομον τὸ τάγμα τῶν δαιμόνων ἐστίν, ᾧ οὐχ ὑπακούει ὁ παιδευθεὶς υἱός. 352 28, 19 ὁ ἐργαζόμενος τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γῆν πλησθήσεται ἄρτων· ὁ δὲ διώκων σχολὴν πλησθήσεται πενίασ Ὁ καθαίρων ἑαυτὸν πλησθήσεται γνώσεως· ὁ δὲ ἀκάθαρτος πλησθήσεται ἀγνωσίας. 353 28, 21 ὃς οὐκ αἰσχύνεται πρόσωπα δικαίων οὐκ ἀγαθός· ὁ τοιοῦτος ψωμοῦ ἄρτου ἀποδώσεται ἄνδρα Εἰ πρόσωπα τῶν δικαίων εἰσὶν αἱ ἀρεταί, οὐκ ἀγαθὸς ὁ μὴ τὰς ἀρετὰς αἰσχυνόμενος. Καὶ εἰ πρόσωπα τῶν ἁμαρτωλῶν εἰσιν αἱ κακίαι, ἀγαθὸς ὁ τὰς κακίας μὴ αἰσχυνόμενος. 354 28, 22 σπεύδει πλουτεῖν ἀνὴρ βάσκανος καὶ οὐκ οἶδεν ὅτι ἐλεήμων κρατήσει αὐτοῦ Οἱ νῦν ἐλεήμονες ἐν τῷ αἰῶνι τῷ μέλλοντι ἐλεηθέντες ὑπὸ θεοῦ καὶ γενόμενοι ἄγγελοι ἄρξουσι τῶν ἀσεβῶν. Τοιοῦτον δὲ ἀξίωμα καὶ τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐτοῦ ὑπέσχετο δώσειν ὁ κύριος τοῦ καθίσαι αὐτοὺς ἐπὶ δώδεκα θρόνων κρίνοντας τὰς δώδεκα φυλὰς τοῦ Ἰσραήλ· θρόνος δέ ἐστιν, ἐν ᾧ νοῦς καθέζεται, γνῶσις πνευματικὴ τοὺς πλανηθέντας ἀπὸ τῆς θεοσεβείας ἐπισυνάγουσα. Τὸ δὲ κρίνειν ἐνταῦθα τὸ διδάσκειν σημαίνει ὡς καὶ τὸ «ἄνοιγε σὸν στόμα λόγῳ θεοῦ καὶ κρῖνε πάντας ὑγιῶς», ἀντὶ τοῦ δίδασκε. Ἅμα δὲ καὶ τοῦτο ἰστέον ὅτι ὁ ἐλεήμων κρατήσας τοῦ βασκάνου, αὐτὸς μὲν οὐ γενήσεται βάσκανος, ἐλεήμονα δὲ ποιήσει μᾶλλον τὸν βάσκανον. 355 28, 28 ἐν τόποις ἀσεβῶν στένουσι δίκαιοι· ἐν δὲ τῇ ἐκείνων ἀπωλείᾳ πληθυνθήσονται δίκαιοι Ἐὰν ἀποθῶνται οἱ ἀσεβεῖς τὸ εἶναι ἀσεβεῖς, γενήσονται δίκαιοι· ἡ γὰρ ἀπώλεια νῦν τὴν ἀναίρεσιν τῆς ἀσεβείας σημαίνει. Οὕτω καὶ Ματθαῖον τὸν τελώνην ἀπολέσας ὁ κύριος δικαιοσύνην αὐτῷ ἐχαρίσατο. 356 29, 1 κρείσσων ἀνὴρ ἐλέγχων ἀνδρὸς σκληροτραχήλου· ἐξαπίνης γὰρ φλεγομένου αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔσται ἴασισ Οὐκ εἶπεν ὅτι παυσαμένης τῆς φλογὸς οὐκ ἔστιν ἴασις, ἀλλὰ φλεγομένου αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔσται ἴασις, ὡς ἔχοντος ἔτι δηλονότι ξύλα, χόρτον, καλάμην, εἴπερ καὶ τοῖς καιομένοις μετὰ τὸν καυτῆρα πέφυκεν ἡ ὑγεία προσγίνεσθαι. 357 29, 2 ἐγκωμιαζομένου δὲ δικαίου εὐφρανθήσονται λαοί· ἀρχόντων δὲ ἀσεβῶν στένουσιν ἄνδρεσ Ὅσοι εἰσὶν ὑπὸ τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ τὰς ἐξουσίας καὶ τοὺς κοσμοκράτορας τοῦ σκότους τούτου, οὗτοι πάντως καὶ στένουσιν. 358α 29, 3 ἀνδρὸς φιλοῦντος σοφίαν εὐφραίνεται ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ· ὃς δὲ ποιμαίνει πόρνας ἀπολεῖ πλοῦτον Ὁ δὲ ἐκτρέφων κακίας ἀπολεῖ γνῶσιν. Ἄλλως. Ποιμήν ἐστιν ἀγαθὸς νοῦς ἀπαθεῖς λογισμοὺς κεκτημένος καὶ ποιμήν ἐστι πονηρὸς νοῦς ἐμπαθεῖς λογισμοὺς κεκτημένος. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, οὐκοῦν ἔριφός ἐστιν λογισμὸς ἐμπαθὴς καὶ πρόβατόν ἐστιν λογισμὸς ἀπαθής. ∆ιὸ καὶ τοὺς ἐρίφους ὁ κύριος ἵστησιν ἐξ ἀριστερῶν, τὰ δὲ πρόβατα ἐκ δεξιῶν· ἐρίφους δὲ καὶ πρόβατα λέγει τοὺς κεκτημένους ἐρίφους καὶ πρόβατα, τουτέστιν τοὺς ἔχοντας λογισμοὺς ἐμπαθεῖς καὶ ἀπαθεῖς. Οὕτω καὶ τοὺς ἔχοντας τὰ ζιζάνια, ζιζάνια προσηγόρευσε καὶ τοὺς τὸν σῖτον ἔχοντας σῖτον, ἀπὸ τῆς χειρίστης καὶ ἀρίστης ἕξεως ὀνομάσας αὐτούς. Τοιοῦτόν ἐστι καὶ τὸ παρὰ τῷ Παύλῳ λεγόμενον τὸ «ἡ ἀγάπη οὐ περπερεύεται», ἀντὶ τοῦ ὁ ἔχων τὴν ἀγάπην. 359 29, 4 βασιλεὺς δίκαιος ἀνίστησιν χώραν· ἀνὴρ δὲ παράνομος κατασκάπτει Ὁ μὲν Χριστὸς ἀνίστησι τὴν φύσιν τὴν λογικήν· ὁ δὲ ἀντίχριστος κατασκάπτει. 360 29, 7 ἐπίσταται δίκαιος κρίνειν πενιχροῖς· ὁ δὲ ἀσεβὴς οὐ συνήσει
About this text
Evagrius's short notes on Proverbs, turning each proverb toward the fight against temptation.
Original English Translation of Evagrius Ponticus’s Scholia in Proverbia — new OET from PG 40 Greek.
Catalogue & scope
Khazarzar scan
Witnesses
- Copy-text PG 40 (Khazarzar) (Greek)
This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.