Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. —Proverbs 6:14
Latin Commentary
Pravo, &c. [Prov. 6:14 Hebr. תַּהְפֻּכוֹת בְּלִבּוֹ]
Perversitates (non una, sed plurimæ; vel perversæ cogitationes, M.; ubique sunt, P. Pi. &c.) in corde ejus, P. Mo. Pi. &c.; omnimoda perversitate insidente animo suo, JT., atque cor adeo constipante, ut intumescat nec possit amplius continere, quin dictis perversis se exoneret, &c. Ab effectis ad causam assurgit, et ab externis gestibus ad interna animi opera. Habitum et consuetudinem hic depingit, sicut sequenti membro indefessum ejusdem exercitium.
Machinatur, [Hebr. חֹרֵשׁ רָע]
Machinatur, sive fabricatur malum omni tempore, M. P. JT. Pi. Sy.; quo scilicet alteri damnum inferendo suis velificetur commodis. Docet otiosum sive impium non secus iniquitati addictum esse, quam colonus agrorum cultui, aut artifex operi perficiendo imminet; ([Hebr. חָרַשׁ etiam est “colonus/artifex”]); cum pii, contra, utcunque aratro peccati manum interdum apponant, tamen respectant, nec semen in agrum comportant ut hinc inde spargant, &c.
Jurgia, [Hebr. מְדָנִים יְשַׁלֵּחַ]
Contentiones immittit, M. P. JT. Pi. &c.; vel spectandi libidine, vel in suum commodum.
Id facit susurris et detractionibus, dum hunc traducit, illum laudat; vel dum eundem eodem tempore verbis laudat, signis apud adversarium ipsius traducit. Post conatum internum sequitur externus effectus, rixarum excitatio, quæ ex otiosorum malignorumque garrulitate sponte solet emanare.
English Translation
“Frowardness, etc.” (Prov. 6:14)
Perversities—not just one, but many; or perverse thoughts—are in his heart. His whole mind is possessed by every kind of corruption, so that his heart is so packed and swollen with it that it can no longer contain itself, but must discharge itself in perverse speech.
Here the text rises from effects to causes, and from outward behavior to the inward workings of the soul. It describes a settled habit and disposition, and in the next clause the tireless exercise of that same habit.
“He deviseth…” (Heb. “plows evil”)
He continually devises or fabricates evil—namely, so that by harming another he may advance his own advantage.
This teaches that the idle or ungodly man is just as devoted to wickedness as a farmer is to cultivating his field or a craftsman to finishing his work. The godly, by contrast, even if they sometimes put their hand to the plow of sin, yet they draw back and do not carry seed into the field to scatter it abroad.
“He soweth discord”
He sends out strife—whether for the pleasure of watching it, or for his own gain
He does this by whispering and slander: speaking ill of one, praising another—or even praising the same man to his face while secretly undermining him before his adversary.
After the inward attempt comes the outward effect: the stirring up of quarrels, which naturally flows from the talkativeness of idle and malicious men.
Sigla Key (Poole’s abbreviations)
- M. = Mercerus (Johannes Mercerus)
- P. = Pagninus (Sanctes Pagninus)
- Pi. = Piscator (Johannes Piscator)
- Mo. = Montanus (Arias Montanus)
- JT. = Junius & Tremellius (Latin translation)
- Sy. = Syriac version
- Ar. = Arabic version
- Chald. = Targum (Chaldee paraphrase)
- V. = Vulgate
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