NOTES for Pro 22:1-29

The Lord created both the rich and the poor, and both are dear to Him. The Bible rejects an irreconcilable opposition between the poor and the rich, not because it was supposedly written to please exploiters or because it ignores the reality of social contradictions, as its dishonest “critics” still try to claim. Every attentive reader of the Bible can see that it reveals the world in a more complex and profound way than social theories that consider relations within society in isolation from the full range of connections among the various aspects of life. Injustice toward the poor is a constituent part of the evil that distorts the Creator’s design, and for that very reason it is unacceptable. The consequences of the unjust actions people commit may fall upon the perpetrators themselves.

The words about a person skilled in their work who will stand before kings can, if one wishes, be interpreted as encouragement of self-serving cunning if the emphasis is placed on being quick-witted. But it is better to place the emphasis on the work itself, and then we will see that competence in one’s work, rather than the ability to intrigue, is of decisive importance to one who values wisdom.