Proverbs 11:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.

NIV: Those who are kind benefit themselves, but the cruel bring ruin on themselves.

NASB: A merciful person does himself good, But the cruel person does himself harm.

CSB: A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel person brings ruin on himself.

NLT: Your kindness will reward you, but your cruelty will destroy you.

KJV: The merciful man doeth good to his own soul: but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.

NKJV: The merciful man does good for his own soul, But he who is cruel troubles his own flesh.

Solomon observes here the typical pattern of life: that kindness tends to benefit those who are kind, while cruelty often results in cruel responses.

The kind man honors the Lord by sharing his resources with others. In return, God blesses him. The recipients of his kindness honor him and show him kindness. Ecclesiastes 11:1 says, "Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days." In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy" (Matthew 5:7). He also said, "Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you" (Matthew 5:42). In Luke 6:35, Jesus promised, "Love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great." Even when other men don't reward kindness, God notices and responds accordingly (Matthew 10:42).

A cruel man is unkind. This gains him no admirers—only those who fear or hate him, even if they take advantage of his resources when they can. Such a person has nothing to look forward to but people's disdain and ill wishes. He lacks genuine friends and leads a lonely life. By being cruel, he hurts himself. His death is more likely to be celebrated (Proverbs 11:10) than mourned.

Proverbs 11:16–22 continues Solomon's series of contrasts. Here he compares the beautiful life of those who pursue God's truth with that of those who live in their own sinful ways. He also contrasts the righteous person's end of life with that of the wicked person. He portrays the wicked person as an abomination in the sight of the Lord, whereas the righteous person is a delight to the Lord.

Many of the proverbs in this section deal with contrasts between those who are righteous and those who are wicked. Righteous people follow God's will, bring honor and blessing on themselves, and have hope. Evil people disobey God, bring trouble on others, are hated, and their lives lead to disaster.

This continues a long passage filled with Solomon's general, common-sense observations. As in chapter 10, Solomon presents a variety of contrasts. We see distinctions such as those between integrity and dishonesty, trust in wealth and trust in the Lord, wise and foolish talk, true riches and false riches, the blessing of the righteous and the harm caused by the wicked, and the respective rewards of the godly and those who are evil.

Proverbs is best understood in context with the books of Ecclesiastes and Job. In Proverbs, “wisdom” is given in short, simple, general terms. Ecclesiastes represents wisdom based on observation and experience. This often shows how the general principles of the book of Proverbs don’t apply in absolutely every circumstance. Job represents wisdom based on the experience of suffering and injustice. All three come to the conclusion that God does indeed know best, and the most sensible course of action is to follow His will.