Proverbs 19:1

Better is the poor that walketh in his integrity,.... In the uprightness of his heart before God and men; who is sincere in the worship of God, and in the profession of his name, and walks in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless; and is upright, harmless, and inoffensive in his conversation with men; and studies to exercise a conscience void of offence to both, and continues herein. A man may be a poor man with respect to worldly things, and yet be rich towards God; may be a truly gracious good man, honest, sincere, and upright in heart and life: and such an one is better than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool; that is, than a rich man, as the Syriac and Vulgate Latin versions supply it, and as the antithesis requires; "that is perverse in his lips", or "whose ways are perverse", as the Syriac version; that acts the deceitful part both by words and actions towards those that are about him, not being honest and plain hearted as the poor man is; and who uses those beneath him very roughly; and concerning oppression speaks loftily, and lets his tongue run both against God in heaven and man on earth, by which he shows he is a fool: for his riches do not give him wisdom; and his words and actions declare he wants it; men may be poor, and yet wise; and a matt may be rich, and yet a fool: or is confident (d); that is, trusts in his riches, and is opposed to a poor man, so R. Saadiah Gaon.

Proverbs 19:1-2 . Better is the poor — Hebrew, רשׁ , a poor man; that walketh in his integrity — Who is upright in his words and actions; he has a better character, is in a better condition, is more beloved, lives to better purpose, and is greater and more excellent in the eyes of God, and of all wise and good men; than he that is perverse in his lips — Who is in the habit of uttering sinful and mischievous expressions, however high he may be in rank, wealth, or dignity. Also, that the soul be without knowledge — Without wisdom or prudence to discern the right way of speaking and acting, and how a person ought to conduct himself in all affairs, and on all occasions; is not good — Is of evil and pernicious consequence; and he that hasteth with his feet — That rashly and hastily rushes into actions without serious consideration; sinneth — Contracts guilt, and involves himself, and perhaps also many others, into difficulties and troubles. “Solomon, in this verse,” says Bishop Patrick, “observes two great springs of all our miscarriages; want of understanding and want of deliberation. To make too much haste in a business is the way not to speed; and to run blindly upon any thing is no less prejudicial to our undertakings. Both he that affects things without knowledge, and he that pursues what he understands without deliberation, runs into many mistakes, and commits many sins.

CHAPTER 19 Pr 19:1-29. 1. (Compare Pr 28:6). "Rich" for fool here. Integrity is better than riches (Pr 15:16, 17; 16:8). That walketh in his integrity; who is upright in his words and actions. That is perverse in his lips; that useth to speak wickedly, which proceeds from a wicked heart, and is usually attended with an evil life. Is a fool; is a hypocrite, or a wicked man, for this is opposed to the upright man in the former clause; yea, though he be rich, which is implied from the same clause.

Verse 1. - Better is the poor that walkth in his integrity. The word for "poor" is, here and in vers. 7, 22, rash , which signifies "poor" in opposition to "rich." In the present reading of the second clause, than he that is perverse in his lips, and is a fool, there seems to be a failure in antithesis, unless we can understand the fool as a rich fool. This, the repetition of the maxim in Proverbs 28:6 ("Than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich"), would lead one to admit. The Vulgate accordingly has, Quam dives torquem labia sua, et insipiens , "Than a rich man who is of perverse lips and a fool." With this the Syriac partly agrees. So that, if we take this reading, the moralist says that the poor man who lives a guileless, innocent life, content with his lot, and using no wrong means to improve his fortunes, is happier and better than the rich man who is hypocritical in his words and deceives others, and has won his wealth by such means, thus proving himself to be a fool, a morally bad man. But if we content ourselves with the Hebrew text, we must find the antithesis in the simple, pious, poor man, contrasted with the arrogant rich man, who sneers at his poor neighbour as an inferior creature. The writer would seem to insinuate that there is a natural connection between poverty and integrity of life on the one hand, and wealth and folly on the other.