Proverbs 29:22

Pro 29:22 An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.

Ver. 22. An angry man stirreth up strife.] See Pro 15:18; Pro 16:21.

And a furious man.] Heb. A master of fury; or one that is mastered and overmatched by his fury; that hath no command of his passions, but is transported by them, or - as some make the metaphor, and the original will well bear it - is wedded to them as a man is to his wife: commanded by them, as the Persian kings were by their concubines, being captivarum suarum captivi, {a} slaves to their slaves. Such a man being big with wrath, not only breeds contention, but brings forth transgression in great abundance, he "sets his mouth against heaven, and his tongue walketh through the earth," &c., {Psa 73:9} he lets fly on both hands, and lays about him like a madman.

{a} Plutarch.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

See here the mischief that flows from an angry, passionate, furious disposition. 1. It makes men provoking to one another: An angry man stirs up strife, is troublesome and quarrelsome in the family and in the neighbourhood, blows the coals, and even forces those to fall out with him that would live peaceable and quietly by him. 2. It makes men provoking to God: A furious man, who is wedded to his humours and passions, cannot but abound in transgressions. Undue anger is a sin which is the cause of many sins; it not only hinders men from calling upon God's name, but it occasions their swearing, and cursing, and profaning God's name.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(Compare Pro 15:18). Such are delighted by discord and violence.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 22. An angry man stirreth up strife] His spirit begets its like wherever he goes.

And a furious man aboundeth in transgression.] His furious spirit is always carrying him into extremes, and each of these is a transgression.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(22) Aboundeth in transgression.—For what will he not say and do when overcome by anger?

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22. furious] Rather, wrathful, R.V. Comp. Pro_15:18; Pro_28:25.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

An angry man stirreth up strife,.... In families, neighbourhoods, communities, churches, and commonwealths; that is, one that is given to anger, and gives way to it, in whom it prevails and rules;

and a furious man aboundeth in transgression; or, "a master of wrath or fury" (y); one much addicted to it: or, "the husband of wrath": wedded to it, as a man to his wife: or, as the Vulgate Latin version renders it, "who is easy to be angry"; is easily provoked, wrath rises up in him at once; this leads him on to many sins, as cursing, swearing, murder,

(y) "dominus furoris", so Vatablus, Piscator, Michaelis.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Is by his passion easily transported into grievous and manifold sins against God, and others, and himself, as swearing, and cursing, and violence, yea, sometimes even to murder.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

22. An angry man — An irritable or passionate man makes much trouble, and causes both himself and others to transgress. Comp. Pro_15:18; Pro_26:21; Pro_28:5; Job 22:29, 33; Mat_23:12; Luk_14:11.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

An angry man stirreth up strife. This is a variation of Pro_15:18 and Pro_28:25 (which see). A furious man aboundeth in transgression. "A furious man" is a passionate person, who gives way to violent fits of anger. (Pro_22:24) Such a man both makes enemies by his conduct and falls into manifold excesses of word and action while under the influence of his wrath. "The wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God". (Jam_1:20) The Greek gnome says Orgh de polla dran anagkazei kaka . And again Poll estin orghv ex apaideutou kaka "Unchastened anger leads to many ills. Septuagint, "A passionate man diggeth up sin a forcible expression, which is not unusual in reference to quarrels.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The following group begins with a proverb which rhymes by מדון, with מנון of the foregoing, and extends on to the end of this Hezekiah collection:

22 A man of anger stirreth up strife;

And a passionate man aboundeth in transgression.

Line first is a variation of Pro 15:18 and Pro 28:25. אישׁ and בּעל as here, but in the reverse order at Pro 22:24.

(Note: For אישׁ־אף (Lwenstein after Norzi) is to be written, with Baer (Thorath Emeth, p. 19), אישׁ אף ,)91. Thus also in Cod. Jaman.)

אף here means anger, not the nose, viz., the expanded nostrils (Schultens). In רב־פּשׁע the פשׁע is, after Pro 14:29; Pro 28:16; Pro 20:27, the governed genitive; Hitzig construes it in the sense of פשׁע רב, Psa 19:2, with יגרה, but one does not say גּרה פשׁע; and that which is true of רבּים, that, after the manner of a numeral, it can precede its substantive (vid., under Ps. 7:26; Psa 89:51), cannot be said of רב. Much (great) in wickedness denotes one who heaps up many wicked actions, and burdens himself with greater guilt (cf. פשׁע, Pro 29:16). The wrathful man stirreth up (vid., under Pro 15:18) strife, for he breaks through the mutual relations of men, which rest on mutual esteem and love, and by means of his passionate conduct he makes enemies of those against whom he thinks that he has reason for being angry; that on account of which he is angry can be settled without producing such hostility, but passion impels him on, and misrepresents the matter; it embitters hearts, and tears them asunder. The lxx has, instead of רב, ἐξώρυξεν, of dreaming, כרה (Pro 16:27).

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

Anger is not necessarily a sinful passion. Even furiousness — the overflowing of the torrent — is a property in God. (Nah 1:2 ) We can readily conceive of its energy in the unfallen nature of man. Had Satan appeared to Eve in his own open hatefulness, her anger against him would have been a holy principle. But in a fallen nature, to preserve its purity is a rare and most difficult matter. It must be confined to points, where God’s honor is concerned (Joh 2:15-17 ); and even on these points the rule must be observed — "Let not the sun go down upon your wrath." (Eph 4:26 .) The short period of the day is abundantly sufficient to express right motives, and to accomplish holy purposes.

The general tendency of anger is however here most truly described. Its active energy stirreth up strife.†1 It quarrels even upon trifles,†2 — or matters, which a forbearing consideration might have satisfactorily explained. (Act 15:39 .) And when suppressed, but not laboriously mortified, how often does it become more intense, and break out more furiously — abounding in transgression! Indeed it is difficult to take a full view of the mighty power of this mass of sin. It gives the impetus to every besetting propensity. It may be blasphemy! (Lev 24:10-11 .) It stops at nothing. How many murders do we owe to this paroxysm of the moment!†3 But for the divine restraints, the very foundations of society would be torn up!

Parents! Do we feel the responsibility of early checking this ebullition in our children? And do we diligently watch against the first rising in ourselves, incessantly praying for its subjugation? How beautiful are the instances of Almighty grace — such as Henry Martyn†4 — transforming the furious man into the likeness of his meek and holy Master!

But let us not be satisfied with the outward constraint upon passion. God condemns the deep-rooted principle that gives it birth. Wretched heart! filled with soul-destroying corruption. Every, even the least, indulgence operates fearfully. So much time spent in excitement! So much more in the unquiet waiting for the desired opportunity! And all given to the great Murderer! Oh! for the mystery and doctrine of the cross, to mold our temper into its genuine spirit and influence!

Footnotes:

†1 Pro 15:18; Pro 26:21 ; Pro 30:33 . Jas 3:16 .

†2 1Ti 6:4 . 2Ti 2:23-24 .

†3 1Sa 18:9-10 ; 1Sa 22:6-19 . Mat 2:16 . Act 7:54-59 ; Act 12:19 .

†4 Life, p. 8. Pref. to 10th edit.

Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (1846) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

stirs up strife According to its apparent meaning, מדון is the Divine standard of justice.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.