A man of Belial, a wicked person, is he that goeth about with a perverse mouth;
One line of Proverbs sketches a whole character. The man is empty of worth, and his crooked speech gives him away. Two questions follow: what makes a person "worthless" in God's eyes, and why the portrait starts with the mouth.
The verses just before this warn against laziness. Kelly sees the writer turning here to something worse.
Laziness is unworthy. It is bad and unwise for anyone to be idle. But it is far worse to be active in evil, for this works endless mischief to others. The Holy Spirit first draws a portrait of the dangerous man in verses 12 to 15. Then, in verses 16 to 19, He sets out the evils themselves rather than the man, except at the close. These are the evils that Jehovah hates.
Idleness wastes a life. This man is on the move, spending his energy — and other people pay for it.
The older wording behind "worthless person" is "man of Belial." Commentators tie that name to what is missing inside the man.
Verse 12 describes the perverseness of the wicked man, the man of Belial. He is empty of God in his thinking, and so he follows what is empty. At every moment he is at mischief. Perverseness is in his heart, so it comes out through every means he has of signalling anything. He devises mischief all the time, causing discord among others — a sad picture.
The verse gives him two names, not one.
The first term reveals the evil source. The second describes him as a man, in general, whatever his position.
Of all the marks that could be listed, the verse starts with speech. Kelly points to what the tongue was made for.
God gave the tongue to praise Him and to help other people. This man's tongue shows all too clearly what he is: he walks with a crooked and perverse mouth. It is not just that he feels no affection — he has only twisted things to say. He likes to differ, and to hint at what is painful.
Note what this describes. Not swearing, not shouting — a habit of disagreeing and of dropping remarks that wound.
"Worthless" is a strong word, and commentators do not soften it. The portrait moves on from the mouth to the eyes, feet and fingers.
There are some, sad to say, who are given up to wickedness and are therefore worthless. You will not find one redeeming feature in such a person (v. 12). They walk, but with a perverse mouth, their words twisted and corrupt. Winking with the eyes shows he means to deceive (v. 13). Shuffling his feet reveals a walk driven by selfish greed. He points his fingers at others to accuse them, while he keeps perversity in his own heart.
There is more to him than his own wrongdoing.
He carries on this stubborn, evil activity with the greatest skill. He does not only practise evil himself; he takes pleasure in those who do it, and in an underhand way he loves to make others his instruments.
Most wrongdoing chases something outside itself. Kelly finds this man different: the twisting is not the means, it is the goal.
The evil has a root deeper than his perverse mouth: deceits are in his heart. Other bad men may seek money, pleasure, or ambition. His heart has its pleasure in perverseness, and gratifying that perverse spirit is his business and his life; "he devises mischief at all times." His pleasure is to set people against each other; "he sends out, or sows, discords."
Reading a passage like this can feel like staring at something ugly. Darby answers that concern, and adds where such a life ends.
We cannot help feeling how much evil occupies us here, for we are in an evil world and our path lies through it. Only, I must learn it this way — in the Word, by faith. I must not learn it by practising it, or by growing familiar with the practice of it in the world. But judgment comes on such a man. Destruction comes on him when he does not expect it, and there is no remedy. He has been occupied with evil; nothing remains but judgment.
- Worthless — the older phrase "man of Belial" means a man with no God in his thinking. He follows what is empty.
- Mouth — God gave the tongue to praise Him and to help others. Crooked speech is the first sign that something is wrong underneath.
- Heart — the root lies deeper than the speech. Other men chase money, pleasure or ambition; this man's pleasure is perverseness itself.
- Mischief — that heart never rests. Eyes, feet and fingers all become tools, and setting people against each other is his life's work.
- End — this activity is worse than idleness, and it ends in sudden judgment with no remedy. Learn that from the Word by faith, not by growing familiar with evil in practice.
he winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers;
Verses 12–15 draw a portrait of a worthless man, and this line watches his body: a wink, a scuff of the foot, a jab of the finger. Why does Scripture record such small movements, and what do they say about the heart behind them?
Scripture names this man before it shows a single gesture.
After the sluggard comes the worthless person. The picture is of a son of Belial (the term used in the Hebrew). He is a wicked person, a good-for-nothing, a man of iniquity; he has a lying mouth. Scripture gives a detailed description of his way and his work; everywhere he makes mischief and causes division.
The placing matters. The lazy man of the previous verses does nothing; this man is busy.
Unworthy as slothfulness is, bad and unwise for one to be idle, it is far worse to be active in evil, for this works mischief to others without end.
Each gesture targets a different person. Each one moves that person without a word.
There is not even openness in his twisted speech: he "winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger." He works his persistent and evil activity with the utmost skill. He does wrong himself, and he also takes pleasure in those who do it. In an underhand way he loves to make others his instruments. A wink of his eyes is enough for one. A shuffle of his feet influences another. Even his restless fingers give a signal to a third.
Read one by one, the three movements expose three different faults.
Winking with the eyes shows he means to deceive (v. 13), and shuffling his feet reveals a walk driven by mere selfish greed. He points his fingers to accuse others, while he keeps perversity in his own heart.
The gestures are only symptoms. One writer traces them back to their source, and warns us how to learn about evil like this.
What follows (v. 12) describes the perverseness of the wicked man, the man of Belial, the man who has no thought of God in his mind and so follows emptiness. At every moment he is at mischief: his eyes, his feet, his fingers, all seem to carry on mischief. Perverseness is in his heart; so it works through everything he can signal with... But we cannot help feeling how much we are occupied with evil here, for we are in an evil world, and our path lies through it. Only I have to learn it in the Word by faith, and not by practising it, or by growing familiar with the practice of it in the world.
Proverbs returns to the wink in chapter 10, where one writer refuses to treat it as a small thing.
Verse 10 is full of meaning. "Whoever winks the eye causes trouble." He may be ever so much on his guard. He may go no further than a sign of his evil eyes. Yet he "causes trouble," and the proverb defines it no further. It may be trouble to himself as well as to others.
(Older translations render the word "grief" rather than "trouble.")
The portrait does not stop at the gestures. One writer names what this man is working for, and how he ends.
Since he despises what is good, he keeps himself busy devising evil schemes. His special aim is to make the righteous suffer. He sows discord, for he hates to see people living in peace. Of course it is by lies that he sows discord, and then he finds pleasure in the painful results of his bad work. But he has not considered how his evil ends: his calamity comes suddenly, and he is broken with no remedy (v. 15). How dreadful his end!
The list that follows in verses 16–19 closes on the same note, and one writer sets it against a psalm about unity.
The goodness of God, who shows us the truth about ourselves, leads to repentance; and He is the God of peace, in the fullest contrast with the man who "sends out discords among brothers." "Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!" How hateful to Jehovah is the man who sows discord among brothers!
- Heart — perverseness sits in the heart first. From there it "works through everything he can signal with." The eyes, feet and fingers only show what is already inside.
- Signals — the wink, the shuffle and the pointing finger are speech without words. One sign is enough for each man he uses, so others do the wrong while he keeps his hands clean.
- Deceit — every sign has a purpose. The wink means to deceive, the feet betray greed, and the fingers accuse others while his own heart is perverse.
- Discord — the aim of all this signalling is to break up peace by lies, and he enjoys the pain his work causes.
- Ruin — a wink is never free of cost. It "causes trouble," maybe for himself as well as for others, and in the end he is broken with no remedy.