Proverbs 16:17

17 The highway of the upright, it turns from evil, he who guards himself keeps his way.

Proverbs 16:17 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 16:17

The highway of the upright [is] to depart from evil
Upright persons, such who are upright in heart, and walk uprightly; these walk in the highway of holiness, in which men, though fools, shall not err; in the King's highway, the highway of the King of kings; in the plain beaten path of God's commandments; and so shun the bypaths of sin, and abstain from all appearance of it: this is their common constant course of life; they are studiously concerned to walk herein, and take delight in so doing; whereby they escape many evils others fall into; he that keepeth his way preserveth his soul,
that keeps on in his way, the way in which the upright walk; whose eyes look right on, and his eyelids straight before him; who ponders the path of his feet, and turns neither to the right hand nor the left; who walks circumspectly and carefully; observes the road he is in, to keep in it, and not go out of it; such a man preserves his soul from many snares and temptations, troubles, dangers, and evils, which he would be otherwise liable to. Here the Masorites put the word (yux) , signifying that this is the half or middle of the book.

Proverbs 16:17 In-Context

15 In the light of the face of the king [there is] life, and his favor [is] like a cloud of spring rain.
16 Getting wisdom: {how much} better than gold! And getting understanding: it is chosen {over} silver.
17 The highway of the upright, it turns from evil, he who guards himself keeps his way.
18 Before destruction [comes] pride, and before a fall, a haughty spirit.
19 Better a lowly spirit with the poor than dividing the spoil with the proud.

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Or "soul," or "inner self"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.