Proverbs 15:22

22 Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed.

Proverbs 15:22 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 15:22

Without counsel purposes are disappointed
If a man determines and resolves upon a matter, and at once hastily and precipitately goes about it, without mature deliberation, without consulting with himself, and taking the advice of others in forming a scheme to bring about his designs, it generally comes to nothing; see ( Luke 14:28-32 ) ; or "without a secret" ^F19 without keeping one; if a man divulges his intentions, it is much if they are not frustrated; so the Targum,

``vain are the thoughts (or designs) where there is no secret;''

if a man makes no secret of what he designs to do, he is easily counterworked, and his purposes disappointed; but in the multitude of counsellors they are established;
his purposes are, as in ( Proverbs 20:18 ) ; having the advice of others, and these many, he is confirmed that he is right in what he has thought of and purposed to do; and therefore goes about it with the greater spirit and cheerfulness, and is most likely to succeed, and generally does; see ( Proverbs 11:14 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F19 (dwo Nyab) "in non secreto", Montanus; "cum non sit secretum", Baynus; "quum nullum est arcanum", Schultens; "ubi non est secretum", Cocceius.

Proverbs 15:22 In-Context

20 Intelligent children make their parents proud; lazy students embarrass their parents.

21 The empty-headed treat life as a plaything; the perceptive grasp its meaning and make a go of it.

22 Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed.

23 Congenial conversation - what a pleasure! The right word at the right time - beautiful!

24 Life ascends to the heights for the thoughtful - it's a clean about-face from descent into hell.