Proverbs 21:6

6 The ¹acquisition of treasures by a lying tongue Is a fleeting vapor, the pursuit of ²death.

Proverbs 21:6 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 21:6

The getting of treasures by a lying tongue
By telling lies in trade; by bearing false witness in a court of judicature; or by preaching false doctrines in the church of God: [is] a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death:
such treasures, though ever so great, are like any light thing, smoke or vapour, straw, stubble, chaff, or a feather, tossed about the wind; which is expressive of the instability uncertainty of riches ill gotten; they do not last long, but are taken away and carried off by one providence or another; and they are likewise harmful and pernicious; they issue in death: and those that seek after them, and obtain them in a bad way, are said to "seek death": not intentionally, but eventually; this they certainly find, if grace prevent not; see ( Proverbs 8:36 ) . Jarchi reads it, they are the "snares of death" to him; and so the Septuagint version.

Proverbs 21:6 In-Context

4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart, The lamp of the wicked, is sin.

5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, But everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty.

6 The acquisition of treasures by a lying tongue Is a fleeting vapor, the pursuit of death.

7 The violence of the wicked will drag them away, Because they refuse to act with justice.

8 The way of a guilty man is crooked, But as for the pure, his conduct is upright.

Cross References

• 1. Proverbs 13:11; Proverbs 20:21
• 2. Proverbs 8:36

Footnotes

• [a] Lit "seekers"