Proverbs 22:8

8 Those who plant injustice will harvest disaster, and their reign of terror will come to an end.

Proverbs 22:8 Meaning and Commentary

Proverbs 22:8

He that soweth iniquity ^F21 shall reap vanity
He that practises sin, and is frequent in the commission of it; indulges to it in a profuse way, as the sower plentifully scatters his seed; such shall reaper possess nothing but sin and wickedness; for, what a man sows, that shall he reap; he shall eat the fruit of his doings, and have the reward of his works; see ( Job 4:8 ) ( Galatians 6:7 Galatians 6:8 ) ; or "nothing" ^F23, mere emptiness; it shall not answer; he shall have in the end neither pleasure nor profit, but the contrary; "shall reap evil things", as the Septuagint, Arabic, and Vulgate Latin versions render it; and the rod of his anger shall fail;
with which he has ruled and smitten others in an angry and cruel manner; this shall be taken from him; his authority shall fail, and he shall become subject to others, and be used in like manner; see ( Isaiah 14:4-6 ) . R. Joseph Kimchi interprets it of "the rod of the increase" of the earth, or the rod or flail with which the fruits of the earth are threshed or beaten out, which should fail before they were reaped; and Schultens ^F24 has reference to the same, and gives the sense, that a wicked man that sows iniquity, when he thinks his harvest is ripe, shall be beaten with the flail, by which he shall be consumed; and he that threshed others shall be threshed himself.

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FOOTNOTES:

F21 So, "serere fallaciam", in Plauti Poenulo, l. 1. v. 67.
F23 (Nwa) "inanitatem ac nihilum", Michaelis.
F24 "Et virga in eum desaevitura, erit decretoria".

Proverbs 22:8 In-Context

6 Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.

7 Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.

8 Those who plant injustice will harvest disaster, and their reign of terror will come to an end.

9 Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor.

10 Throw out the mocker, and fighting goes, too. Quarrels and insults will disappear.

Footnotes

• [a]. The Greek version includes an additional proverb: God blesses a man who gives cheerfully, / but his worthless deeds will come to an end. Compare 2 Cor 9:7 .