Proverbs 18:13

He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him. HE THAT ANSWERETH A MATTER BEFORE HE HEARETH (IT) - i:e., before he understandeth what the other hath said. So 'hear' means understand, . IT (IS) FOLLY AND SHAME UNTO HIM - ( Sir 11:8 , 'Answer not before thou hast heard the cause, neither interrupt men in the midst of their talk.') Self-seeking and self-importance are generally the cause of such interruptions....

Verse Proverbs 18:13. _HE THAT ANSWERETH A MATTER_] This is a common case; before a man can tell out his story, another will begin _his_. Before a man has made his _response_, the other wishes to confute _piecemeal_, though he has had his own speech already. This is foolishness to them. They are ill-bred. There are many also that _give judgment_ before they hear the whole of the cause, and express an _opinion_ before they hear the state of the case. How absurd, stupid, and foolish!...

EXPOSITION PROVERBS 18:1 This is a difficult verse, and has obtained various interpretations. The Authorized Version gives, THROUGH DESIRE A MAN, HAVING SEPARATED HIMSELF, SEEKETH AND INTERMEDDLETH WITH ALL WISDOM; _i.e. _a man who has an earnest desire for self-improvement will hold himself aloof from worldly entanglements, and, occupying himself wholly in this pursuit, will become conversant with all wisdom. This gives good sense, and offers a contrast to the fool in Proverbs 18:2, who "hath no delight in understanding." But the Hebrew does not rightly bear this interpretation. Its conciseness occasions ambiguity. Literally, _For his desire a man who separates himself seeks_;_ in _(or _against_) all wisdom he mingles

HE THAT ANSWERETH A MATTER BEFORE HE HEARETH [IT],.... Who is impatient, and cannot wait to hear it out, but breaks in upon the speaker before he has finished what he has to say; or is rash and precipitate, and returns an answer at once, without weighing and considering, and thoroughly understanding, what is said: IT [IS] FOLLY AND SHAME UNTO HIM; his answer must be a foolish one, and bring shame and confusion upon him; men should be "swift to hear", and "slow to speak", James 1:9....

CHAPTER 18 PROVERBS OF PERSONAL INSTRUCTION There is first a warning against separation produced by desire, that is for gratification and pleasure, and not for a righteous purpose. Such a one becomes an enemy of true wisdom and one who intermeddleth with all wisdom. This proverb finds a New Testament illustration in Alexander the coppersmith, as well as Hymenaeus and Philetus, and Diotrephes of whom John writes in his epistle. A fool foams out his own folly. This proverb in Proverbs 18:2 is illustrated by many of the critics of the Bible. They have no delight in true understanding but their own hearts are laid bare by their mad oppositions to God's Holy Word. The fool's mouth, his lips, the talebearer (whisperer), and the slothful are the themes of the proverbs in Proverbs 18:6. Then we read

PROVERBS 18:1. MT yields no satisfactory sense. The LXX reads The man who wishes to separate from his friends seeks pretexts, but is always liable to reproach. Frankenberg renders the alienated friend seeks an occasion (emending the word for - desire-'), seeks by all means to stir up strife. Proverbs 18:4. RV translates correctly, but the sense is strange. Read, perhaps, The words of the wise are deep waters, a flowing brook, a fountain of life, but this is conjecture rather than emendation. Proverbs 18:5. _cf._ Proverbs 17:26, which may have originally followed this verse....

BEFORE HE HEARETH IT. Illustrations: David (2 Samuel 16:4; 2 Samuel 19:24); Ahasuerus (Esther 3:10. Compare Proverbs 8:5, &c.); Darius (Daniel 6:9. Compare Proverbs 6:14; Proverbs 6:18); magistrates (Acts 16:37)....

_answereth a matter_ Rather, GIVETH ANSWER, R.V. "Heb. _returneth a word_," A.V. marg. Compare: "Answer not before thou hast heard; And interrupt not in the midst of speech." Sir 11:8....

STUDY QUESTIONS OVER 18:13-24 1. How is it folly to him (Proverbs 18:13)? 2. How is it shame to him (Proverbs 18:13)? 3. What would a doctor get out of Proverbs 18:14? 4. Locate the parallels in Proverbs 18:15. 5. Cite Bible examples of such gifts (Proverbs 18:16). 6. What lesson should church leaders learn from the first statement (Proverbs 18:17)? 7. Why did the

1. Lit. 'One who separates himself seeks desire, quarrels with all wisdom.' This would mean that a solitary recluse follows his own wishes and opposes everything reasonable. But LXX suggests, 'The alienated friend seeks an occasion of quarrel, seeks by all means to stir up strife.'...