Proverbs 21:1

The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will. THE KING'S HEART (IS) IN THE HAND OF THE LORD, (AS) THE RIVERS OF WATER: HE TURNETH IT WHERESOEVER HE WILL - with as much ease as gardeners turn waters for irrigation into whatsoever channels they please. The Lord has all men's hearts in his hands; but kings are singled out, as to turn their hearts seems especially difficult, because of their eminence and majesty, and because they are borne along impulsively to whatsoever they are inclined. So "the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia" to invite the Jews to rebuild the temple (Ezra 1:1). He also turns the hearts of bad kings "to fulfill His will" ()....

CHAPTER XXI _The king's heart is in the hand of God. We should practise_ _mercy and justice. The lying tongue. The quarrelsome woman._ _The punishment of the wicked. The uncharitable. The private_ _gift. The happiness of the righteous. The wicked a ransom for_ _the righteous. The treasures of the wise. He who guards his_ _tongue. Desire of the sluggard. The false witness. Salvation_ _is of the Lord._ NOTES ON CHAP. XXI Verse Proverbs 21:1. _THE KING'S HEART_ IS _IN THE HAND OF THE LORD_] Th

RIVERS OF WATER - See the Psalms 1:3 note. As the cultivator directs the stream into the channels where it is most wanted, so Yahweh directs the thoughts of the true king, that his favors may fall, not at random, but in harmony with a divine order....

EXPOSITION PROVERBS 21:1 THE KING'S HEART IS IN THE HAND OF THE LORD, AS THE RIVERS OF WATER. We are to think of the little channels used for irrigation. As these are altogether under the gardener's control, so the heart of the king, who might seem to have no superior, is directed by God. HE TURNETH IT WHITHERSOEVER HE WILL. By hidden influences and providential arrangements God disposes the monarch to order his government so as to carry out his designs, to spread around joy and plenty. The system of irrigation signified in this passage is still to be seen in Eastern lands. "Flower beds and gardens of herbs are always made at a little lower level than the surrounding ground, and are divided into small squares, a slight edging of earth banking the whole round on each side. Water is then let in, and floods the entire sur

THE KING'S HEART [IS] IN THE HAND OF THE LORD, [AS] THE RIVERS OF WATER,.... The heart of every king, and all that is in it, his thoughts, counsels, purposes, and designs; the hearts of bad kings, as Pharaoh, whom the Lord hardened and softened at pleasure; the antichristian kings, into whose hearts he put it to give their kingdoms to the beast, Revelation 17:17; the hearts of good kings, as David, Solomon, Cyrus, and others: and if the hearts of kings are in the hands of the Lord, which are full of things of the greatest importance with respect to the government of the world; and which are generally more untractable and unmanageable; and who are more resolute and positive, and will have their own wills and ways, especially arbitrary princes; then much more the hearts of other persons. And which are as "rivers of water"; for so the words may be rendered, as rivers of water is "the he

CHAPTER 21 PERSONAL INSTRUCTIONS AS TO LIFE AND CONDUCT In the proverbs of this chapter the Lord is mentioned five times. “The king's heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever He will” Proverbs 21:1). The rivers of water are “water-courses,” the irrigation system known to the ancients, opening and shutting sluices directed the flow of the waters. Thus the Lord governs the king's heart as He directs the affairs of men. The Lord pondereth the hearts Proverbs 21:2). The same truth is stated in Proverbs 16:2; self-justification suits the natural man but the Lord testeth all hearts. How well it is to remember in all our conduct, that truth, so comforting to the believer, expr

PROVERBS 21:1. WATERCOURSES: not the natural brooks and wadys of Palestine, but the artificial irrigation canals of Egypt or Babylonia, which could be diverted in any direction at will. Proverbs 21:4. Apparently two unconnected lines belonging to different couplets. A connexion can be established only by forced exegesis. The Heb. is lit. lofty of look and arrogant of heart, the tillage of the wicked is sin. RV lamp for tillage depends on a different pointing, but does not improve the sense. Proverbs 21:6. Lit. The getting of treasures by a lying tongue (is) a driven breath, seekers of death. RV clearly inserts more than the text warrants to make sense of...

THE LORD. Hebrew. _Jehovah._ App-4. THE RIVERS OF WATER. Hebrew. _palgey mayim_. the divisions of water [in. garden], from _palag,_ to divide (Genesis 10:25). The name given to the small channels which divide up an Eastern (walled) garden for purposes of irrigation. See note on "rivers", Psalms 1:3. There is an Ellipsis in the second clause, and the verb must be supplied thus: The king's heart [is] in the hand of Jehovah, As the _palgey mayim_ [are in the hand of the gardener]. See App-74. HE TURNETH, &C. i.e. Jehovah directeth [the king's heart] whithersoever He will [as the gardener directeth the water with his foot] (Deuteronomy 11:10), not needing or deigning to use

_rivers_ Lit. STREAMS, or CHANNELS OF WATER _is_ THE HEART OF A KING IN THE HAND OF JEHOVAH. The comparison is drawn from artificial irrigation. The irrigator has complete control over the water supply. He cuts his channels and directs his streams whithersoever and in whatever measure he pleases. Comp. Psalms 1:3....

THE KING'S HEART IS IN THE HAND OF THE LORD— The author of the _Observations_ informs us, that in Judea their watering canals are artificially divided into several small streams, which render the country exceedingly fruitful. To these canals, and the fertility produced by them, says he, I imagine Solomon refers in this verse, _The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord; as the rivers of water,_ or _as watering canals; he turneth it whithersoever he will._ Commentators suppose, that this marks out the power of the great Lord of lords over the hearts of princes. It does so, undoubtedly; but, though they have given us the thought in general, I do not remember to have met with any who have given us the energy of it, which seems to be this: "Which way soever the heart of the king turneth, it conveys riches, just as a watering-canal doth plenty; and let it be remembered, that the Lord turns i...