Proverbs 19:16 - Exposition

Keepeth his own soul. Obedience to God's commandments preserves a man's natural and spiritual life (comp. Proverbs 13:13 ; Proverbs 16:17 ). So we read in Ecclesiastes 8:5 , "Whoso keepeth the commandment ( mitsvah, as here) shall feel no evil thing." He that despiseth his ways shall die. He that cares nothing what he does, whether his life pleases God or not, shall perish. ἀπολεῖται , Septuagint; mortificabitur, Vulgate. The result is understood differently. The Khetib reads, יוּמַת ( iumath ) , "shall be punished with death" according to the penalties enacted in the Mosaic Law. The Keri reads, יָמוּת ( iamuth ) , "shall die," as in Proverbs 15:10 ; and this seems more in agreement with what we find elsewhere in the book, as in Proverbs 10:21 ; Proverbs 23:13 . This insensate carelessness leads to ruin, whether its punishment be undertaken by outraged law. or whether it be left to the Divine retribution.