to be safe (in mind · verb, pual imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
earth
בָּאָ֣רֶץba.'A.retz
H776
the earth (at large · preposition with the article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
wicked
רָשָׁ֥עra.Sha'
H7563
morally wrong · noun, common masculine singular absolute
sinner
וְחוֹטֵֽאve.cho.Te'
H2398
properly · conjunction + verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
1 Peter 4:17-18 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not…
Jeremiah 25:29 For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for…
1 Corinthians 11:30-32 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
2 Samuel 12:9-12 Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and ha…
Proverbs 13:21 Evil pursueth sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repayed.
2 Samuel 7:14-15 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the chi…
1 Kings 13:24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also s…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 11:31–end
This, I think, is the only one of Solomon's proverbs that has that note of attention prefixed to it, Behold! which intimates that it contains not only an evident truth, which may be beheld, but an eminent truth, which must be considered. 1. Some understand both parts of a recompence in displeasure: The righteous, if they do amiss, shall be punished for their offences in this world; much more shall wicked people be punished for theirs, which are committed, not through infirmity, but with a high hand. If judgment begin at the house of God, what will become of the ungodly? Pe1 4:17, Pe1 4:18; Luk 23:31. 2. I rather understand it of a recompence of reward to the righteous and punishment to sinne…
Behold--Thus calling attention to the illustrations (compare Pro 11:23), the sentiment of which is confirmed even in time, not excluding future rewards and punishments.
Next: Proverbs Chapter 12
John Gill on Proverbs 11:31
Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth,.... Which Aben Ezra understands of the recompence of their good works. There is a reward for the righteous, and which they have now in keeping, though not "for" keeping, the commandments of God; they have the promise of this life, as well as of that which is to come, and which is made good to them; they have every good thing now which is proper and convenient for them; and they shall be recompensed in the new earth, in which only righteous persons will dwell. But it seems better, with Jarchi, to interpret it of the recompence of their sins and transgressions; that is, of their chastisements and afflictions, with which they are chastise…
The following proverbs are especially directed, as connected with this כן, against the contradiction of the external appearance and of the masked internal nature.
20 An abomination to Jahve are the crookedly dishonest of heart,
And they who are of honest walk are his delight.
The Church Fathers
Conversion from both impiety and iniquity is commanded. For both provoke the wrath of God against one, because God detests and condemns both, as Paul says, "The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against every impiety and human wickedness." And Solomon says, as the blessed Peter had also inserted among his own words, "And if the righteous one is barely saved, when will the godless and the sinner appear?"
"If the righteous receives [retribution] on earth, how much more the wicked and sinner?" This is to say clearly, "If the frailty of mortal life is so great that not even the righteous who are to be crowned in heaven pass through this life without tribulations on account of the countless slips of [our] flawed nature, how much more do those who are cut off from heavenly grace await the certain outcome of their everlasting damnation?
"If the righteous are saved with difficulty, where will the impious and sinners appear?" Consider that life is long, a lasting residence with many dangers. And he [Solomon] does not say these words about those who lived righteously. But if by any chance he said something about them, he would speak in the best of terms. Indeed if God has bestowed something upon us, what we have done with it will be examined, and who will be justified except the one who is purer than the sun? By "righteous" he [Solomon] means the one who organizes his life in righteousness. The one who hates God is "impious." The "sinner" is the one who acts wickedly.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Proverbs, Book of — A collection of moral and philosophical maxims of a wide range of subjects presented in a poetic form. This book sets forth the “philosophy of practical life. It is the sign to us that the Bible does…
Judgment · ACCORDING TO OPPORTUNITY AND WORKS — ACCORDING TO OPPORTUNITY AND WORKS
Punishment Of The Wicked, The · Often commences in this life — Often commences in this life
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
Tyndale Open Study Notes on Proverbs 11:31
The implied answer is that wicked sinners will be punished on earth.
Rashi on Proverbs 11:31
Behold! The righteous man will be requited on earth Why should the wicked man feel confident when he prospers? Does he not see that the righteous man is requited the payment of the sins he has committed while he is still on earth, during his lifetime?
surely a wicked man and a sinner Surely the wicked will ultimately be requited, either during his lifetime or after his death.
