to know (properly · verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
life
נֶ֣פֶשׁNe.fesh
H5315
properly · noun, common feminine singular construct
beast
בְּהֶמְתּ֑וֹbe.hem.To
H929
properly · noun, common feminine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
mercies
וְֽרַחֲמֵ֥יve.ra.cha.Mei
H7356
compassion (in the plural) · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural construct
wicked
רְ֝שָׁעִ֗יםre.sha.'Im
H7563
morally wrong · noun, common masculine plural absolute
cruel
אַכְזָרִֽי'akh.za.Ri
H394
terrible · adjective, 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
Deuteronomy 25:4 Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn.
Genesis 33:13-14 And he said unto him, My lord knoweth that the children are tender, and the flocks and herds with young are with me: and if men should overd…
Numbers 22:28-32 And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times?
James 2:13-16 For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.
1 John 3:17 But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love…
Genesis 37:26-28 And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
Judges 1:7 And Adoni-bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I h…
1 Samuel 11:2 And Nahash the Ammonite answered them, On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and lay…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 12:10
See here, 1. To how great a degree a good man will be merciful; he has not only a compassion for the human nature under its greatest abasements, but he regards even the life of his beast, not only because it is his servant, but because it is God's creature, and in conformity to Providence, which preserves man and beast. The beasts that are under our care must be provided for, must have convenient food and rest, must in no case be abused or tyrannised over. Balaam was checked for beating his ass. The law took care for oxen. Those therefore are unrighteous men that are not just to the brute-creatures; those that are furious and barbarous to them evidence, and confirm in themselves, a habit of…
regardeth--literally, "knoweth" (Psa 1:6).
mercies . . . cruel--as acts of compassion ungraciously rendered to the needy. The righteous more regards a beast than the wicked a man.
John Gill on Proverbs 12:10
A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast,.... Or "knoweth" it (q); knows the worth of it and values it, and takes care of it, and is concerned for the preservation of it; he provides sufficient food for it, and gives it; he does not overwork it, but allows it proper rest from labour; and, if in any disorder, will make use of all suitable means to heal it; see an instance of the care of Jacob, that righteous man, of his cattle, Genesis 33:14; and, on the other hand, see an instance of a wicked man's cruelty to his beast in Balaam, for which he was reproved, Numbers 22:28; by various laws and rules which God has given, it is his will that men should be merciful to their beasts, Deuteron…
10 The righteous knows how his cattle feel,
And the compassion of the godless is cruel.
The explanation: the righteous taketh care for the life of his beast (Fl.), fails, for 10a is to be taken with Exo 23:9; נפשׁ signifies also the state of one's soul, the frame of mind, the state of feeling; but ידע has, as in the related proverb, Pro 27:23, the meaning of careful cognizance or investigation, in conformity with which one acts. If the Tor includes in the law of the Sabbath (Exo 20:10; Exo 23:12) useful beasts and cattle, which are here especially meant, and secures to them the reward of their labour (Deu 25:4); if it forbids the mutilation, and generally the giving of unnecessary pain, to b…
The Church Fathers
The righteous knows the souls of his animals. That is, he pities and sympathizes with the condition and weakness of his neighbors entrusted to him.
But the compassion of the wicked is cruel. Who not only do not sympathize with those under them, but also, according to what the Lord says: Beat the male and female servants, saying, My master is delayed in coming (Luke XII).
"The righteous has pity upon the soul of his animals." It is an exercise of human charity when someone, by means of his animals, becomes accustomed to show mercy upon his fellow human beings. Indeed he who has pity upon animals tends to have much more pity upon his brothers.… Do the righteous have pity upon the souls of their animals? Absolutely. Certainly it is necessary to convey benevolence toward them, so that there may be a greater exercise [of benevolence] toward fellow human beings. Indeed with good reason God ordered that we carry hurt animals and take back those that stray, and not to bind the mouth of an ox. He absolutely wants us to preserve the health of animals: in the first place for our sake, second, in order that they may provide us with their menial service. At the same time it is an exercise of benevolence and care. Indeed the one who has pity upon strangers has much more pity upon those who are familiar to him. And the one who has pity upon his servants has much more pity for his brothers. But you may say: an animal provides you with a profitable service, but with what does a brother provide you? He is helpful to you, I say, much more from the viewpoint of God. You can see that when we offer care such as we do for our animals we do not consider this demeaning. For, in doing so we are not only serving them but also ourselves.
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
B · Domestic: Not to be cruelly used — Domestic: Not to be cruelly used
Malice · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Mercy · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
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).
