Dr. Stieglitz
Jan 17, 20181 min
"He who returns evil for good, evil will not depart from his house"
returns
This is the Hebrew word shub which means to turn back, to return. When a person purposely takes advantage of the good will of others – calling it naiveté – it brings a high price. For God is watching.
evil
This is the Hebrew word raah which means evil, misery, distress, injury, adversity. God uses this word in two ways as a thought-pun in this verse. When a person cuts corners or cheats someone out of the good they deserve, that is what is called evil. It goes outside of God's boundary structure. It is what you would not want your neighbor to do to you – aka the Golden Rule. This kind of evil draws misery and difficulty and adversity.
good
This is the Hebrew word tobah which means good, good things, benefit, welfare, beneficial things. People will do good to you and you must not take advantage of their beneficence.
house
This is the word bayith which means a house, a place of abode. It seems obvious that Solomon is not so much talking about the actual physical domicile that the person resides in but instead their life. Where they are is where the misery and adversity, distress, and injury will come.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz
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