"An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips, but the righteous will escape from trouble"
A more literal translation of this proverb would read like: In the transgression of the lips is an evil snare. But the righteous will come out of trouble.
The idea here is not an absolute promise about what evil men will do but how lying seems to be a charm that allows you to escape from all kinds of trouble by deceiving people, but this powerful charm of deception ensnares people in a web of deceit that eventually collapses on them. Lies are like a path around the difficult truth or painful situation, but this path is guarded by a long rope with a noose on the end which you step into and it seems like nothing happens. You have escaped the difficult situation, the punishment, the pain; but sometime later that long rope will jerk you back and up and you will be swinging by the lie you told a while back.
Solomon says that the righteous person escapes or goes beyond or misses (Hebrew word yatsa) the trouble that was on that convenient path of lying and deception. The righteous person knows that while that path is tempting and offers temporary relief from troubles and difficulties, it also creates great difficulties, pain, and snares down the road. The righteous person actually weighs out the various options in each situation and decides against the options labeled: half-truth, misrepresentation, lies, deception. It is difficult at times to stay within the smaller boundaries of righteousness, but it pays rich dividends in two directions: the pain, snares, and difficulties you miss and the blessings, relationships, and opportunities that are open to you.
Until tomorrow,
Gil Stieglitz