From the early Church Fathers to now.
1 Jewish · 3 Reformed · 1 Catholic · 1 Lutheran
“The thoughts of the industrious always bring forth abundance: but every sluggard is always in want.”
“The plans of a diligent man Heb. חרוץ, an honest man who walks in truth and according to the established judgment. lead only to advantage They come to prosperity and profit. whereas every hasty one One who forces the time.”
“Here is, 1. The way to be rich. If we would live plentifully and comfortably in the world, we must be diligent in our business, and not shrink from the toil and trouble of it, but prosecute it closely, improving all advantages and opportunities for it, and doing what we do with all our might; yet we must not be hasty in it, nor hurry ourselves and others with it, but keep doing fair and softly, which, we say, goes far in a day. With diligence there must be contrivance. The thoughts of the diligent are as necessary as the hand of the diligent. Forecast is as good as work. Seest thou a man thus prudent and diligent? He will have enough to live on. 2. The way to be poor. Those that are hasty, that are rash and inconsiderate in their affairs, and will not take time to think, that are greedy of gain, by right or wrong, and make haste to be rich by unjust practices or unwise projects, are in the ready road to poverty. Their thoughts and contrivances, by which they hope to raise themselves, will ruin them.”
“The thoughts of the diligent tend only to plenteousness,.... A man that is thoughtful and studious, and wisely forms schemes in his mind, and diligently pursues them; the issue of it is, generally speaking, prosperity and plenty: such a man is usually thriving and flourishing; and this holds good in things spiritual, as well as in things temporal, Mat 25:29; but of everyone that is hasty only to want; that is in haste to be rich, and is resolved to be so, right or wrong, he comes at last to poverty and want: or he who is rash and precipitate in acting, who never thinks before he acts, but rashly engages in an affair; or, however, does not give himself time enough to think it over, but, as soon as ever it has entered his thoughts, he immediately attempts to put it in execution; a man so thoughtless and inconsiderate, so rash and hasty, brings himself and family to poverty; see Pro 20:21.”
“Sluggard. Hebrew, “hasty man,” as the slothful is ironically styled. He would see his desires accomplished without labouring; and will never stick to work. This levity is most injurious to his advancement.”
“The contrast is between steady industry and rashness (compare Pro 19:2).”
“5 The striving of the diligent is only to advantage. And hastening all [excessive haste] only to loss; or in other words, and agreeably to the Heb. construction: The thoughts of the industrious are (reach) only to gain, And every one who hastens - it (this his hastening) is only to loss. Vid., at Pro 17:21. At Pro 10:4, Luther translates "the hand of the diligent," here "the plans of an expert [endelichen]," i.e., of one actively striving (Pro 22:29, endelich = מהיר) to the end. The אץ, hastening overmuch, is contrasted with the diligent: Luther well: but he who is altogether too precipitant. Everywhere else in the Proverbs אץ has a closer definition with it, wherefore Hitzig reads אצר, which must mean: he who collects together; but אץ along with חרוץ is perfectly distinct. The thought is the same as our "eile mit Weile" [= festina lente], and Goethe's Wie das Gestirn ohne Hast, Aber ohne Rast Drehe sich jeder Um die eigne Last. "Like the stars, without haste but without rest, let every one carry about his own burden," viz., of his calling that lies upon him. The fundamental meaning of אוץ is to throng, to urge (Exo 5:13), here of impatient and inconsiderate rashness. While on the side of the diligent there is nothing but gain, such haste brings only loss; over-exertion does injury, and the work will want care, circumspection, and thoroughness. In the Book of Proverbs, the contrasts "gain" and "loss" frequently occur, Pro 11:24; Pro 14:23; Pro 22:16 : profit (the increase of capital by interest), opp. loss (of capital, or of part thereof), as commercial terms.”
The in-app commentary runs from the Fathers to the early-modern record, then stops — that's where the public-domain sources end, not where the reading does. For the modern reading, follow the sources directly.