Proverbs 13:12

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10 By pride comes nothing but ^astrife,
But with the well-advised is wisdom.

11 ^aWealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished,
But he who gathers by labor will increase.

12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But ^awhen the desire comes, it is a tree of life.

13 He who ^adespises the word will be destroyed,
But he who fears the commandment will be rewarded.

14 ^aThe law of the wise is a fountain of life,
To turn one away from ^bthe snares of death.

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

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Proverbs 13:12

Hope deferred maketh the heart sick - When once a good is discovered, want of it felt, strong desire for the possession excited, and the promise of attainment made on grounds unsuspected, so that the reality of the thing and the certainity of the promise are manifest, hope posts forward to realize the blessing. Delay in the gratification pains the mind; the increase of the delay prostrates and sickens the heart; and if delay sickens the heart, ultimate disappointment kills it. But when the thing desired, hoped for, and expected comes, it is a tree of life, ets chaiyim , "the tree of lives;" it comforts and invigorates both body and soul. To the tree of lives, in the midst of the gardens of paradise, how frequent are the allusions in the writings of Solomon, and in other parts of the Holy Scriptures! What deep, and perhaps yet unknown, mysteries were in this tree!

**Other Adam Clarke entries containing Proverbs 13:12:**

Proverbs 13:19

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Proverbs 13:13 >>

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