Commentary - Proverbs 11:26

Bird's-eye view

Proverbs 11:26 sets before us a sharp contrast between two kinds of men, distinguished by their actions in the marketplace. One man sees a shortage of grain and decides to hoard it, hoping to drive the price up. The other man, possessing the same grain, sells it to those in need. The community's reaction is just as sharp as the contrast between the men: the hoarder is cursed, while the seller is blessed. This proverb is a specific application of a much broader biblical principle concerning generosity and economics. It teaches that true wealth and blessing are found not in grasping, hoarding, and manipulating markets for personal gain, but in open-handed, timely, and faithful commerce. God has designed the world in such a way that the tight-fisted man ultimately impoverishes himself, not just socially but often financially, while the generous man, who serves his community through his business, receives a blessing from both God and the people.

This is not a condemnation of saving, or of market economics. Rather, it is a condemnation of a particular kind of wicked avarice that seeks to profit from the desperation of others. The man who withholds grain is engaging in what we would today call predatory price-gouging. He is not simply waiting for a better price; he is actively trying to create misery so that he might benefit from it. The proverb reveals that a man's heart attitude, his generosity or his greed, is made manifest in his commercial dealings. A righteous man sees his business as a way to serve his neighbor and glorify God, while the wicked man sees it only as a tool for personal enrichment, even at the expense of the community. The public curse and blessing are not arbitrary; they are the natural fruit of these two opposing approaches to life and commerce.

Outline

Context In Proverbs

This particular proverb sits within a section of Proverbs 11 that deals extensively with the consequences of righteousness and wickedness, particularly in the social and economic spheres. The immediate context is a series of proverbs that contrast the generous with the stingy. Verse 24 states, "There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, and there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want." Verse 25 follows this up: "The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered." Our verse, verse 26, provides a concrete, marketplace example of this very principle. The man who "scatters" his grain by selling it receives a blessing, while the one who "withholds" it receives a curse. This section as a whole teaches a kind of spiritual economics where generosity and faith, not miserly hoarding, are the true path to prosperity. It is counter-intuitive to the world, but it is the fundamental law of God's kingdom: you reap what you sow.

Key Issues

Commerce and Character

The Bible is a thoroughly earthy book. It does not teach a piety that floats three feet off the ground in a cloud of stained-glass light. Biblical righteousness gets its hands dirty, and it does so in the fields, in the home, and, as we see here, in the marketplace. This proverb is not an outlier; it is representative of how God expects our faith to be worked out in the nitty-gritty of our daily vocations. A man's character is not revealed when he is singing psalms in the assembly, but rather when he is setting prices in a time of famine.

It is crucial to note that the righteous man here is not giving the grain away. He is selling it. This proverb is not a call for communism or for the abolition of private property and commerce. It is a call for righteous commerce. A generous spirit can be manifested in many ways: by giving, by lending, and, as we see here, by selling. The transaction itself can be an act of righteousness. The man who sells his grain is meeting a need, serving his community, and making a living all at the same time. This is the ideal of Christian vocation. The sin is not in making a profit; the sin is in manipulating the market and exploiting your neighbor's need in order to make a killing. The heart of the issue is not the transaction, but the character of the man behind the transaction.

Verse by Verse Commentary

26a He who withholds grain, the people will curse him...

The scene is likely a time of scarcity, a drought or a siege, when grain is in high demand. One man has a surplus. He sees the anxiety in the faces of his neighbors, and his first thought is not of service, but of opportunity. He thinks, "If things are this bad now, they will be worse in a month. If I hold on to my grain, I can name my price later." He is not simply saving for his own family's needs, which would be prudent. He is withholding a necessary commodity from the market in order to artificially inflate its price. He is attempting to corner the market on bread. This is a form of economic warfare against his own community.

The response of the community is visceral and verbal: they will curse him. This is not just a few disgruntled customers muttering under their breath. A public curse in the ancient world was a serious affair. It was a formal pronouncement of judgment, calling on God and man to recognize this individual's wickedness. It was a corporate recognition that this man was a social pariah, a man whose greed had made him an enemy of the people. His reputation, a most valuable commodity, is destroyed. He may eventually get his high price, but he will have to live with the hatred and contempt of all his neighbors. This is a terrible trade.

26b ...But blessing will be on the head of him who sells it.

The contrast is stark. Another man has grain. He sees the same need, but his heart responds differently. He brings his grain to the market and sells it. He is not necessarily selling it at a loss. He is a merchant, not a charity, in this instance. But he is a righteous merchant. He makes his goods available at a fair price when they are needed most. He understands that his business is a stewardship from God and a service to his community. He is content with a reasonable profit and does not seek to extract every last shekel through extortion.

The result is that blessing will be on his head. Like the curse, this is a public and formal pronouncement. The people call down God's favor upon him. They praise his name in the city gate. His reputation is enhanced. He is known as a just and dependable man, a pillar of the community. This public blessing is itself a form of wealth, and in God's economy, it often leads to further material prosperity. People want to do business with a man they can trust. His open-handed selling, rooted in a generous heart, secures not only his profit but also his good name, which Proverbs tells us is to be chosen over great riches (Prov 22:1).

Application

We may not deal in literal grain, but the principle of this proverb applies to every form of commerce and stewardship. The temptation to withhold what is needed for personal advantage is a constant one. The landlord who refuses to do necessary repairs, the employer who suppresses wages, the businessman who creates artificial scarcity, the person with a needed skill who charges extortionate rates in a crisis, all are modern versions of the man who withholds grain.

The fundamental question this proverb forces us to ask is this: Do we view our resources, our businesses, and our skills as instruments of service or as weapons of exploitation? The world tells you to get all you can, to maximize profit at all costs, to treat your neighbor as a competitor or a consumer to be fleeced. The Bible tells you that your neighbor is the image of God, and that your economic life is one of the primary arenas where your love for God and neighbor is to be demonstrated.

A Christian in business should be the most honest and fair dealer in town. A Christian landlord should be the best landlord. A Christian employee should be the most diligent worker. This is not because we are trying to earn our salvation, but because we have already been saved by a staggering act of generosity. God did not withhold His only Son. Jesus did not withhold His life. The Father and the Son are the ultimate sellers of the grain, the bread of life, and they sold it to us "without money and without price" (Isa 55:1). Having received such a blessing, how can we turn and curse our neighbors with tight-fisted greed? Our generosity in the marketplace is to be a grateful echo of the generosity God has shown to us in the gospel.