Commentary - Proverbs 21:28

Bird's-eye view

This proverb sets up a sharp and telling contrast, not simply between a liar and an honest man, but between two foundational postures toward reality itself. On the one hand, you have the false witness, a man who generates his "truth" from within himself, from his own malice, greed, or fear. The verdict on him is stark: he will perish. His words, being untethered from reality, are ultimately unsustainable and will lead to his complete ruin. On the other hand, you have the man who listens. His strength is not in his own creative speaking, but in his faithful hearing. Because he is a good receiver of the truth, he becomes a reliable transmitter of it. His testimony, therefore, has permanence. It will stand up to scrutiny and will endure through time, precisely because it is not his own. This proverb is a commentary on the Ninth Commandment, showing that our relationship to the truth determines our destiny; we either perish with our lies or endure with the truth we have humbly received.

At its root, this is a contest between two kinds of speech. The first is autonomous, self-generated speech, which is the native tongue of fallen man. The second is dependent, received speech, which is the language of the man of faith. The liar is trying to create the world with his words, while the listener is content to report on the world God has already created and defined. The outcome is fixed: the fabricator and his fabrications are temporary, while the faithful reporter and his report are permanent.

Outline

Context In Proverbs

Proverbs consistently places a high premium on the use of the tongue. The power of life and death is in our words (Prov 18:21). The book repeatedly contrasts the speech of the wise with the speech of the fool. The fool is hasty with his words (Prov 29:20), his mouth is a snare (Prov 18:7), and he pours out foolishness (Prov 15:2). The wise, in contrast, speak words that are like apples of gold in settings of silver (Prov 25:11), bringing healing and life. This particular proverb, 21:28, fits squarely within this theme by focusing on the specific, high-stakes context of bearing witness. It connects right speaking directly to right hearing, a crucial linkage. It also reinforces the overarching reality in Proverbs that wisdom (truth, faithfulness, hearing God) leads to life and endurance, while folly (falsehood, rebellion, self-reliance) leads to destruction and perishing.

Key Issues

The Perishable Lie and the Permanent Truth

We live in a world that is drowning in words. Because we are made in the image of a speaking God, our words have genuine power. They can build up and they can tear down. But because we are fallen, our default setting is to use this power corruptly. The Ninth Commandment, "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor," is not merely a prohibition against perjury in a courtroom. It is a fundamental law for all human communication. To bear false witness is to lie about the state of affairs in God's world, and in so doing, to attack God's character, for He is the God of truth. It is also a direct assault on our neighbor, whose reputation, property, and even life may depend on the truth being told.

This proverb gets underneath the command and shows us the inherent nature of the two paths. A lie is, by its nature, a parasite. It cannot exist on its own but must feed on a pre-existing truth which it distorts. Because it has no life in itself, it is destined to perish. Truth, on the other hand, is not something we invent. It is something we receive, something we hear. The man who aligns himself with reality as God has established it finds that his words take on the character of that reality: solid, dependable, and enduring.

Verse by Verse Commentary

28a A false witness will perish,

The sentence is absolute. The Hebrew word for perish, abad, means to be destroyed, to be ruined, to come to nothing. This is not simply about a liar eventually being found out and embarrassed. This is about total personal disintegration. Why such a severe consequence? Because a false witness is a man at war with reality. He is attempting to substitute his own spoken word for God's created and revealed world. He is playing God, and God will not be mocked. A lie requires constant maintenance. It must be propped up by other lies, and the whole rickety structure is under constant threat of collapse. The perishing of the false witness can happen in several ways. He may perish judicially, suffering the very penalty he sought to inflict on another (Deut 19:18-19). He may perish socially, as his reputation is destroyed and he is no longer trusted by anyone. And ultimately, unless he repents, he will perish eternally, for all liars will have their part in the lake of fire (Rev 21:8). The father of lies is the devil, and those who make a practice of falsehood show themselves to be his children, destined to share in his ruin.

28b But the man who listens will speak forever.

Here is the glorious antithesis. Notice the contrast is not between a "false witness" and a "true witness." It is between a "false witness" and "the man who listens." This is a profound insight. The foundation of true testimony is not a clever tongue or a confident demeanor, but a humble and attentive ear. Before we can speak truth, we must first be receivers of truth. The man who listens, who hears (`shama`), is the man who pays attention to the facts, who submits to the evidence, who hearkens to the instruction of the wise, and above all, who attends to the Word of God. His speech is not an invention but a report. Because he has first been a faithful hearer, he can then be a faithful speaker.

What does it mean that he "will speak forever"? Some translations render it "will speak unchallenged" or "will speak constantly." The idea is one of permanence and endurance. His testimony stands. It can withstand cross-examination because it is anchored in something outside of himself. It has the resilience of reality. While the liar's story changes and unravels, the listener's account remains consistent and firm. On an eternal level, the one who listens to the voice of the Son (John 5:24) passes from death to life. His testimony to the grace of God is the great truth he has heard, and it is a testimony he will give for all eternity. The words of the liar evaporate, but the testimony of the redeemed listener echoes in the courts of heaven forever.

Application

The central application for us is to examine the foundation of our own speech. Are we men and women who listen, or are we primarily fabricators? In our conversations, our social media posts, our interactions at work and at home, is our first impulse to hear what is true, or is it to craft a narrative that serves our own interests? The temptation to be a false witness is subtle and pervasive. It is the exaggeration that makes our story better, the carefully omitted detail that changes the entire picture, the slander passed off as a prayer request, the flattery designed to manipulate.

This proverb drives us to cultivate the discipline of listening. We must be quick to hear and slow to speak (James 1:19). This means listening to the people we are talking to, listening to the facts of a situation before we render a verdict, and above all, steeping our minds in the Word of God so that His truth shapes our every utterance. We must pray to be men and women whose "yes" is "yes" and whose "no" is "no."

Ultimately, this verse points us to Christ. He is the Amen, the faithful and true witness (Rev 3:14). He is the one who listened perfectly to His Father, speaking only what the Father gave Him to speak. We, on the other hand, are all by nature false witnesses. Our lives have testified falsely about God's goodness and our own righteousness. But the gospel is the good news that the True Witness died for the false witnesses. Through faith in Him, our perishable testimony is nailed to His cross, and we are given a new and permanent testimony to speak, a testimony that we have heard from Him: that He is Lord, and that He saves sinners. Our task now is to listen to Him, and to speak of Him forever.