John Gill Commentary Proverbs 23:17

"Let not thy heart envy sinners; But [be thou] in the fear of Jehovah all the day long:" — Proverbs 23:17 (ASV)

Let not your heart envy sinners Their present prosperity and happiness, the pleasure, profit, and honour, they seem to enjoy; all of which is but a shadow, fading and temporary; and yet good men are apt to envy it in their hearts, if they do not express it with their lips; and are ready to murmur and think it hard that they should be in straitened circumstances while the wicked are in flourishing ones; and inwardly fret and are uneasy at it, which they should not, (Psalms 37:1Psalms 37:7) (73:2) ; or do not "emulate" or "imitate" ^F26 them, or do as they do, thinking thereby to enjoy the same prosperity and happiness; choose not their ways, nor desire to be with them, to have their company, or be ranked among them, (Proverbs 3:31) (24:1) ;

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but [be you] in the fear of the Lord all the day long; let the fear of God be always before your eyes and in your heart; be continually in the exercise of fear, which is attended with faith and trust in the Lord; with love and affection to him, and joy and delight in him; be constantly employed in the duties of religion, private and public, which the fear of God includes; and this will be a preservative from envying, murmuring, and fretting at the outward happiness of wicked men; and from joining with them in their evil ways. Aben Ezra, and who is followed by some others, render it, "but [emulate or imitate] the men that fear the Lord all the day long" ^F1 ; be followers of them, and do as they do; let their constant piety and devotion stir up a holy emulation in you to copy after them and exceed them; but the former sense is best.

FOOTNOTES:

• F26: (anqy la) "ne aemuletur", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Junius et Tremellius, Piscator, Mercerus, Cocceius, Gejerus, Michaelis.
• F1: "Aemulare virum timentem, Jehovam", Vatablus.