Does Shlomo ha'Melech Advocate Bad Actions?

In his comments on 27:2 - "Let a stranger praise you", Dan asked, "Why would Shlomo ha'Melech advocate a seemingly negative quality?" This isn't unique to our pasuk, but occurs throughout Mishlei. Off the top of my head, I can think of three reasons for doing this.

Actions are Neither Good nor Bad

Whenever a student asks Rabbi Moskowitz, "Is it bad to lie?" he inevitably responds by asking: "Would it be bad if I came over and cut you up with a knife?" The unassuming student usually answers: "Of course it's bad!" to which Rabbi Moskowitz replies, "What if I'm a surgeon and you're on the operating table?" His point is that no action is inherently good or bad. Actions are only a means. It is the ends of actions which determine whether they are good or bad.

Chazal say: "איזהו חכם? הרואה את הנולד" - "Who is a chacham? One who sees the consequences [of his actions]" (Tamid 32a). The problem is that we aren't chachamim. Because we are resistant to seeing ourselves as part of a lawful universe, subject to the laws of nature like everything else, we are blind to the consequences of our actions. This blindness makes it difficult for us to act intelligently - to select the actions which serve as a means to the ends we seek, and to seek ends which are in line with what is good. Without the ability to plan intelligently, we cannot live the life of tzedek and chesed.

Now we can understand the place for a certain type of pasuk: a pasuk which shows the consequences of an action without labeling that action as good or bad. Almost all pesukim train the student of Mishlei in consequence-analysis, but these pesukim are particularly effective because they drive home the message that no action is inherently good or bad. Whenever I learn pesukim like this, I feel like I'm conducting an experiment: I'm not considering an action as a means to a practical goal, but I'm just seeing what happens as a result of a certain action. Pesukim like this, if learned properly, are often easier to approach in a more detached, objective way.

Lo Lishmah of Chochmah Empowerment

Mishlei is written for a variety of people at different developmental levels: the pesi, the naar, the chacham, and the navon (1:4-5), among others. The people at the lower end of the developmental spectrum, such as the pesi and the naar, are not interested in pursuing knowledge for the sake of pursuing knowledge, nor are they interested in developing into minds. What are they interested in? Health, wealth, power, success, and all of the other goods that the common man seeks. Likewise, these people are driven by "bad" emotions, such as greed, revenge, jealousy, anger, and the like.

Rather than try to uproot these desires - which would not only be unrealistic, but would turn these people off to chochmah - Shlomo ha'Melech works with them. He shows these individuals how chochmah can empower them to satisfy their desires. As Rabbi Moskowitz is always saying, "Mishlei is pro-selfishness - as long as it is intelligent selfishness, and not foolish selfishness."

Mishlei is filled with examples of Shlomo ha'Melech advocating the pursuit of material success. For example: "Praiseworthy is a person who has found wisdom . . . Length of days is at its right; at its left, wealth and honor" (3:13,16), "I am chochmah; I dwell in cleverness; I provide knowledge of designs . . . With me there is counsel and wisdom; I am understanding; with me is might. Through me, kings will reign and nobles will decree righteousness; through me officials will rule, and nobles, all who judge righteously . . . Wealth and honor are with me, great fortune and righteousness. My fruits are better than fine gold, even choice gold, and my produce is choicer than silver. I lead in the path of righteousness, amid the pathways of justice. I have what to bequeath to those who love me, and I shall fill their storehouses" (8:12-21). (Notice how he weaves in justice alongside material benefits.) There are many, many more examples throughout the book.

Sometimes, Shlomo ha'Melech will even advocate the "negative" lo lishmas. For example, the Torah certainly doesn't advocate pursuing the dream of being a billionaire like Donald Trump - yet, Mishlei says, "Have you seen a man with alacrity in his work? He will stand before melachim. He will not stand before [men of] darkness" (22:29). The Meiri explains the phrase "melachim" to refer to "rich people who aren't in need of anyone else." He says that the pasuk is telling you that if you work with alacrity, "you will become wealthy and will be counted among the richest men, and you will not be considered in the class of poor people." This is a perfect example of taking a lo lishmah motivation and encouraging it, as long as it is done with chochmah.

Occasionally, you'll even find a pasuk advocating something bad - not just a lo lishmah. For example, the Torah certainly doesn't approve of taking revenge on your enemy - yet, Mishlei says, "If your enemy is hungry, feed him bread; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will be scooping coals [to heap] upon his head, and Hashem will reward you" (25:21-22). The Metzudos explains: "By feeding him bread, you cause him pain - as if you scooped coals from the fire to heap upon his head - for he will feel extremely guilty for causing you harm when you do good for him, and even though this will be considered taking revenge, nevertheless, Hashem will grant you the reward of doing tzedakah." In other words, Mishlei recognizes that although we should work to undo the emotion of vengeance, we don't always succeed. Sometimes, we are overpowered by the need to take revenge. But when we are overwhelmed with vengeance, we should at least take revenge in a manner that is in line with chochmah and tzedakah.

Our pasuk can be understood in light of this. It is true that the highly developed individual will not seek the praises of his fellow men . . . but the pesi and the naar will, and it would be detrimental to their development to force them to give that up at this stage. That being the case, Shlomo ha'Melech sees this as another opportunity for chochmah-training: if they're going to be selfish, teach them how to be intelligently selfish; if they want praise, teach them to obtain praise in the best way possible. This will teach them that "chochmah works" (as Rabbi Moskowitz likes to say), and they will become more attached to the life of chochmah on their lo lishmah level.

(Parenthetically, the Rambam in Chelek acknowledges that seeking praise is part of a natural lo lishmah. First the child learns in order to receive candy, then clothing, then money:

And when he reaches a deeper level of understanding, and he no longer ascribes the same value to money, he will be motivated by something that is of even greater value. He will be told: Learn so that you will become a rabbi or a judge, and others will honor you. They will stand before you, endeavor to uphold your words and enhance your reputation, both in your lifetime and afterwards, like so and so, and so and so. And so he will study to reach this position; the ultimate in his mind will be that other people will honor him, elevate him and praise him.)

To Give Ormah to the Pesi

One of the most basic goals of Mishlei is "to give ormah to pesaim" (1:4). I'm not going to elaborate on this idea in this post, but I'll briefly explain how it answers your question.

The pesi operates based on superficial, immediate impressions. If something looks good, he believes it is good, and if something looks bad, he believes it is bad. Consequently, he will end up thinking about something good that it is bad and about something bad that it is good. (The Rambam describes this condition as a "disease of the soul" in Hilchos Deos 2:1.)

For this reason, Shlomo ha'Melech will often take something that appears to be good and show that it is really bad. Likewise, he will take something that appears to be bad and show that it is really good. Such pesukim usually focus on actions that look bad by a pleasure/pain standard, but sometimes - as is the case in our pasuk - they highlight actions that look bad according to an "ethical" standard.

Saadia Gaon happens to interpret our pasuk this way. I'll try to write this up soon, but in the meantime, ask yourself: "Why would a person think it is bad to receive praise, and what is the source of that mistake?"

Dan - this post might be a bit rambly, but I'm writing it fast and late, and this is an informal blog anyway. Just let me know if I didn't answer your question, or if you find problems with the answer.