Proverbs 16:32 Commentary and Bible Study

The surprise feature of this proverb comes from the common understanding of the relative difficulty of these two acts, but that common understanding is wrong. If one was to ask the average person which is harder: to besiege and capture a city which is holding out and refusing to surrender, or to master and rule one’s own spirit, the general opinion would be that the former is much harder. But the conquering of a city is a feat accomplished many times in the history of the world and is achieve by mere human force. For a person to rule over one’s own spirit so that he has a humble estimation of himself, and learns to control his own anger and to master his jealousy, so that he is able to love his enemies, and to put himself last, to resist temptation to laziness and pride and uncleanness, so that a person is master of his emotions and submits his every action to the word of God is not possible without the power of the Spirit at work within us. Why is it so hard for man to rule his own spirit? Because he often does not see how bad it is and underestimates the greatness of the task. He is not sufficient to cope with the deceitfulness of sin which takes him by surprise again and again. The human spirit is more unruly and more difficult to subdue than a hostile city and the people within it. The capture of a city only aims to bring the bodies of men and women into submission, but the attempt to rule one’s own spirit is an attempt to overcome sin – a far harder task.The conquest of our own spirits is also a task which accomplishes more benefit. From it comes true peace and joy for we know that the spirit is to last forever, while human cities and civilisations are passing away. The conquering of the spirit is the task which God has given to every believer to achieve, and is one of the major reasons why we are left in this world. It cannot be completed in a day or a year but it requires the whole of life to diligently and consistently make progress in it. The foundation of this victory is laid at the start and the moment we believe that Jesus Christ is Lord we strike the decisive blow against sin within, but the war against sin must be pursued to its final victory either at death or at the second coming. It is a task with more lasting results, for the city may rebel and need to be taken all over again, and the inhabitants do not love their conquerors. But the conquest of the spirit is something that aligns the whole soul in unity, and aligns mind, emotions and will for the kingdom of heaven. He who succeeds in conquering a city may fail completely to conquer his own spirit, showing which is the harder task to accomplish. Furthermore he knows this is the case, for although he takes on the great task of besieging a city and subduing it by force to his will, he does not dare to begin to try to subdue his pride or his lust, knowing that he has little prospect of success.