Pro 21:19 | KingComments | STEP | Like , this proverb is a “better ... than” proverb about living with a contentious woman. From a corner on a roof where in the husband had a better place than in the common home, the man has moved to “a desert land”. There it is better for him to dwell “than with a contentious and vexing woman”. There he is far out of earshot of this woman. On a corner of a roof he could still hear her, but there he was also able to socialize. In a desert land, he lives all alone and virtually without social contacts. It is sparsely populated and very quiet, but also dangerous because of the wild animals. Nevertheless, that living area and environment are preferable to being constantly confronted with “domestic strife”. The woman is not only contentious, always out to quarrel, but also “vexing”, a woman who annoys the man and gives him grief. Marriage with such a woman is a constant source of misery rather than joy. Both verses dealing with living with a contentious wife are a warning to the unmarried man. They do not imply advice for the married man to live elsewhere if his wife displays characteristics of contentiousness and vexation. They underscore the importance of being careful when choosing a marriage partner. It is also a warning to the married man to make every effort to ensure that not strife and vexation but serving love characterize the marriage. That is primarily his responsibility.

‏ Proverbs 21:19

Better … Than

Like Pro 21:9, this proverb is a “better ... than” proverb about living with a contentious woman. From a corner on a roof where in Pro 21:9 the husband had a better place than in the common home, the man has moved to “a desert land”. There it is better for him to dwell “than with a contentious and vexing woman”. There he is far out of earshot of this woman.

On a corner of a roof he could still hear her, but there he was also able to socialize. In a desert land, he lives all alone and virtually without social contacts. It is sparsely populated and very quiet, but also dangerous because of the wild animals. Nevertheless, that living area and environment are preferable to being constantly confronted with “domestic strife”. The woman is not only contentious, always out to quarrel, but also “vexing”, a woman who annoys the man and gives him grief. Marriage with such a woman is a constant source of misery rather than joy.

Both verses dealing with living with a contentious wife are a warning to the unmarried man. They do not imply advice for the married man to live elsewhere if his wife displays characteristics of contentiousness and vexation. They underscore the importance of being careful when choosing a marriage partner. It is also a warning to the married man to make every effort to ensure that not strife and vexation but serving love characterize the marriage. That is primarily his responsibility.