Mishlei 17:20 - Crooked Hearts and Reversed Speech

Mishlei 17:20 - Crooked Hearts and Reversed Speech

Author: Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss March 17, 2026 Duration: 1:24:10

Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!

Mishlei 17:20 - Crooked Hearts and Reversed Speech

עִקֶּשׁ לֵב לֹא יִמְצָא טוֹב וְנֶהְפָּךְ בִּלְשׁוֹנוֹ יִפּוֹל בְּרָעָה:

Length: 1 hour 23 minutes
Synopsis: This evening (3/16/26), in our Monday Night Mishlei shiur, we took up a pasuk that felt simultaneously generic and specific. We came up with good approaches, some complete and some on their way there, but then I hit a wall of exhaustion (due to a short, interrupted sleep the night before). We quickly had to deploy my own approach that I developed with my high school students earlier that day. Because my mind was zonked, I don't know if I got it out clearly. We did one more interpretation from the meforshim, then called it a night even without review. Still good Mishlei, even if it wasn't up to par. 
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מקורות:
משלי יז:כ
תרגום כתובים
הואיל משה
פירוש רס"ג
מצודת דוד
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This week's Torah content is sponsored by Seth Speiser, in honor of the yahrzeit of his father, Rabbi George Speiser (Rav Yosef ben Dovid). Rabbi Speiser was a kind and gentle soul as well as an intellectual and a scholar. He received smicha from Rav Hutner at Chaim Berlin. His love for teaching and making puns was only outweighed by his love of family.
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Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss hosts The Mishlei Podcast, a series of classes dedicated to a deep and practical exploration of Sefer Mishlei, known in English as the Book of Proverbs. This isn't a theoretical lecture series; instead, the rabbi grounds the ancient wisdom in a framework articulated by the sage Saadia Gaon, treating the text as a timeless manual for making smarter choices. The central idea is that Mishlei offers a path toward increasing lasting fulfillment and reducing future regret, making its lessons immediately relevant to daily decisions and relationships. Each episode, or shiur, usually concentrates on unpacking a single verse, examining its language, context, and layers of meaning. Listeners will find a thoughtful, step-by-step analysis that connects the biblical text to contemporary challenges in work, character development, and personal growth. The pace is deliberate, allowing space for reflection on how these principles apply off the page. For anyone interested in Jewish thought, self-improvement, or simply gaining a more thoughtful approach to life's complexities, this podcast provides a structured yet accessible guide. You'll hear a teacher's passion for the material without pretense, focusing on clarity and real-world application. Tune in for a quiet, intellectual engagement with one of the world's most enduring collections of wisdom literature.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 692

The Mishlei Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Mishlei 19:1 - Sometimes You're Better Off Being Poor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:48
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!טוֹב רָשׁ הוֹלֵךְ בְּתֻמּוֹ, מֵעִקֵּשׁ שְׂפָתָיו וְהוּא כְסִיל:In our morning Mishlei shiur (12/7/20 at YBT) we began Chapter 19 ... not that the chapter numbers…
Mishlei 18:24 - A Wealth of [Imaginary] Friends [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:49
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!אִישׁ רֵעִים לְהִתְרֹעֵעַ וְיֵשׁ אֹהֵב דָּבֵק מֵאָח:In our morning Mishlei shiur (12/3/20 at YBT) we learned Mishlei 18:24 - the last pasuk in our perek! This one…
Mishlei 18:23 - Speak Softly and Carry a Mishleic Script [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:50
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!תַּחֲנוּנִים יְדַבֶּר רָשׁ וְעָשִׁיר יַעֲנֶה עַזּוֹת:In our morning Mishlei shiur (12/2/20 at YBT) we learned Mishlei 18:23. This is a great example of a pasuk wh…
Mishlei 26:24-25 - Don't Trust a Foe [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:32
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!:בִּשְׂפָתָו יִנָּכֵר שׂוֹנֵא וּבְקִרְבּוֹ יָשִׁית מִרְמָה:כִּי יְחַנֵּן קוֹלוֹ אַל תַּאֲמֶן בּוֹ כִּי שֶׁבַע תּוֹעֵבוֹת בְּלִבּוֹIn our morning Mishlei shiur (12…
Mishlei 10:7 - The Legacies of the Righteous and the Wicked [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:46
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!זֵכֶר צַדִּיק לִבְרָכָה, וְשֵׁם רְשָׁעִים יִרְקָב:In our Monday Night Mishlei shiur (11/30/20 with Lomdeha, hosted at YBT) we learned the pasuk which is the sourc…
Mishlei 18:22 - Finding a[n Intelligent] Wife = Good + Favor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:07
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!מָצָא אִשָּׁה מָצָא טוֹב וַיָּפֶק רָצוֹן מֵי״י:In our morning Mishlei shiur (11/30/20 at YBT) we learned Mishlei 18:22, which is either about marriage per se, or…
Mishlei 18:19 - The Perils of Fraternal Quarrelling (Part 2) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:57
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!אָח נִפְשָׁע מִקִּרְיַת עֹז, [וּמִדְיָנִים] (ומדונים) כִּבְרִיחַ אַרְמוֹן:In our morning Mishlei shiur (11/25/20 at YBT) we revisited Mishlei 18:19, which we lear…
Mishlei 18:20-21 - The Mouth-Fruit Diet [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:30
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!מִפְּרִי פִי אִישׁ תִּשְׂבַּע בִּטְנוֹ, תְּבוּאַת שְׂפָתָיו יִשְׂבָּע:מָוֶת וְחַיִּים בְּיַד לָשׁוֹן, וְאֹהֲבֶיהָ יֹאכַל פִּרְיָהּ:In our morning Mishlei shiur (1…
Mishlei 10:6 - The Tzadik as a Brachah Magnet [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:28:13
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!בְּרָכוֹת לְרֹאשׁ צַדִּיק וּפִי רְשָׁעִים יְכַסֶּה חָמָס:In our Monday Night Mishlei shiur (11/23/20 with Lomdeha, hosted at YBT) we began by struggling through t…
The Mashal of the Wick [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:49
Have any questions, insights, or feedback? Send me a text!Just a quick thought about Mishlei's methodology with (what I hope is) a practical outcome!Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/rabbischneeweiss----------------------…