Proverbs 20:9
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Who can say, I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?
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Can you answer this rhetorical question? The answer is negative: no man can make these two statements. It is a matter of literary style that an interrogative of positives creates a powerful negative conclusion. Man's heart by nature is corrupt, and his motives by nature are impure. Solomon used the power of the rhetorical negative to teach man's depravity.
The Bible, the inspired holy book of Christians, teaches that all men have perverse hearts and selfish motives. Adam, the father of humanity, ruined his descendants by rebelling against God (Rom 5:12-14). Since the Garden of Eden, all men by nature despise God and righteousness and love sin and evil (Ps 14:1-3; 51:5; 58:3; Rom 3:9-18; Titus 3:3).
Job used rhetorical questions to teach the same truth. "Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one" (Job 14:4). "What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a woman, that he should be righteous?" (Job 15:14). "How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?" (Job 25:4).
The human heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, beyond even your ability to comprehend (Jer 17:9)! Consider it well! And no man can overcome this internal curse that twists his thinking and perverts his motives (I John 1:8-10). Only by the creative power of Jesus Christ can men obtain a new heart of righteousness and holiness, capable of true wisdom (John 3:3; 5:25-29; Eph 2:10; 4:24; Phil 2:12-13).
The doctrine is clear - man is depraved, foolish, sinful, and unjust, and he cannot cure himself. But why is this proverb here without any apparent context (20:8-10)? It would fit better in Romans! Remember the purpose of Solomon's proverbs - to teach young men discretion and wisdom (1:1-4). There are two lessons - no man can be fully trusted to have innocent intentions, and we cannot foolishly presume that our own motives are pure.
Solomon made a similar use of the doctrine of human depravity in his book of philosophical writings. He wrote, "For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not" (Eccl 7:20). Again, it appears there is little or no context for the statement (Eccl 7:19-21). But if we look closer, we see that Solomon was warning against thoughts of self-righteousness and excessive harshness toward others (Eccl 7:16-22).
An essential prerequisite for wisdom is to know man's nature - it is incurably foolish and depraved. Therefore, holy cynicism is necessary to deal with human problems. Therefore, you must try your own opinions and thoughts by the fire of Scripture (Ps 119:128; Jer 23:29). As Paul wrote later, "Let God be true, but every man a liar" (Rom 3:4)!
Make no claims of self-righteousness (20:6). Let your walk prove your integrity (20:7). If a ruler corrects you, do not reject the rebuke foolishly (20:8). Examine even minor aspects of life (20:10). A child is known by his actions, not his words (20:11). And if you have the ability to see or hear truth with understanding, it is by the grace of God (20:12).
The only hope for you or any other person is the grace of God and resurrecting power of Jesus Christ to give you a new heart (Rom 8:7-8; I Cor 2:14-16; II Tim 2:24-26). There is no rehabilitation of the human heart; it must be recreated. Perfection cannot be achieved here; we must wait for heaven (Heb 12:23). Even the best of men and their most noble actions are tainted and spoiled by the remaining pollution in their members.
Therefore, the utmost humility about your condition is necessary to learn true wisdom. Neither you nor any other man can be fully trusted. You must beg God for mercy on your miserable state, and you must trust every word of God over any thought of yours (Ps 119:113). Since you cannot make your heart clean or be pure from sin, you must cast yourself on the grace of God for the next life and trust His infallible Word for this life.
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