16 “Be not righteous over much; neither make thyself over wise: why shouldest thou destroy thyself?”
Neither “make thyself”, in this verse the author is not talking about sincere God produced righteousness or wisdom; this is a self appointed righteousness and wisdom, something the individual perceives of themselves. This would be a bit Pharisaic; over righteous, over wise. Let us define these two conditions: - Over righteous - we can define this as someone "On their high horse", someone very condemning. One who must have everything, even the smallest things exactly right; they will tend to criticize someone who is not perfect. This person cannot overlook certain imperfections or flaws and make allowances for things out of someone’s control. They must take a stand for everything. Usually, people separate from this type of person because they are very difficult to be around.
- Over wise - This is your typical "know it all"; in every situation they feel compelled to portray themselves as an expert. In actuality it reveals certain inferiority; they are insecure and therefore require others to have a high opinion of them.
Solomon is actually giving good advice here because a balanced believer has the ability to cope with situations that are less than ideal without being upset and they embrace in humility the knowledge that others might know more than them. God wants us to be people who can handle the less than ideal situations we find ourselves in without being overwhelmed, also, He wants us to be humble and realize there is always someone who knows more than we do.
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