Proverbs 24:17-18 says: “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the Lord see it, and it displease Him, and He turn away His wrath from him.” Please explain the last sentence.

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Commentators generally see this in 2 ways: Do not gloat over the downfall and calamity of your enemy, lest God punish this wrong spirit by relieving the sufferer. To a vindictive person, no severer blow could be given than to see an enemy recover God’s favour and rise from his fall. We dishonour God when we rejoice at the misfortune of our enemies, for this is not the character He desires for His children (Job 31:29; Prov. 17:5; Matt. 5:44; Rom. 12:20-21) Some read it as follows “… lest the Lord see it, and it displease Him, and He turn away His wrath from him and direct it to you.” Thus this could be a warning that such an attitude could cause the vindictive person to suffer the same evil he wished on his enemy.