Mishlei 18:9 - Destruction Through Laxity

משלי יח:ט

גַּם מִתְרַפֶּה בִמְלַאכְתּוֹ אָח הוּא לְבַעַל מַשְׁחִית:

Mishlei 18:9
Also one who is lax in his work is a brother to the master destroyer.
Major Questions / Problems

1. Who is this "master destroyer"?

2. What does it mean to be his "brother"?

3. Why focus on "one who is lax in his work"? 

4. What does the word "also" add? 

5. General Mishlei question: What is the subject of the pasuk? 

Artwork: Structural Collapse, by Sam Burley

Four Sentence Summary of the Main Idea

If “master destroyer” is someone who actively brings about destruction, then a “brother” to the master destroyer is someone who causes the same level of destruction in a different manner – in this case, through passivity. The audience of this pasuk is the person whose laxity causes the quality of his work to suffer, thereby resulting in a type of destructiveness. Such an individual tends to rationalize his laxity by defining himself as “a worker,” which allows him to reassure himself and other people, saying, “See? I’m working!” Perhaps this is why the pasuk doesn't specify the consequences of this person’s behavior, but instead, calls him out on his rationalization, as if to say, “You may wish to define yourself as a worker, but in truth, you are a destroyer.”