Quick answer
Wreck your own household and there will be nothing left to hand on. The inheritance is described as wind.
Read both lines
"Inherit the wind" is one of the book's best phrases, and its force is in the collision of the two words. Inheritance is the most solid thing an ancient family had, and wind is what you get instead when the household has been undermined from inside. The second line follows the trajectory to its end: a man who cannot manage his own affairs eventually works for someone who can. Neither line describes a punishment being imposed. Both describe a competence running out.
Related: Proverbs 15:27 · Proverbs 14:1 · Ecclesiastes 5:16
New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. Full copyright information. Scripture provided by API.Bible.
Go Deeper
If this verse has been used to put weight on you that it was never carrying, ask about it directly.