It is an abomination for kings to commit wicked acts, For a throne is established on righteousness. Proverbs 16:12
God's Word has a great deal to say about the role and actions of those who are kings, presidents, and prime ministers of nations. Whereas the current crowd, who don't know the constitution or the words of our founders, say that there is a wall of separation between church and state - our constitution speaks of no such wall. But even if it did - the ultimate document by which we know true wisdom is not the United States Constitution - but the Word of God, the Bible. So let us take a few moments to see what the Scriptures have to say to us about the role of kings and presidents - and whether character (both private and public) matters. We read here that it is an abomination for kings to commit wicked acts. That should pretty much seal the issue for us on the character of those who lead us. The idea here is that of an individual act that is contrary to the justice and righteousness of God and His Word. Anything outside of what He says - is wrong - and wicked. That may not fit the post-modern mindset that everything is OK as long as it is OK with you - but then again the Word of God is not from the post-modern view - it is from the Ancient of Days. We are not our own moral free agents. God calls all of us to a standard in His Word - and that standard is not lowered for those in politics. If anything, it is raised because those who lead us are more in the spotlight of the nation. When they commit wickedness it not only affects them, it affects the entire nation as it weakens our moral backbone. It is a horrific thing when leaders cast aside not just biblical morals - but all moral restraint - as they live as if they are above the Laws of God. This will eventually lead them to live as if they are above the laws of the land as well. Their actions will lead to ruin for the nation. Eventually we will experience "trickle-down" morals as the example set by leaders is followed by the people they lead. We read here that a throne is established on righteousness. A throne is weakened when its moral authority is weakened. If a man cannot be trusted on lesser issues - how can he be trusted on the major ones? Thus we learn that sin and wickedness cost us not just in family matters - not just on economic ones - but they weaken the very foundation upon which our republic rests. Our forefathers told us in their very own written documents that our nation is based on the 10 commandments. Washington told us that you cannot separate good political leadership from godly, moral principles. Every nation and every people establish a basic public morality. That basic knowledge and agreement as to the public morality is one of the chief pillars upon which a stable society rests. When that morality crumbles and immorality begins to be accepted - and even trumpeted as the new morality of the day - the foundations of that nation or people will begin to crumble. It should be no shock to us that the basic structures of our society are being destroyed all around us. In recent years we've watched as moral crisis after moral crisis has shaken the pillars of our society. Immorality rocked our trust in the government as we watched the Watergate scandal erupt and a president resign. We watched as another president had an affair with an intern in his office, committing adultery against his wife. Then we watched in horror as all was swept under the rug in the guise of private license and the lie that "everyone does it." Our economic structures collapsed under the weight of companies and banks that engaged in ponsi-schemes to make themselves rich at the expense of those who trusted them with their money. Our children's financial futures are daily being mortgaged on the backs of politicians who are spending their future wealth in a bid to be re-elected again and again. The new morality is basically the same old immorality God warned against throughout both the Old and New Testaments. But - before we lay all this at the feet of politicians, we need to remember the barrage of moral failures and scandals that have rocked the church at the same time. We need to realize that the church sold her birthright for a bowl of red soup. We decided that bigger budgets, buildings, and growth figures were the new signs of godliness. Forget that the fruit of the Spirit still remains to be the 9-fold fruit we read of in Galatians 5:22-23. The new fruit is power and the ability to name and claim whatever you want in the name of Jesus. How did we get here? It began as we decided that we no longer needed to be godly men who followed a biblical moral code and way of living. As we fell asleep and were not shocked that those who were leading us completely lacked honesty and integrity - these very sins began eating away at the very foundation pillars of our republic. The only way back is to see such things restored. We need men of God to return to the kind of leadership in our homes, in our churches, and eventually in our government. It is only then that we will once again be horrified at the abomination of leaders who commit wickedness - and return to a way of doing politics that laughs to scorn those who would dare to lead without strong moral principles upon which they walk daily and make their decisions. One may read this and think that the one writing it is living in a daydream. Maybe the days of our nation being one nation under God are over? The thought of a true, godly leader who honors God and any sort of biblical morality is a distant memory. But the truth is that we are the ones who got ourselves into this mess. We did not abandon ourselves to Christ - preach the gospel - and radically affect our nation by the salvation of those who were coming to Christ. We did not live as the salt that preserves a society and the light that illumines it to its sin and departure from God. The answer, dear saints, does not ultimately rest with what happens this November in an election - it has and always will rest with what we choose to do daily in our lives . Are we seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness - or - are we simply adjusting ourselves to the current moral and spiritual malaise that culture offers each morning as we awaken to a new day? It is one thing to know that wickedness in our leaders is an abomination - it is quite another to become content with only cursing the present darkness rather than shining a light that can transform it. Oh that we would daily respond to our true King, the Lord Jesus Christ, Who has never committed wickedness and Whose throne is established on justice and righteousness. For the Christian who daily seeks His kingdom and righteousness - the fall elections do not ultimately determine his or her king - for God has said long ago, "But I have installed My King upon Zion, My holy mountain." (Psalm 2:6) That king is Jesus Christ - follow Him!
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"By me kings reign, And rulers decree justice. "By me princes rule, and nobles, All who judge rightly. Proverbs 8:15-16
Wisdom is the thing that rulers need more than anything else. That is what we get when we read today's proverb of the day. In the midst of speaking of all the things that wisdom does for us - God includes that it is by wisdom that kings reign and rulers do what is right. What is interesting about this passage is that it assumes that a king or ruler will do what is right. That is not exactly an assumption that we share today. Any authority that a king, ruler, prince, or noble has is what is called "derived" authority. They do not get their authority inherently, but receive it from God when they become a leader. This is something that is so important for us to remember. In years gone by kings would speak of how they rule by divine right. This was because the Scriptures teach us that there is no authority except from God - and all the authorities in this world are where they are only because God allows it. Unfortunately, the kings who said this said it because they wanted an absolute authority by which they could command their subjects to be submissive to them. They could have cared less about their people - what was important to them was their power. God, though, sees things differently. It is by God's wisdom that kings and rulers should decide issues of justice. It it by God's wisdom that princes and nobles decree justice. Thus, in the end, the authority that God gives to a ruler is to be used to ensure that justice and righteousness reign in that society. In the end, God makes it clear that all the authority that these rulers have - is to be used to decree justice - and to judge rightly. what a different way of thinking - and yet it is not foreign to those of us who study the Scriptures. All throughout the Bible we see that ever since the fall of man the world has been turned upside down. Mankind thinks all things are about man - but the reality is that all things are about God and His glory. When we turn from that - and have rulers who do not decree justice and do not live for God's righteousness - we have a mess. God desires to have all human leaders filled with His wisdom and understanding. He desires for them to make just and righteous decisions. That means He desires for them to rule according to His righteousness - and to establish His law in the hearts of men. He calls them to "judge rightly," and when He says this, He means that they judge according to His ways and according to His Word. Wisdom tells us that when a king rules as he ought to, he does so according to wisdom. When a ruler or a prince does what he should in governmental affairs - he is doing it God's way. I realize that if we were to say that today - many would have a stroke and would cry out that this is contrary to the separation of church and state that is in the constitution. But then again that would just reveal their ignorance first, because no such separation exists in the actual constitution, and it would reveal their spiritual ignorance second, because THE ONE THING that we must have as a nation is God's favor. A ruler who wants to rule by his own thinking and his own wisdom is not going to have the favor of God on his life - and by that fact - we won't have the favor of God upon our nation. That is why for me - one thing I look for in a leader is whether he is willing to speak positively about the Bible - and whether he looks to it for wisdom in leading our city, state, or nation. Luxury is not fitting for a fool; Much less for a slave to rule over princes. Proverbs 19:10
There are certain people who do not need to serve as a ruler over a people. We might think that it is a good thing for the "everyman" to rise to power, but if the "everyman" that does this is a fool - it will end badly. The fool who begins to enjoy luxury - will wind up being very difficult to live with in the end. He will view his luxury as what is due him - rather than a blessing and a priviledge that has been given to him either by others or through hard work and application of himself to a task. That is why such luxury is not fitting for him. It isn't right for him to have it - because he does not appreciate it. It does more harm to him than good in the end because he will begin to think he deserves it - everyone owes him what is necessary to live a life of luxury. I'm going to take the risk of offending some at this point in this proverb. This passage illustrates why a welfare state is harmful to a populace. I know there are cries made at this statement that we do not provide a life of luxury to those on welfare. True - their standard of living is not that of kings - but we are fundamentally harming them by not having them work or do something to get it. In order for us to develop properly in a moral sense, we need to work - we need to DO something. When we don't, we do not appreciate what is given to us. Then we begin building a mindset that people owe us something - and that will become toxic in the end. In time we will think they owe us more and more - and gratefulness for what we do have will be all but extinct in our thinking. When that way of thinking grows in our minds - we are quickly descending in wisdom and in any kind of spiritual growth. Just as luxury is not fitting for a fool - so also is it for a slave to rule over princes. We in America are not used to the whole idea of nobility. We fought an entire war to make sure that we did not have a king who could rule over us without the consent of the governed. But, there is a wisdom to having the wiser in society rule over us. To have a person rule who does not know wisdom - who does not know the matters of state - who does not understand the necessity for good economic policy - and most of all justice - is to invite serious problems in that land. It is also a historical reality that when a slave or a commoner comes into power - the problem is too often that they want revenge for the wrongs they suffered - rather than to govern all the people with wisdom and integrity. I do not support the ascendency of a king in our land - but I do fully support not electing fools to office. It is wisdom to elect the wise to rule over us. When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, And when the wicked perish, there is joyful shouting. Proverbs 11:10
What kind of leader do people love having rule over them? According to this proverb they love a righteous leader. They rejoice when it goes well with this kind of man - but when the wicked rule, it is a completely different matter. A godly leader is a blessing to a nation. If you have one, rejoice - because the reality is that due to sin and the fall - there are very few of them that come in the course of human history. When they do exist - the whole city rejoices over them. They are just because God's sense of justice rules in their hearts. They are not prone to abuse their power, because they know that ultimately they are ruled by heaven. They are wise and they bless a city by using the wisdom of God Himself to govern their actions and their choices. In the end, their godly ways are a blessing to the entire area - and makes way for God's prosperity to reign in a town. The Lord loves to bless His Ones who lead - and who hold positions of authority. He loves it because they desire to honor Him in how they give leadership to others. The wicked are a curse upon a city. When you look at the history of Israel and Judah - you see this time and time again. Kings rose up whose hearts were given to themselves and to their own desires. As they rule they abuse the people. Their desire is for their power - and they can use it ruthlessly to put out any kind of complaint or lack of support among the people. Many godless kings and leaders have brought destruction and devastation to their land because of wickedness and sin. In the end, when these wicked leaders die, the people break forth into rejoicing and praise. They shout for joy in knowing that their land will be no longer ruled by a fool. All throughout history horrible leaders have come and have gone - and every time they died or were killed - the people of their land wanted to dance in the streets. They did so because a wicked man would not longer rule over them. They would have the opportunity for a righteous and godly man to rise up and bring blessing to them by a much more godly rule. Here is a little tidbit of wisdom since at the time I write this - we are only a month away from a major election. Choose your leaders according to wisdom - God's wisdom. If you do not - you might choose someone who is a tyrant. Voting for those who will lead you is a precious and awesome responsibility. We need to choose righteous men who will lead us in God's way - and who will see the need for God to do a work in our land. May He gives us men of wisdom and character. May He gives us men who will stand up and be counted for our Lord Jesus Christ. This is what God desires for us to enjoy - a life ruled by men whose greatest desire is to please God. Oh, that we would look closely at each candidate and base our decision on a close examination of his character, choices, and whether or not he is a godly man. If we begin doing this - we will find great reason for rejoicing - because God will bless us once again with citizen legislators whose desire is for the longterm best that God can give our nation. A king who sits on the throne of justice disperses all evil with his eyes. Proverbs 20:8
What place does a ruler or leader have in making sure that the country he rules is not overrun by evil? In recent years we have had fools who have tried to tell us that leaders don't need to have character. We should only be concerned with their political decisions. To expect actual moral character from them is too much. Their personal lives are their own business. If they decide to commit adultery on their wives , t hat is their own business. Nothing could be further from the truth! The king, ruler, president, or any other person who has a high position of power and influence, needs to be a man of godliness and godly character. Here we read that he needs to be a man who sits "on the throne of justice." The word for justice here is very instructive. It means judgment, condemnation, cause or plea - and it refers to the legal realm. The king needs to sit on a throne that grasps and understands justice. He needs to make judgments so that justice will prevail in the land. Some say this refers simply to the legal seat he takes in a courtroom. They say it has little to do with what kind of judgment he has - rather that he just make decisions while seated there. But if that were the case - why does the second half of this proverb speak of how this action leads to evil being dispersed by this man's eyes? That contradicts itself. The king - at least the ones that God commended - were godly men who sat on a throne that stood for the justice of God. This was an interesting view of justice because it held both to a strong standard of what is right and wrong, but it also exhibited mercy to those who sought it. God's call for righteousness was absolute - and it was and is based on absolute truth. This has not changed - and will not change. But God also states that mercy triumphs over judgment. Those who see God as being too judgmental should consider seriously how God dealt with the ultimate judgment - by having His perfect justice satisfied by judging His own Son, Who paid the ultimate price for sin. God told the king to write out a copy of the Law for himself so that he would not forget to judge righteously. The king was instructed by his mother in Proverbs 31 that it is not for him to drink and get drunk because his judgment would be clouded - and he would not stand up for the rights of the poor and innocent. God warns His kings that they should not err in judgment - but that their judgment should be righteous judgment. To have a godly leader who understands and who seeks to administer righteous, biblically-based judgment is a blessing that unfortunately is rare in our day Honestly. it is rare in history. When the king sits on a throne of justice - he will "disperse all evil with his eyes." The word used here for disperse is wonderful. It is the Hebrew word for sifting. It spoke of how one would sift wheat by separating the good wheat from the chaff. As one would sift like this - they would keep what is good, while breaking off the worthless chaff so that it could be discarded. The king was to have discernment and see what God considers good and wise - as well as what God identifies as useless and worthless. In the end, the sifting allows him to get rid of evil. This, the proverb tells us, he does with his eyes. When a king has evil pass before his eyes and he does not judge it or deal with it - wickedness will abound in his nation. But when a king makes it clear that he disapproves evil, there will be great blessing in the nation. Too often a bribe closes the eyes of the king. An official who is important and who has influence will cause him to blind his own eyes - or cast them down instead of staring wickedness in the face and condemning it. The godly king knows that if he does not deal with ALL EVIL alike - disapproving it and looking with disdain upon it - evil will grow and bring great problems to his kingdom. One of the things eventually destroys nations is a lack of these kind of leaders in the government. We have these odd things called "ethics panels" in our government. They were originally put into place to bring a proper disapproval to those who act outside godly, law-abiding ethics. But now they are used to wink at fellow party-members who disregard the law - and to crucify those of opposite parties who don't. There is no righteous standard any longer - just a flaunting of the law - and a vigilante status toward destroying opponents who make their mistakes while out of power. Both parties do it - and it is an affront to the laws of our land. What we truly need are men and women of integrity who will once again sit in the seat of justice in our land . We need those who will look evil in the eye and make sure that evil will not find a place in our nation. The first ones they should look in the eye every day is the one looking back at them in the mirror. They need to see justice and righteousness prevail in their own hearts and lives. Then they will be able to disperse and sift out evil in our land. May two things happen so this will be the case. First may we demand such things of our own hearts and minds. Then second, may we demand such leaders once again from both parties. Whatever we do we must do quickly - before justice in our land is just an afterthought. A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding Than a hundred blows into a fool. Proverbs 17:10
God gave me a wonderful man who has a heart after Him to be my mentor. His name is John Dale Rector. John Dale spent 3 years of his life teaching and training me in the things of the Lord. He taught by precept and by example. He also had his hands full as I was a proverbial bull in a china shop with my zeal that lacked wisdom. Thus John Dale had to spend more than his fair share of time rebuking me for my excesses. Thus he taught me a very important verse of Scripture and had me memorize it early in my walk with the Lord. The verse says, "Let a righteous man strike me, it is a kindness." That particular verse has a lot to do with what today's proverb has to teach us. I am an advocate for both verbal and corporal punishment. There is a time for rendering blows to fools. One of those times in during childhood where the responsibility of the parent is to train up a child in the way he should go. It is a time where through loving discipline (which includes spanking) a parent seeks to teach a child what he should and should not do. The parent is not trying to dominate the child or to crush his spirit. The parent IS seeking to help a child grasp what is acceptable and unacceptable to God and to society. But the end of that corporal punishment is to train a child to be a young man or woman who knows two things. First he or she knows how to accept rebuke from the Spirit of God. This happens as he or she is walking through life and about to make un ungodly or unwise decision. The Spirit of God then rises up within to remind of Scripture, to offer correction and guidance with the Word. Some times the Spirit just activates our conscience and we are smitten with a bad sense or feeling - or we just know that what we are about to do, or have done, is wrong. What we desire to do with our children (and in training disciples in the church) is to have them be responsive to that rebuke - to that warning from within. The second way that a parent and discipler wants to train up their charge is to have them be responsive to people who come to them with a word of rebuke. It would be wonderful if everyone who offered such rebuke were being constructive with it - but we all know that is a perfect world and not the real one. The truth is that even non-constructive criticism can be beneficial to us. Therefore we want to be open to all rebuke. The wise thing is to receive the rebuke and be thankful for it. Then take it to the Lord and ask Him to confirm what is in agreement with what He is doing through the Word of God. Then take what God affirms and use it to grow into all the fullness of Jesus Christ in our character and actions. This is how to allow rebuke to go deep within us - rather than just bounce off of us as we reject it outright. The Scripture tells us that in order for this to happen, we have to be one who has "understanding." This is the ability to discern and perceive truth from error - right from wrong - God from the flesh and the world - the work of the Holy Spirit from the work of the devil. We discern an pay attention to what God saying to us. Because of this we truly understand the will of God - and grow wiser because we have learned to see things from His perspective. The proverb tells us that this ability to receive rebuke and understanding from goes deeper into us than a hundred blows into a fool. An interesting thing is that God instructed not to give corporal punishment beyond 39 blows at any time. There is the penalty of imprisonment and even the death penalty that is applied by the state to crimes against society. But God knows that a hundred blows as opposed to 39 would not bring wisdom and understanding into a fool. There is a point where no amount of corporal punishment is effective. The fool rejects all of it - verbal rebuke as well as any kind of physical punishment. Thus we know that all that is left to us is intercessory prayer that God will ultimately break the fool and open his heart to begin to understand. When I read this proverb, I am thankful to those whom God uses to offer rebuke into my life. Let me be perfectly honest that often it is hard to receive the rebuke - and yes, it hurts. But those who wound us can be healers. Remember that when a surgeon does his work he has to injure us before he can take out the cancer that will kill us. We consider the incision made by his knife a good thing - because it is ultimately working healing into our lives. Remember that the next time you receive some verbal surgery through a brother or sister in Christ who loves you. Those words will bring blessing into your life if you receive them and allow God to work through them. If it is hard to remember that - just remember this instead. I'd rather have some verbal surgery - than a hundred blows on my back! POSTSCRIPT: Recently, individuals have quoted articles from this section and stated that we teach child abuse at Calvary Chapel Jonesboro. To this I feel the need to respond. First, biblically, we are told that if we have a problem with our brother to go to our brother - not the internet - and confront our brother. To date, these individuals have yet to contact me to discuss these things. That should say volumes in itself. Second, we do not teach child abuse at our fellowship. This blog is an endeavor to teach what is in the Bible for the edification and upbuilding of God's people. Anyone who has been to our fellowship knows that in our classrooms we administer NO physical discipline. We correct with words and with "time outs" and eventually with a report to parents. From our nursery throughout every age group our people are instructed NEVER to administer physical discipline. We believe this right alone belongs to a parent. Even then we teach the following about any application of physical discipline. Discipline is about the heart of a child. Physical or corporal punishment is ONLY to be administered in a spirit of love for the child. Teaching and loving verbal correction is key - as is prayer for the child's eventual salvation in Jesus Christ. Any physical punishment administered due to anger or rage is out of line and wrong. The parent is to discipline the child with appropriate discipline - not abuse. In the end the child should be taught - and in every circumstance hugged, loved, and prayed with after any physical punishment to assure them of our love. The idea of a "beating" is completely out of step with what the Scriptures are teaching. Instead the idea of loving discipline is intended. A divine decision is in the lips of the king; His mouth should not err in judgment. Proverbs 16:10
Here is a verse that was greatly misused by kings and rulers throughout the middle or dark ages. They would slightly misquote this passage and state that they had what is called, "the divine right of kings." This they then used to rule over people in a way that was totally contrary to what Scripture stated. Let's look at this issue - but also look at a balanced view of rulers and how God uses them in a nation to accomplish His purposes. The misquote here was due to how the King James version rendered this verse. The KJV reads, "A divine sentence is in the lips of the king; his mouth transgresseth not in judgment." This was taken as meaning that the king cannot make an error in judgment - and that since a divine decision was in his mouth - he could not make mistakes. This bad doctrinal view was then used to state that no matter how wicked or ungodly a king was - his was a divine rite from God. The king was not to be questioned in any decision he made therefore, because it was God's decision when he said it. One can see how this bad exigesis led to horrific abuses by leaders. One can also see why so much resentment brewed toward the Roman Catholic Church because they supported this view. Part of their reasoning behind this was because if the king's decisions were divine, then that gave them the right to say that the church then would have to approve every king - and could depose them if excommunicated. Oh the power that was enjoyed unscripturally by so many who purported to be God's messenger. It was not until the reformation that this began to be corrected - and the divine rite of kings was reigned in by the proper understanding of this verse - as well as the whole counsel of the Word of God. In order to understand this verse, we first need to grasp that Solomon is writing to kings here. The Word of God clearly states that no authority exists except that which is from God. Yet, this does not guarantee that all rulers will be godly or Christian. If that were the case we would have to wonder why God couldn't even get that to happen in Israel and Judah. God is not interested in an earthly kingdom (Jesus said as much in the gospels) but in saving a people for Himself - and for His coming kingdom in heaven. Thus the natural flow of sin and rebellion will even affect the social institutions of this world and the governments that rule over the affairs of men. When Israel rejected God from being king over them - and cried out for a king, "like all the other nations," God warned them what this would bring. He warned them of the excesses and the danger of having one "man" over them. As a man, this king was just as affected by sin as anyone else. This is why God also instructed the king to write out a copy of the Law by hand - so that he would be reminded to obey the Lord and do according to everything that was written in God's Law. We read about all this in 1 Samuel 8 and Deuteronomy 17. The reason this is important for us to understand is that God knew they would ask for a king - and therefore he gave command before it ever happened how the king was to live - what was allowed and what was forbidden. When you read through Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles, you see clearly where the kings veered off God's course and subsequently turned evil. At this point the king was still in authority - but his actions were clearly outside of God's will. Thus for someone to quote this proverb and say that a king could never err in judgment or in what he says is patently outside the scope of Scripture. What is actually said here is that a divine decision is in the lips of the king and that he SHOULD NOT ERR in judgment. Solomon knew that great power came with the title of king. That power had tremendous consequences for individuals - but much more than that - for the future of an entire nation. He may have remembered the case of the two harlots who came before him. They argued over which of their babies had died, and which was alive. God gave Solomon great wisdom as he commanded that the living baby should be cut in half and a half given to each women. One agreed, while the other who was the real mother, had compassion on her child and said to give it to the other woman rather than killing it. Solomon, filled with the wisdom of God, knew that the compassion of the one woman showed that it was her child. He then gave the command to give it to her - for it was her child. Everyone was amazed at this decision and knew God's wisdom was in him. In many ways this strengthened his power and authority among the people. They knew God was with him - and that he ruled with great caution to make the right decisions. But Solomon also knew of his sins - how his heart was drawn away by foreign women. God commanded that His people not do this - because these women would turn them away from God to their false gods. Solomon ignored this command and did his own thing. He erred in judgment. The end of this was the eventual destruction of Israel. The more they turned from God the greater the judgment fell upon the nation. Truly as king he should not have erred in judgment. Every leader on this earth should have this verse etched into his psyche. We have those today who say that there should be a separation of church and state. I agree with them if they mean that Congress should not establish a national denomination - or a national church run according to the dictates of the government. But what they have done is enforce the establishment clause of the first ammendment, but have completely ignored the fact that there is also a protection clause. They are never to prohibit the free exercise of religion - and our founders meant the Christian religion in particular. They said that a man was not fit to run for office if he was not a Christian. Our founders said that this nation was predicated on our ability to obey the 10 commandments. They knew that if God's Law reigned in our hearts (realizing it needed to rein in our hearts) that a plethora of human laws would not be necessary. We've rejected such things - and as a result - our leaders have rejected God's ways and Word. It really should be no great shock to us that the nation has and is declining. The worst aspect of this is that our president and Congress no longer look to God's Word for leadership. They think that they know what to do from their own thoughts and ways. This can lead no where except to disaster in the end. Our President and Congress need to recapture what is said in this proverb. They have great power - and God tells His people to honor the power of their governing officials. But that power is not absolute. They are under the same Word of God as we are. They should not err in judgment as they rule over the people. When they do, they need to realize that their power is NOT absolute. God, who said we should obey them, is also the One who said that He raises up kings and overthrows them as well. In his divine providence He has seen nations rise up - and others destroyed and humbled. In the end we all will answer to Him. For some He may not do it as quickly as they want, but the fact remains that He ultimately rules over all the affairs of men. If only our current rulers would recognize this - our nation would turn around to a place of blessing under their leadership. But as long as they think they cannot err in their own judgment - we are probably not going anywhere good in our future as a nation. Do not go out hastily to argue your case; Otherwise, what will you do in the end, When your neighbor humiliates you? Proverbs 25:8
Proverbs provides an amazing array of good practical advice for living. It also has passages that would help in any profession a person chooses. But there are certain proverbs that fit hand in glove with a specific profession. Here is one that definitely fits with the legal profession well. Since the word "argue" here has as one of its primary meanings, "to argue in court" or "to file a lawsuit" we can see that this has great wisdom to offer to someone who is a lawyer - or someone who is about to hire one. Proverbs 25:8-9 is a great reminder to anyone who wants to argue a case with another - which of course fits perfectly with the legal profession. We are warned to not do this "hastily." When someone chooses to argue a case for themselves or against another - they need to make sure that they proceed with wisdom and caution. To go out and hastily argue a case is to do so without due diligence. There a dangers in doing this that are inherent in reacting quickly to things. First, we have far too much emotion in our immediate reactions to argue without undue prejudice in our thinking. We are blinded to seeing wisely - which is the ability to look at multiple angles of the issue. When you are blind to something - you are very succeptible to being "blind-sided" when arguing your case. A wise man takes the time to look at every angle and consider every argument before beginning to argue a case. Our legal system allows for argument and cross-examination. This is inherently wise because it allows for two sides of an argument to be explored. It is designed to expose hasty decisions and ill thought out arguments so that wisdom and prudence prevail in the end. We would be wise to "cross-examine" ourselves when we have a knee jerk reaction that drives us to argue something too quickly. If we did this - we would avoid embarassment when someone who is thinking more rationally dismantles our open and shut arguments - and reveal them to be way more "shut" than open. This is what Proverbs warns us when it tells us to be careful about hasty arguments. We are warned about being humiliated by our neighbor in the end when we do this. Here we find our Hebrew friend "acharith" again. This word speaks of the end - but does so from the standpoint of being able to think about what the end of our actions will be. Here we see that that the end of hastily argued points is humliation by our opponents. If we saw this before we started arguing in haste, we would have stopped ourselves long enough to properly think though what we were going to say. I am for anything that will stave off moments of high embarassment. That has meant seeing my natural tendency to jump to conclusions as more of a jump into a pit of poisoned spikes. To put it another way - it is very unwise to jump to conclusions. It is wiser to look before you leap upon someone with your supposedly lock-tight arguments. The wise man takes the time to consider first whether pre-prejudice has affected his thinking. The wise man takes the time to decide whether silence would be more effective than blurting out what he thinks. The wise man takes the time to consider the end of the matter - before starting it. This, dear saints, can rescue us from a plethora of painfully embarassing moments. Oh, and by the way, in court - it can mean the difference between a case that is won - and one that is humiliatingly lost. He who sows iniquity will reap vanity, And the rod of his fury will perish. Proverbs 22:8
The other day something truly amazing happened. I had planted a batch of tomato seeds, and after a couple of months I went out and harvested a whole bucket full of orages from the vines that grew there. Now if you are someone who is even the least bit familiar with agriculture, you know that this last statement was false. If I planted tomato seeds into the ground - the only thing I will harvest from them is tomatos. There is an unbending principle at work here - whatever you sow is what you will reap. That principle is what is at the core of what is taught in today's proverb. Here we have a man who is sowing iniquity. The word used here is a pretty tough word. It means unrighteousness, injustice, or wrong. This doesn't sound too bad until you begin to look a little deeper into the word and its usage. It is used to describe violent injustice and outright wickedness. Keil and Delitasch state that this word means, "unsympthizing tyranny, cruel misconduct toward a neighbor." It describes the actions of one who wants the person who feels his wrong to feel the fury of his anger. The second half of this proverb makes that clear. The iniquity that he is sowing is manifest in the "rod of his fury," which is felt by those unfortunate enough to be his victims. These kind of actions are usually those of a despotic king - or a person who is misusing their authority. When one sows like this - they are going to reap vanity. The word for vanity here is the Hebrew word "aven" which means emptiness or nothingness. It can also mean sorrow, trouble, evil, or mischief. The idea here is that this despotic individual thinks he is going to reap the power of his authority - when in reality he is going to reap nothingness. The thought behind this nothingness is that of utter destruction. We've watched as this has happened right before our eyes. Saddam Hussein thought he was building an empire - but what he received in the end was a rude awaking in a hole - and the end of a hangman's noose. The Word of God warns in Galatians 6:7 that God will not be mocked - whatever a man sows he shall also reap. If he sows to the flesh, as he is here, he will from the flesh reap corruption. No one can outrun the hand of God and the principles upon which the Lord has founded this world. The wicked man thinks that the rod of his fury will make others bow down and obey him. He rules only with fear - and trusts that fear alone will bring him the results that he desires. But the proverb tells us that this man - after all his furious tiraids - will perish. All his fury will do for him is ensure that his place in history is set as a terrible ruler or leader. His memory will not be blessed - men will curse it and use it as a byword. They will remember him not as a wise man - but as a fool. There lies the man who thought he could rule the world through wickedness and through fear. No one fears him now - and what awaits him is the utter vanity for which he worked. Having spent his life living for himself and for his own arrogant pursuits - he will die facing the fury of the One before Whom he will stand and give an account for his actions. Having rejected His love and His offer of mercy and grace through Jesus Christ, unfortunately for him, the fury of God will never cease. A bribe is a charm in the sight of its owner; Wherever he turns, he prospers.
Proverbs 17:8 Bribes are interesting things in the world around us. I remember going on a trip to Mexico and experiencing the power of a bribe. I watched as our group was slowed to a halt at the border. It was very apparent that we were going to be held up for a long amount of time unless a bribe was paid. Fortunately for us (because the border guards were talking hours before they would let us through - if even allowing us at all) the people who took us knew of these shady dealings and had money actually budgeted for bribes if they were necessary. Once the money was paid, the wheels were greased and we were taken through customs (where we knew we had every passport and visa in order) and were on our way to minister to those for whom we had come to minister. A bribe is like a charm in the sight of its owner. That charm often takes a situation where you are stalled or opposed and turns it around. Suddenly you are moved from a stalled status - to a faorable one. You are afforded favor where once there was no favor. Now realize that Solomon is not saying that this is something wonderful - for elsewhere in the Scriptures we read where those who will receive bribes are those who pervert justice in doing so. But as with some of the Proverbs - this book was written to speak of the basic behavior of men - and the blessing of knowing this behaior in advance. There is something that needs to be said about bribes though. We read where Solomon speaks of how a bribe is a charm in the sight of its owner. The "briber" here is thinking that his bribe will get him whatever he wants. There are two instances where this will not be the case. In fact, in these two cases a bribe will be seen as offensive and degrading. The first place is with a just and righteous man. To him a bribe says two things. First it says that the men with whom he is dealing is not an honorable man. He is not willing to let his character and works stand on their own. He feels the need to help things along with money. The second case is at the throne of God. There is no payment that is enough to bribe God. He is holy and cannot be bribed or misled by some payment. Bribes can work like charms and prosper a man when used on the ungodly. But remember that just as the man thinks he can charm a cobra and make it do what he wants - so also that situation - that cobra can turn on him. If a man will receive a bribe from you - he will receive a larger one from someone else. It is better to allow your character to speak and be the reason you prosper. To do otherwise may gain you prosperity on earth - but will never bless you in the sight of God. |
Proverb a DayEach day, we'll take a look at a verse from the chapter of Proverbs for the day. Our hope is to gain wisdom each day - and from that wisdom - to have understanding to make godly decisions in the throes of everyday life. Thank you for visiting our website! Everything on this site is offered for free. If, however, you would like to make a donation to help pay for its continued presence on the internet, you can do that by clicking here. The only thing we ask is that you give first to the local church you attend. Thank you!
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