Good or Wrath . . . The Choice is up to You. Proverbs 11:23

The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath.   
​Proverbs 11:23

What do you want?  That is a pretty general question - but it is the one that is addressed in today's proverb.  The thing is that we are looking at what people want from the perspective of God, not just what people or the "market" wants.

From God's standpoint we are oing to watch Him put boh the righteous and the wicked man into the balances, weigh them and their choices, and state what each deserves. First we see that God places the righteous into the scales.  He says that the righteous man's desires are only good.  This coincides with what Jesus says in the Beattitudes.  In Matthew chapter 5, we read the following, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."  God not only is pleased with those who hunger and thirst for what He says is right - He promises wonderful levels of satisfaction for those who do.  There is also another statement made in the Psalms that when we delight ourselves in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our heart.  It is so important to know that when we are living for righteousness and pursuing what is right - God cuts us loose to enjoy as much as we want.  That is why He says here that these kind of desires are "only good." 

The wicked, though, have no sch guarantee.  We read that the expectation of the wicked in wrath.  It is helpful for us to see that word "expectation" here.  The reason it is so important is because often what the wicked desire will give them an immediate positive feeling.  The person who abuses alcoholic drinks has an immediate positive response as he feels better and is much more free in his expression of himself.  But he can expect problems later.  Having been a drunkard before I was saved I can concur with God's statement here.  The expectation of the drunkard is only wrath and bad consequences.  There is the hangover that comes in the morning.  There is also the realization that the supposed freedom that you felt the night before took away your natural defenses against saying something stupid.  Can't tell you how many times a Friday night bender led to a whole week of consequences with friends and aquaintences.  Another area I want to address here is that of sexual immorality.  The person who is sexually immmoral loves the immediate pleasure provided by it.  Unfortunately, the crisis pregnancy, the positive STD test, and the broken relationships are not so pleasurable.  The pornography may give us a temporary high feeling and sense of thrill as we look at it, but later the bondage that results, the pull into deeper perversion, and the way it leads people to treat the opposite sex as an object can be devastating. 

The Word of God speaks of God's "judgments."  These are things that God has said concerning certain behaviors in life.  When we choose to disobey God and embrace our lfleshly lusts we do so because of the promise of pleasure and immediate satisfaction.  The problem is that God has said what His response will be to such things.  These are His judgments.  He says that problems will result - disasters are on the horizon - and blessing will be forfeited.  These judgments WILL COME upon those who choose to disobey regardless of what God says.  They can expect the wrath of God when they rebel.  God has made this very clear when He said in Romans chapter 1, "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness ofmen who suppress the truth with their unrighteousness."  God's attitude and actions toward ungodliness and unrigteousness have been settled from eternity past.  Those who reject Him and His Word need to know that He has amply published the results of such behavior - and it has never been good.  Therefore the truly wise man knows that blessings await those who embrace righteousness - but for those who chose a wicked lifestyle - only wrath awaits them.