Wisdom From the ProverbsSample

Proverbs 10

This proverb almost played out like a children's story to me.

There was the character of The Righteous and the character of The Wicked. I pictured a hero and a villain – one who does what is right and one who does what is wrong.

Thankfully, in this 'fairy tale,' the hero gets the good treatment, and the villain gets the bad.

Things promised to the righteous are:

• Rescue from death (v2)
• Well-fed (v3)
• Blessings on their heads (v6)
• Remembered with blessing (v7)
• Rewarded with life (v16)
• Given what they desire (v24)

The list goes on and on.

However, the things promised to the wicked are:

• Denial of their cravings (v3)
• A name that rots (v7)
• A heart of little value (v20)
• Receiving what they dread (v24)
• A life cut short (v27)
• They will perish (v28)

It goes without saying that righteous living pays huge dividends, whilst a wicked life reaps deadly rewards.

So, how do we live a righteous life and reap blessing rather than curses?

I'm drawn to the verse in Philippians 4:8-9 which says this: 'And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honourable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me -- everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.'

Essentially these verses encourage us to live, dwell on and abide in good things. The promise attached to this way of life is that the peaceful person of God will be present with us. So again, I ask you -- how can we live a righteous life?

Practically speaking, scripture encourages us to:

• Work hard -- verse 4 says that 'idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring riches.' An honest person works hard, just as we are encouraged to in Colossians 3:23. Let us work as if the Lord is our employer and put all that we have into the roles that we have been entrusted to.
• Behave wisely – wisdom is the essence of the book of Proverbs. We must measure and weigh our actions, words and behaviours to ensure that they are of God. Unwise behaviour, recklessness and foolishness are typically not conducive with righteous living.
• Live with integrity – integrity means (according to Dictionary.com) 'adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character.' Living with these qualities means abiding by the law, behaving justly and having and demonstrating Godly character. This kind of living would be considered righteous.
• Love – verse 12 says that 'love covers all offences.' When we love one another, this shines through even the darkest of circumstances and overrides wrongdoing. When we love each other instead of hating, we are demonstrating the very nature of God as He is love.
• Speak truth – verse 32 says, 'the lips of the righteous know what is appropriate, but the mouth of the wicked, only what is perverse.' To live righteously, we must speak the truth, forgoing lies and even white lies, speaking what is appropriate and honest.