A righteous man hates falsehood,But a wicked man acts disgustingly and shamefully.
Righteousness guards the one whose way is blameless, But wickedness subverts the sinner.
Proverbs 13:5-6
One of the characteristics of Proverbs are these black/white contrasts. Which is interesting, because life isn’t always that clear or in such stark terms. If Proverbs is giving us wisdom for life, why wouldn’t it deal in more shades of grey? Why not give nuances and degrees? But instead, clear lines of opposites are drawn for us.
The wisdom here is that life often does come down to clear, categorical issues. We can get confused through details or feelings or people involved. But Proverbs is giving us truth to cut clearly through all the fogginess in life and see what’s really at stake.
Verses 5 and 6 are set apart in Proverbs 13 because of the clear contrast between righteous and wicked. Ultimately, you will one day stand before Jesus and give an account for your life. At such a point, there is no shade of grey; no excuses, nuances, or explanations. You are either righteous or not; you either believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God for salvation or you do not.
With that as an introduction, let’s chat about these two verses:
Verse 5 – ‘hates’ is a key word in the first part of this verse. A righteous person is not just one who avoids falsehood; or grimaces in displeasure. But hates, actively hates the sin of falsehood and lying. There is no coziness between righteousness and untruth – though we often attempt to live in that pretend ‘coziness.’ We might expect the next part to be that the wicked love falsehood, being a complete opposite. But instead, Proverbs goes the next step. Because of that love for falsehood, here is the result of the wicked person’s life: they act in disgusting and shameful ways. Truth is not an idle spectator in life, but dramatically shapes and transforms us. Without that truth, we allow sin to run rampant, always leading to what is more and more inappropriate and disrespectful.
Verse 6 – Just as truth is active in verse 5, so also righteousness is active in verse 6. Here it is a guardian. I’m thinking of guard rails on a dangerous curve. Now, I’ve never really used them in my driving, but I sure could use them in facing temptations. So the danger is in the temptation, and the righteousness that I have in Jesus Christ keeps me going on His path. I’ve fallen off on those temptations in the past; I don’t enjoy the spiritual crash, or the harm it does to others. Sin is tempting, but the protection and safety of righteousness gives a steady joy. The exact opposite is true with the sinner. Wickedness brings subversion or ruin. While the sinner may want to have a joyful life, wickedness pulls that away. It’s as if the good life is close, almost attainable, but wickedness keeps it just out of reach. How miserable is that!
Thank you for joining me. I hope God blessed you as we chatted about His Word together. Next week, we will chat over Proverbs 13:7-11!