The Pervasiveness of Evil

Proverbs 6 continues with God’s characterization of the wicked.  Let’s read verses 12-15:  A worthless person, a wicked man,
Walks with a perverse mouth;  13 He winks with his eyes,
He shuffles his feet,
He points with his fingers; 14 Perversity is in his heart,
He devises evil continually,
He sows discord.  15 Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly;
Suddenly he shall be broken without remedy.

As I read this description of a worthless person and a wicked man I am struck by how pervasive the wickedness is.  Wickedness affects every part of the man’s life.  It affects his mouth, his eyes, his feet, his fingers and his “heart”.  These words sound harsh but yet it is such an accurate description of wickedness and the effect it has on mankind.  In verse 14 we are told that the wicked man devises evil continually and sows discord.  These words sound so harsh but yet, they are so true.

If you think of the societies and cultures where the rule of law is absent, where there is very little external pressure to do what is right, evil and wickedness run amok.  People constantly and consistently take advantage of others.  The words of Proverbs really do fit the behavior of men.  We should be thankful that we live in a country and culture where, because of the influence of the gospel of Jesus Christ, there is an external pressure against wickedness and there are many who, because of the presence of the Holy Spirit, have an internal desire to live in obedience to the Lord, not wickedness.

I wish that those who desire to remove God from our culture could understand the warning against wickedness that we see here in Proverbs 6.

In wisdom,
Eric