An evil man lives an evil life a good man lives a godly life.” -(TLB) What sort of reputation do you have? How do others see you? Live a life that exemplifies Jesus Christ. You will be known, before God and man, by your actions. “Dishonest people walk along the crooked path they have made, but the innocent travel the straight course they have laid.” -(VOICE) “Because the wicked are unfair, their violence boomerangs and destroys them.” -(TLB) What was intended for evil against another will come back and hurt the person who set the trap. Solomon tells us that there is a boomerang effect to sin. Those who are unfair, unjust, and uncaring with others will in the end be caught in the traps that they have set for others. “Wicked people will be swept up in their own violence because they refuse to seek justice.” -(VOICE) “Make it to the top by lying and cheating get paid with smoke and a promotion-to death!” -(MSG) You cannot get ahead by walking on or taking advantage of others. Those who think that they can “put one over” on others will receive their just reward, death. ![]() Once again we find another proverb that piggy-backs on the previous one. “The fortune made by a swindler is a fast-burning fog and a recipe for death.” -(VOICE) Your plans need to also include God’s injunction as well for without His blessing your plans will go nowhere fast. Solomon tells us that if you truly want to get ahead it will involve careful planning, not last minute conjecture. “A well-thought-out plan will work to your advantage, but hasty actions will cost you dearly.” -(VOICE) “Haughty and arrogant eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin. They are living a life of pride and arrogance thinking that they can “put one over” on others. Those people who put up a false front, thinking they can fool others and God, are in fact sinning. “The lamp of the wicked lights his way a proud look, an arrogant heart-all sin.” -(VOICE) He wants us to keep our motives right and pure before Him. What He desires is for us to be just and fair with others. Yahweh is not impressed with our atonement and sacrifices if there is not a change of heart behind them. ![]() “To do what is right and to seek justice-these please Him more than sacrifice.” -(VOICE) He is well aware of our motives and intentions. He knows our inmost thoughts and feelings. “There is a way which seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but its end is the way of death.” -(AMP)Īs has already been stated we may fool some of the people some of the time, but we cannot fool God. This proverb echoes a proverb that Solomon had shared back in Proverbs 14. “Everyone may think his own way of living is right, but the Eternal examines our hearts.” -(VOICE) They have what looks like an overwhelming, staggering job to do.) (Remember to be praying for those in leadership. The authority that they have was given them by the Almighty One and we must respect them, even if we do not agree with all that they do. It is He who directs their thoughts and he who guides their pathways. We find Solomon immediately reminding us that God is in control of the rulers and leaders of this World. “The king’s heart is like a channel of water directed by the Eternal: He chooses which way He bends it.” -(VOICE) You may fool me, but you can’t fool God!” ~F. “God knows what you’ve been doing, everything you’ve been doing. “You can fool some of the people some of the time, including yourself, but you can’t fool God.” People appear to have good intentions, but God really knows what our true motives are. Solomon teaches us that everyone thinks that their way is right and it may be from their viewpoint, but God weighs the intentions of the heart. Solomon takes this a bit further than Abe did. “You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.” ”Ībraham Lincoln is quoted to have had said: To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. “Every man’s way is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs and examines the hearts. Clean living before God and justice with our neighbors mean far more to God than religious performance. We justify our actions by appearances God examines our motives. ![]() ![]() To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. Growing with God: A daily devotional with Tonia Slimm.Ī person may think their own ways are right, but the Lord weighs the heart.
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